Scheffler Leads Odds, but McIlroy Closing the Gap Ahead of Masters
The air of invincibility surrounding Scottie Scheffler has thinned a bit as the world’s No. 1-ranked golfer seeks his first victory of 2025. He returns to Augusta National as the defending Masters champion and remains the consensus pre-tournament favorite, but the odds market shows the gap narrowing between Scheffler and Rory McIlroy.
McIlroy has surged into contention as a strong favorite, having already secured two wins this year — including a signature event at Pebble Beach and The Players Championship. Now in his 11th attempt to complete the career Grand Slam, McIlroy is drawing significant betting interest ahead of the year’s first major.
At DraftKings, Scheffler is the +400 favorite but ranks third in total money wagered (10 percent). McIlroy leads the way with 16 percent of the handle at +650, followed by Bryson DeChambeau, who has drawn 11 percent at longer +1800 odds.
McIlroy also tops the ticket count with 11 percent of all bets to win the tournament, edging out Scheffler (10 percent) and DeChambeau (9 percent).
The story remains consistent at BetMGM, where McIlroy opened at +1200 and has shortened to +650. He leads in money wagered (14.8 percent) and tickets (10.6 percent), although DeChambeau is BetMGM’s biggest liability after seeing his odds shift from +1400 to +1600.
Scheffler remains second in both betting markets, though he isn’t among the top three liabilities. Another player attracting attention is Ludvig Aberg, who finished second to Scheffler at Augusta last year and is third on the liability board.
While Scheffler hasn’t secured a win yet in 2025, his performance has still been elite. After recovering from off-season hand surgery, he hasn’t finished worse than T25 in six starts — including a T3 at the Genesis Invitational and a T2 at the Texas Children’s Houston Open in his most recent appearance.
Jon Rahm, the 2023 Masters champion, enters with the third-shortest odds at +1300. Though Rahm has posted top-10 finishes in every LIV Golf event this year, he hasn’t drawn much interest in the outright winner market — currently outside the top 10 in both bets and handle.