Patrick Cantlay and Rory McIlroy are currently tied for first after Thursday’s Round 1 at -5. Like always at Pinehurst No. 2, it’s only going to get tougher from here on out as the greens continue to bake and firm up.
Here are my best US Open picks ahead of Round 2 on Friday, June 14.
Best U.S. Open Round 2 picks
Bryson DeChambeau - Lowest Round 2 LIV Score (+400)
We are already on this play for the full tournament from our US Open props article here on Covers earlier this week, but I don’t see any reason not to go after it in the second round as well. Bryson DeChambeau was the lowest-scoring LIV golfer in Round 1, and I don’t think there is any reason to believe we won’t see a similar result on Friday.
Not only is DeChambeau the best golfer on LIV, but there is an argument to be made that he is the second-best golfer on the planet behind Scottie Scheffler. DeChambeau was brilliant on Thursday, ranking in the top 10 among the field in strokes gained around the green, strokes gained off the tee, total strokes gained, driving distance, and greens in regulation percentage.
The most impressive part of his T4 status is the fact that he actually lost strokes putting. The same thing occurred when DeChambeau lost strokes putting in Round 1 of the PGA Championship, something that he did not do for the remainder of the week.
Assuming that is the case once again, we should see even stronger rounds from DeChambeau moving forward.
Pick: Bryson DeChambeau — Lowest Round 2 LIV Score (+400 at DraftKings)
Tiger Woods to beat Phil Mickelson in Round 2 (-130)
No, this is not 2005. Yes, both guys are incredibly near the end of their historic careers.
With that said, -130 is just too short of a number considering how much better Tiger Woods looked than Phil Mickelson on Thursday. While neither necessarily looked good, Tiger at least put together a relatively competitive round that resulted in a T93 standing at +4.
Phil, on the other hand, is near the bottom of the entire leaderboard at T149 after his +9 performance. Not a single club in Mickelson’s bag was working as he ranks 130th or lower among the field in strokes gained putting, strokes gained on the approach, strokes gained off the tee, total strokes gained, driving distance, driving accuracy and greens in regulation percentage.
Woods outranks him in every single one of those categories, and his driver actually looked particularly impressive as he found nearly every fairway.
Pick: Tiger Woods to beat Phil Mickelson in Round 2 (-130 at DraftKings)
Byeong-Hun An to beat Sahith Theegala (-120)
Just like the Tiger over Phil play, there is just too much value to pass up on Byeong-Hun An at -120. Sahith Theegala struggled nearly everywhere on Thursday: his short game was nonexistent while he struggled mightily to contain his driver.
It is the second variable that makes me particularly concerned. At Pinehurst No. 2, the track is going to get faster as the week progresses, and the number one thing you need to do is hit fairways so that you can land your next approach shot on the green as accurately as possible.
If you are hitting out of the rustic rough, it will be almost impossible for golfers to keep the ball on the green when it lands (even if you are fortunate enough for it to be accurate anyway). Subsequently, you will be forced to scramble on extremely complex green structures, which is the quickest way to run up your score here.
An also outranked Theegala in strokes gained around the green, strokes gained off the tee, strokes gained total, driving distance, and driving accuracy in Round 1.
Pick: Byeong-Hun An to beat Sahith Theegala (-120 at DraftKings)
Latest U.S. Open odds
- Rory McIlroy (+240)
- Scottie Scheffler (+600)
- Ludvig Aberg (+700)
- Bryson DeChambeau (+750)
- Patrick Cantlay (+900)
- Xander Schauffele (+1,600)
- Collin Morikawa (+2,200)
- Brooks Koepka (+2,500)
- Tony Finau (+3,000)
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
