The 2025 Memorial Tournament opens on Thursday, with Scottie Scheffler defending his championship from a year ago.
Want in on the action? Here are the betting odds and favorites for the weekend, but not before some wager ideas from NBCSports.com betting expert Brad Thomas.
Top German: Stephan Jaeger (-138) over Matti Schmid
There’s no denying that Matti Schmid has been playing stellar golf. He was battling with Ben Griffin at the Charles Schwab in hopes of picking up his first PGA Tour win. Unfortunately for him, he came up short.
Even in defeat, his numbers were impressive. He gained +3.9 strokes on approach and +8.6 on the putting surface — his solo second marked back-to-back top 10 finishes for Schmid.
Had Schmid not played as well last week, this number likely would be closer to -200.
It’s not a massive buy spot for Jaeger but a great sell high spot for Schmid. That doesn’t discount how well Jaeger has played at some big and challenging courses this season.
He had a fantastic start at the PGA Championship. He finished T7 at Truist, T36 at Valspar (where he had a share of the lead after the first round) and a top-20 finish at The Players Championship.
Viktor Hovland to win (+3000)
This week may be one of the scariest weeks when it comes to fading Scottie Scheffler in the outright market. Muirfield Village sets up perfectly for the World No. 1, but I can’t bring myself to bet on him at +280.
If the price is right, playing the “Winner without Scottie Scheffler” market makes sense. Hovland is a golfer I like in that market.
I also like Hovland to be able to stand toe-to-toe with Scheffler and take down this event for the second time in three years.
Muirfield Village is demanding off the tee. At 7,569 yards and a high missed fairway penalty, long drives that find the fairway are at a premium this week. Hovland is accurate off the tee and hits long enough.
Strong approach play with long irons is essential here. Over the last 50 rounds, Hovland is first in the field on approach shots from 175-200 yards.
Hovland’s lack of short game prowess may be his one weakness here. However, his win in 2023 and a T15 finish here last season prove that he has more than enough to get the job done, even against Scheffler.
Memorial Tournament odds (as of Wednesday afternoon, courtesy DraftKings):
- Scottie Scheffler (+280)
- Collin Morikawa (+1600)
- Xander Schauffele (+1600)
- Justin Thomas (+1800)
- Patrick Cantlay (+2200)
- Ludvig Åberg (+2500)
- Tommy Fleetwood (+2500)
- Corey Conners (+3000)
- Viktor Hovland (+3000)
- Shane Lowry (+3500)
- Daniel Berger (+3500)
- Jordan Spieth (+3500)
- Hideki Matsuyama (+3500)
- Si Woo Kim (+4000)
- Sepp Straka (+4000)