The 38th Ryder Cup tees off Friday at the Celtic Manor Resort in the city of Newport, South Wales. After what’s been a rather disappointing golf betting season at Bodog (when Tiger Woods struggles, so do we), we’re expecting interest to pick up considerably for this always popular competition.

While Team Europe is the rather heavy -175 favorite, it’s no surprise that most of the action we’ve booked to date has been on the USA, at +175. Whenever there’s an opportunity for our bettors to back their country, they take us up on it. It was the same way at the World Cup over the summer, when we were heavily exposed whenever the Americans took to the pitch.

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Of course, there’s more to betting on the Ryder Cup than which team wins. One of our more popular wagers concerns who will score the most points for their side.

The co-favorites for the USA are Woods and Steve Stricker, both at 5/1. Even though Tiger hasn’t played his best golf at past Ryder Cups and certainly hasn’t played his best golf this year, we’ve still booked a good deal of action on the world’s number one player. However, most of our bettors have preferred to play the medium to long shots. For example, Zach Johnson at 14/1 has been a particularly popular wager.

Johnson had a strong finish to the 2010 season, finishing in a tie for 9th at the Tour Championship. He also played well in the last major of the year, ending up in a tie for third at Whistling Straits.

Big-hitting Bubba Watson has been another popular pick at 28/1, a pretty tempting number to get a guy who had four top-10 finishes this year, including one victory. Watson, who lost the PGA Championship playoff to Martin Kaymer might be a rookie when it comes to the Ryder Cup, but he’s proven he can compete with the best in the world.

As for the European side, the co-favorites to score the most points for their team are Kaymer and Rory McIlroy, both at 11/2. So far Kaymer has been the heaviest bet option, followed by McIlroy. But if you’re looking for a bigger payoff, how about Francesco Molinari at 14/1? Molinari had a very strong finish to the European Tour season, finishing in the top 10 of his last five tournaments.

As for the correct final score of the Ryder Cup, the favorite is Europe 14.5-13.5 at 8/1. But if you want to bet on the USA to pull out a squeaker, you can get them at 10/1 to win by the same score of 14.5-13.5  

I will be posting weekly articles including betting previews, matchups and the inside scoop from a bookmakers point of view right here at Doc's Sports.  Read my past articles - Click Here, and learn more about Bodog sportsbook - click here. If you're ready to set up an account and start playing I'd like to offer you a Sign up Bonus - Click Here.  Enjoy the Bodog Experience.