Live Betting on Golf Strategy Guide for 2025
Updated:
Live betting on golf is one of the best live sports betting experiences available at online sportsbooks. With multiple rounds and a slower pace of play than other sports, there’s actually time to do some research in the moment, and place a well thought out bet.
Read on for more information about live betting at golf betting sites.
Types of Live Bets in Golf
There are five main types of live golf bets you can make, with some greater explanations on some.
- Outright Winner: Betting on a player to win the tournament.
- Head-to-Head Matchups: Betting on one player to outperform another.
- Live Hole-by-Hole Betting: Betting on a player’s performance on specific holes.
- Proposition Bets (Props): Betting on specific events or outcomes (e.g., total birdies, whether a player will hit a certain score).
- Live Over/Under: Betting on certain performance metrics (e.g., total strokes in a round).
Live Betting on Golf Tournament Winners
This one is the most straight forward. Any time throughout an event, odds will change on who will win the golf tournament depending on how well everyone is playing. Naturally, the favorites will have shorter odds to win and the long shots will have odds that entail a greater payout.
Placing a bet on the outright winner can take place any time during the tournament. Maybe you know Matt Kuchar tends to play great on Saturday’s and he’s well back of the leaders. His odds could be +8000, but you expect him to have a great round so you lay some cash on him. Thanks to live betting, you can do this any time during the round as well, through to the conclusion of the event.
For the major tournaments, odds will be more enticing for the bettor simply because so many quality players are competing. For lesser events where the field of golfers is weaker, you won’t find as good of odds as you will for the top competitors.
Head to Head Live Betting in Golf
Before a round of golf, there may be 2 or 3 members in each group teeing off together. You can place a wager on who might emerge victorious within that group or if they will match the same score during that round. This is commonly referred to as two-ball betting in golf.
Live betting lets you make these bets at any time, and odds will change in relation to how the between the golfers unfolds.
Typically, there is also a bet you can lay on the match ending up in a tie. Depending on the event, odds throughout the match will fluctuate, depending on which golfers are winning and which golfers are losing. This bet can only be placed before the golfers have teed off because odds won’t be available once the round begins.
Live Betting on Individual Hole Results
If two golfers are competing in a match or stroke play event, sportsbooks often offer live betting lines on who will win the current hole they’re playing.
During bigger tournaments, sportsbooks also offer markets on how a certain player will do a single hole. For example, will Scottie Scheffler birdie the 16th?
Key Factors for Live Betting on Golf
The beauty of live betting on any sport is you get a chance to see how a player or team is performing in the event you’re about to bet on before placing the bet. This can give you a lot of information if you know what to look for. In golf, these are the key factors for live betting:
- Player form and performance trends.
- Course conditions (weather, terrain, wind, etc.).
- Tournament structure (e.g., stroke play vs. match play).
- Player and caddie dynamics during a round.
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Live Betting Strategies for Golf
Most of the tools used for live betting strategies in golf are similar to the ones you’d use before the tournament tees off. But when live betting, those tools are spitting out real-time information that is often better informed.
Technology and Tools For Live Betting on Golf
Many websites offer deep statistical analysis for the PGA Tour, but it might not get better than the PGA Tour website itself, especially when it comes to following a tournament in progress. PGA TOURCAST is a great way to follow players live on the course, as it includes not just their shot tracker, but also tracks their strokes gained numbers through the round and compares them to other players.
There’s also information about course conditions and statistics.
One technological tool that is available for live betting and not pre-tournament betting is actually watching the event you’re betting on. Most PGA Tournaments are at least partially televised on major networks, or carried live on the Golf Channel. But you can stream different groups or specific holes on ESPN+ and Peacock.
How to Spot Value in Live Golf Odds
Now that you have the information, how do you use it?
Understand that bookmakers are watching a lot of the same analytic tools that you are, so they will inform the live odds they’re posting. But you an find advantageous lines by zeroing in on players who’s underlying numbers reflect a better score than what they’ve posted.
For instance, TOURCAST will show strokes gained numbers for a golfer compared to the rest of the field. If you can identify a golfer who is strong there, but struggling on the leaderboard because of a single bad hole, it could be a good opportunity to pounce. If someone is gaining a good amount of strokes off the tee and approaching a hole that has been rewarding good tee shots, there could be money to be made.
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Bankroll Management for Live Betting Golf
Live betting golf tournaments can be a lot of fun, especially if you’re winning, but remember to pace yourself. Bettors should treat their live wagers like they do their pregame wagers when it comes to bankroll management.
I like to set limits prior to a round, typically a monetary limit. If that’s $100, I might decide to allow myself $50 on a live bet I really like, and spread $10 on five others.
Do not chase your losses or stray from your plan. Sometimes, it’s not your day, and as long as you’re only betting with money you’re comfortable with losing, that’s OK.
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There are plenty of different options at your disposal to bet on golf throughout a tournament and during a specific round.
Betting on these lines can be fruitful (not to mention that it can grow your bankroll) if you’re familiar with the course, player history on certain holes, or how they certain players fare against their competition.
As always, we have you covered if you want to learn more about how to bet on sports.
Golf Live Betting FAQs
What is live betting on golf?
Live golf betting means betting on a golf tournament that is already underway. It ranges from betting on who will win the tournament to betting on how a golfer will score on their next hole and everything in between.
What are the advantages of live betting on golf?
As with most live betting, the advantage for bettors is additional information: bettors can see how a player is performing on any given day in any given week and wager accordingly.
How does live betting on golf differ from traditional pre-tournament betting?
The main difference is the types of wagers that will be available. Live betting includes a lot more options for each golfer, though not all of the pre-tournament betting markets (like odds to make/miss the cut and odds to finish top ten) will be available at all times once the tournament starts.
What are the risks associated with live betting on golf?
The risks are the same as betting on any sport: there is no such thing as a certainty in sports betting, and playing within your limits is always paramount. Just imagine some poor bettor was on tilt and live bet on Jean Van de Velde to win the 1999 Open Championship at -2000 odds, only to watch him blow a three-shot lead on the final hole. There will be more epic collapses in golf and bettors always need to be careful.
What types of live bets can you make on golf?
For the most part, all the same pre-tournament betting markets will still be open during the tournament, though that will depend on both the sportsbook and the time of day. Additionally, bettors will have access to new markets once the tournament starts, like how a golfer will perform on his/her next hole.
Are the odds different for live betting on golf compared to pre-tournament betting?
Yes, the odds will constantly be changing once the tournaments starts. As players move up the leaderboard, their odds to win will shorten, and vice versa. The juice is often a little higher on live-betting markets, as well.
Sports & Entertainment Writer
Michael "Hound Dog" Harrison is well known in the sports industry as the resident statistician for the SC with Jay Onrait Show. He has worked at TSN for over 19 years, is the CEO of his "All Bets Par Off" weekly golf betting videos and his HDOG POD, along with several others.
