While several expected contenders like Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas missed the cut at Los Angeles Country Club, the 2023 U.S. Open leaderboard is stacked with stars heading into the weekend. Rickie Fowler added to his remarkable start with eight more birdies in the second round on Friday, putting him one stroke ahead of Wyndham Clark. Fowler posted the second-lowest score through 36 holes in U.S. Open history after setting the record for birdies (18) through two rounds. He is +330 (risk $100 to win $330) in the 2023 U.S. Open odds at Caesars Sportsbook, sitting behind Rory McIlroy (3-1) atop the PGA odds board. The first Saturday U.S. Open tee times come at 12:33 p.m. ET.
Some of the other 2023 U.S. Open contenders include Xander Schauffele (4-1), Clark (13-2) and Scottie Scheffler (7-1). Which golfers should you back with your 2023 U.S. Open live bets? With so many experienced players atop the leaderboard, you'll want to check out the U.S. Open predictions from the proven computer model at SportsLine before locking in your 2023 U.S. Open picks for the remaining two rounds.
Our proprietary model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, has been red-hot since the PGA Tour resumed in June of 2020. In fact, the model is up more than $10,200 on its best bets since that point, nailing tournament after tournament.
McClure's model predicted Jon Rahm would finish on top of the leaderboard at the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions and The American Express. And at the 2023 Masters, the model was all over Rahm's second career major victory heading into the weekend. Rahm was two strokes off the lead heading into the third round, but the model still projected him as the winner. It was the second straight Masters win for the model, which also nailed Scottie Scheffler winning in 2022.
In addition, the model included Nick Taylor in its best bets to win the 2023 RBC Canadian Open. That bet hit at +7000, and for the entire tournament, McClure's best bets returned nearly $1,900. McClure's best bets also included Jason Day (17-1) winning outright at the 2023 AT&T Byron Nelson, even though he hadn't won a PGA Tour event since 2018.
This same model has also nailed a whopping nine majors entering the weekend. Anyone who has followed it has seen massive returns.
Now that the cut has been made at the 2023 U.S. Open, SportsLine simulated the final two rounds 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected 2023 U.S. Open leaderboard.
Top 2023 U.S. Open predictions
One major surprise the model is calling for at the U.S. Open 2023: McIlroy, a four-time major champion and the favorite heading into the weekend, stumbles down the stretch and fails to win his first major since 2014. McIlroy is off to a blistering start after opening with two rounds of 67 or lower.
However, McIlroy has struggled to close tournaments in recent weeks, shooting 72 or higher in three of his last four final rounds. He also entered the week ranked 186th in driving accuracy (50.98%) and 113th in strokes gained: putting (-0.048), which doesn't bode well for his chances this weekend at the 2023 U.S. Open. See which golfers to fade here.
Another surprise: Tony Finau, a massive 70-1 longshot, makes a run at the U.S. Open title. He has a much better chance to win it all than his odds imply, so he's a target for anyone looking for a huge payday. Finau is seven shots behind Fowler heading into the weekend after shooting a 1-under-par 69 on Friday.
He has now made the cut in his last four majors and in 24 of the 29 majors he has played. Finau only hit eight of 13 fairways on Friday to go along with 11 of 18 greens in regulation, so he has room for improvement on Saturday and Sunday. The Utah native finished with some momentum after saving par from 20 feet on No. 17 before getting up and down from a greenside bunker to save par on No. 18, and the model thinks he can still make a strong run at his first major title. See who else to pick here.
How to make 2023 U.S. Open picks
The model is also targeting three other golfers with 2023 U.S. Open odds of 25-1 or longer who will make surprising runs, including a massive triple-digit longshot. Anyone who backs these longshots could hit it big. You can only see the model's 2023 U.S. Open picks here.
So, who will win the U.S. Open 2023, and which longshots will stun the golfing world? Check out the 2023 U.S. Open odds below and then visit SportsLine to see the projected 2023 U.S. Open leaderboard, all from the model that's nailed nine golf majors, including this year's Masters.
2023 U.S. Open odds, field
See full the U.S. Open 2023 picks, best bets, and predictions here.
Rory McIlroy +300
Rickie Fowler +330
Xander Schauffele +500
Wyndham Clark +600
Scottie Scheffler +650
Dustin Johnson +1000
Harris English +2200
Min Woo Lee +2500
Cameron Smith +3500
Tony Finau +6000
Sam Bennett +10000
Brooks Koepka +12500
Viktor Hovland +15000
Bryson DeChambeau +22500
Jon Rahm +30000
Sam Burns +35000
Gary Woodland +35000
Denny McCarthy +35000
Collin Morikawa +42500
Si Woo Kim +50000
Justin Suh +50000
Brian Harman +50000
Joaquin Niemann +100000
Sahith Theegala +100000
Dylan Wu +100000
Eric Cole +100000
Tyrrell Hatton +100000
Keith Mitchell +100000
Patrick Cantlay +100000
Charley Hoffman +100000
Matt Fitzpatrick +100000
