Twelve each-way long shots to follow at the 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon

Just 12 months ago the ease of Brian Harman’s six-shot victory in the rain at Royal Liverpool belied the fact that he had teed off as a massive 175/1 outsider three days earlier. 

Among the high-profile top-ten finishers struggling to keep up with Harman were golfing heavyweights Rory McIlroy (5/1 favourite) and Jon Rahm (12/1), but they were very much outnumbered by the likes of Sepp Straka (runner-up at 100/1), Jason Day (third at 65/1) along with rank outsiders Emiliano Grillo (6th at 300/1) and Shubhankar Sharma (8th at 500/1).

With that in mind, we have cast our eye over all those players priced above 50/1 to try and pinpoint a few candidates who are lurking in the nether regions of the market, but who might just find themselves rubbing shoulders with the tournament leaders coming down the back nine on Sunday afternoon.

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Brian Harman (60/1)

It’s 16 years since Padraig Harrington became the last of only half a dozen post-war players to win back-to-back Open Championship crowns, so the odds are clearly against Brian Harman following suit a year after his surprisingly emphatic six-shot victory at Royal Liverpool.

The American clearly has all the required attributes to defend his title, and is enjoying a consistent if winless campaign, while his affinity for links golf was again in evidence at last weekend’s Scottish Open, where his 12-under-par 21st-place finish suggests his game is not far away from where it was at Hoylake at year ago.

Suggested bet (1): Brian Harman each-way in the Open Championship

 

Sung-Jae Im (55/1)

If a season is measured in Majors alone, then Sung-Jae Im has apparently performed miserably, missing the cut at the Masters, the PGA and the US Open.

However, those poor showings conceal the fact that away from the Majors, all of the South Korean’s last seven outings have produced top-12 finishes (12th, 4th, 9th, 8th, 3rd, 12th and 4th).

The final fourth place came at last weekend’s Scottish Open, so his game is clearly in top shape if he can just convert that form to the Major stage.

Wyndham Clark (55/1)

Winner at Pebble Beach in February and runner-up behind Scottie Scheffler at the Arnold Palmer and the Players, Wyndham Clark’s form declined at the wrong time around the American Majors, but might just have rekindled in time for an assault on the Open.

Since missing the cut at the Memorial and finishing well down the field at the US Open, he finished ninth at the Travelers, and now arrives here fresh from a final-round 62 at The Renaissance Club links that earned him another backdoor top-ten finish at the Scottish Open.

Aaron Rai (55/1)

Although yet to stake a claim for any of the Majors, British hope Aaron Rai has established a strong foothold on the PGA circuit and arrives here in better form than most of his rivals, so it won’t be a surprise to see him rubbing shoulders with the big boys here.

A best-ever 19th place at the US Open served as the springboard for three straight top-seven finishes, tying for the runner-up spot at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, seventh at the John Deere Classic, and rounded off nicely at the Scottish Open, where he carded a seven-under-par 63 on Sunday to tie for fourth alongside the likes of Morikawa, McIlroy, Aberg and Theegala.

Suggested bet (2): Aaron Rai each-way in the Open Championship

Corey Conners (60/1)

If you want your bet to last through the weekend, then you can’t go far wrong with Corey Conners, who hasn’t missed a cut in any of his 18 outings so far this term.

This reliable Tour journeyman is a virtual banker for a decent finish, and just recently has edged his way onto the top ten leaderboards at both the US Open and at last weekend’s Scottish Open, where he proved that he carries all the attributes for a solid performance on links courses.

Louis Oosthuizen (55/1)

Winner of this competition at St Andrews in 2010, Louis Oosthuizen also boasts the rare feat of having come runner-up in all four Majors, including at both the US Open and PGA in 2021, when he also finished third behind Collin Morikawa at the Open.

As one of the original members of LIV, the 41-year-old is more than holding his own on the breakaway Tour, having made the top eight in five of his nine 2024 starts and currently occupying fifth spot in the LIV rankings. He finished fourth at Valderrama’s difficult track at the weekend, and could well make his starting price look huge by Sunday afternoon. 

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Other dark horses to watch

• Jason Day (110/1) - Ended a sequence of three missed Open cuts to share runner-up spot at Liverpool last year, and has shown enough glimpses of form this term to suggest he arrives overpriced.
• Sepp Straka (90/1) - Missed the cut at the Scottish Open and has been off the boil a little since hitting a purple patch of three top-five finishes between the Masters and the US Open - bounceback required, but always distinctly possible. 
• Romain Langasque (150/1) - After tying for second at the Soudal Open in May, the Frenchman arrives in great nick, having backed his ninth place at the BMW International with an impressive assault on the Renaissance Club’s links to finish third at the Scottish Open. 
• Emiliano Grillo (400/1) - Missed the cut at the weekend, but still seems a ridiculously huge price for a links-friendly golfer who finished 12th at St George’s in 2021 before sharing sixth place with Rory McIlroy 12 months ago.
• Shubhankar Sharma (400/1) - Fifth at the Italian Open three weeks ago, the Indian golfer finished strongly to cement a mid-division spot at the Scottish Open, and will be looking to improve on his eye-catching performance that saw him tie for eighth at Liverpool last summer.

Suggested bet (3): Romain Langasque each-way in the Open Championship

The golfers listed above carry such massive prices for a reason, of course, and good as they are, their realistic chances have to be measured against the quality of their more fancied rivals higher in the betting market. 

That said, they all possess the quality to string four good rounds together and put themselves in the mix, and with some bookies paying out on as many as 10 places, these (and others) are certainly worth considering as a good-value each-way play. 

• All listed prices are from Planet Sport Bet and are correct at time of article publication, but could be subject to change

READ MORE: Who will win the 152nd Open Championship: Top tips and best bets for Royal Troon