April represents new beginnings, and for golf fans, there’s no better start to the major season than the start of the major season, which begins on Thursday, April 9, when the 2026 Masters tees off at Augusta National Golf Club. For Rory McIlroy, the 2026 Masters will be the start of his time at Augusta as a Masters and Grand Slam champion. So what should you expect from the 36-year-old when betting on the 2026 Masters? McIlroy is out of the top three favorites and is listed at +1300 in the latest 2026 Masters odds. Prior to last year’s victory, he had lost 15 straight at the Masters, making him a polarizing choice in 2026 Masters betting strategies.
Scottie Scheffler, who has won two of the past four Masters, is the favorite to win the Masters in 2026 at +550, followed by Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau at +1000 odds. Rahm won the 2023 Masters and finished in the top 10 in four of his eight career Masters tournaments, but is he someone you can bet on for the 2026 Masters? Before you pick the 2026 Masters, you should check out golf expert David Bearman’s predictions for the 2026 Masters.
Bearman joined SportsLine after serving as ESPN’s golf researcher from 2008 to 2011 and as deputy editor of ESPN Chalk from 2019 to 2023, writing the site’s weekly golf betting column. This year he achieved 28 positions golf gambling He had the picks (top 5/10/20) in his first 11 tournaments and completely defeated Cam Young at The Players Championship.
Now, Bearman is focusing on the 2026 Masters field and making predictions for sleepers and golfers to avoid. You can only see it here.
2026 Masters Experts’ Top Picks
One of Bearman’s 2026 Masters predictions is that he’s fading Rory McIlroy (+1300) and avoiding him with outright and direct picks. Bearman noted that McIlroy has faced physical challenges, including missing the match against Arnold Palmer due to back pain and finishing T-46 the following week at The Players Championship with four rounds over par. McIlroy hasn’t played since that slump a month ago. But it’s not just physical issues that Bearman is concerned about.
“How do you follow up on last year’s historic victory and achieving the sport’s elusive Grand Slam?” Bearman told SportsLine. “It wasn’t just a guy who finally made money. It was a guy who hit 11 Grand Slams and didn’t get there until last year in every sense imaginable. You can see it in his emotional release after the win and everything that followed. As much as he ‘needed’ that win to complete his career, he doesn’t need that win this time. Oh, and only three golfers in the history of golf have ever won (Nicklaus, Faldo, and Tiger) wearing green jackets back to back, so history isn’t on his side either. ” See who Bearman supports on SportsLine.
How to make a 2026 Masters nomination
Bearman has made his best bet clear, and his top pick outright is a surprising longshot around 60-1 who missed eight cuts last year. He is a perfect fit for the course and anyone who supports him has the potential to be very successful. You can find out who it is only on Sportsline.
What’s your best bet for the 2026 Masters? And should you target overlooked golfers? Check out the 2026 Masters odds below, then visit SportsLine to see David Bearman’s top picks for the 2026 Masters. All of this comes from experts who have made 28 ranked picks in the first 11 tournaments of the year.
2026 Masters odds, field
Click here for Masters picks, best bets and predictions.
Odds from FanDuel (subject to change)
Scotty Scheffler +550
Bryson DeChambeau +1000
Jon Rahm +1000
Rory McIlroy +1300
Xander Schauffele +1500
Ludwig Oberg +1700
Matt Fitzpatrick +2200
Cameron Young +2200
Tommy Fleetwood +2200
Hideki Matsuyama +2700
Robert McIntyre +2700
Justin Rose +3000
Lee Min Woo +3000
Patrick Reed +3500
Collin Morikawa +3500
Kim Si Woo +4500
Jordan Spieth +4500
Brooks Koepka +4500
Chris Gottterp +5500
Russell Henry +5500
Nikolai Hojgaard +5500
Viktor Hovland +5500
Akshay Bhatia +6500
Maverick McNeely +6500
Jake Knapp +7000
Shane Lowry +7000
Patrick Cantlay +7000
Justin Thomas +7000
Adam Scott +7500
Jason Day +7500
Sepp Straka +8000
Tyrrell Hutton +8000
Corey Connors +8000
JJ Spahn +8000
Jacob Bridgman +8000
Sam Burns +10000
Harris English +10000
Rasmus Hoygaard +10000
Cameron Smith +10000
Marco money +10000
Im Sung Jae +12500
Gary Woodland +12500
Kurt Kitayama +15000
Daniel Berger +17500
Ben Griffin +17500
Alex Nolen +17500
Ryan Gerald +17500
Sam Stevens +20000
Keegan Bradley +20000
Harry Hall +20000
Aldrich Potgieter +20000
Christopher Reitan +22500
Max Homa +22500
Ryan Fox +25000
Casey Jarvis +25000
Aaron Rai +25000
Wyndham Clark +25000
Brian Harman +25000
Sergio Garcia +30000
Dustin Johnson +30000
Nicola Echavarria +30000
Carlos Ortiz +30000
Michael Kim +30000
Max Glazerman +40000
Nick Taylor +40000
Haotong Li +40000
Matt McCarty +40000
Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen +40000
Andrew Novak +40000
Tom McKibbin +40000
Sam Valimaki +50000
Michael Brennan +50000
John Keefer +50000
Bubba Watson +75000
Charles Schwartzel +75000
Zach Johnson +75000
Davis Riley +100000
Angel Cabrera +100000
Mason Howell +100000
FIFA Lao Pakdee +100000
Ethan Fang +100000
Brian Campbell +100000
Vijay Singh +100000
Jose Maria Olazabal +100000
Brandon Holtz +100000
Naoyuki Kataoka +100000
Danny Willett +100000
Jackson Herrington +100000
fred couple +100000
Mateo Pulcini +100000
Mike Weir +100000
