A look ahead to the golf majors in 2021

2020 has been a strange year, there’s no denying that. But for golfers Colin Morikawa and Bryson DeChambeau, it’s been a fantastic year, with both men winning their first major titles. We may have only seen three of the four major tournaments go ahead, amidst the ongoing pandemic, but the third and final title was wrapped up just last month, with Dustin Johnson winning his second championship, but his first green jacket, when he won the Masters. As we say goodbye to 2020, and look ahead to 2021, when the Masters will be in its usual slot of being the first major tournament of the year, let’s take a look at the four tournaments in more detail.

The Masters

Five months after his previous success, Johnson will return to Augusta National to retain his coveted green jacket. The early golf betting odds remain in the American’s favour, with Johnson 15/2 at the time of writing, ahead of Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy who are both 10/1. Not only was Johnson this year’s winner, but he also holds the record score in the tournament of 268, or 20 under par. Augusta will play host to the first golf major of the year between April 8-11th. The Masters is the only one of the four tournaments to be held at the same course, year after year.

PGA Championship

The PGA is the second major of the year, and while traditionally it was played in mid-August, before Labor Day weekend, since 2019 it has been played in May, on the weekend before Memorial Day. In 2021, the tournament will be held at Kiawah Island in South Carolina – the same location as the 2012 tournament, in which McIlroy secured his second title and at the time, put in a record-breaking performance. It will be the second time that Kiawah has hosted the PGA. The defending champion Morikawa is some way down the pecking order, in terms of the early odds for success – but he was very much the underdog this year too. The 2021 PGA is pencilled in for May 20-23rd.

US Open

2021 will mark the 120th edition of the US Open and Torrey Pines golf course in San Diego is the confirmed course. In 2008, Torrey Pines hosted its first ever major golf tournament and it was one to remember, with Tiger Woods forcing a play-off with Rocco Mediate after putting a birdie on the 18th hole. It proved to be an epic battle and one where Woods came out on top – winning his third and most recent US Open title to date. DeChambeau went on to win 2020’s tournament at Winged Foot, New York. Next year’s US Open is scheduled to take place between June 17-20th.

Open Championship

2020 marked the first year since the Second World War that The Open didn’t take place as scheduled. Royal St George’s golf club in the English county of Kent was set to host the 149th edition of the tournament – and instead, it will be the 2021 venue. It has been rescheduled to take place between July 15-18th. The Open was last contested at Royal St George’s a decade previous, when Darren Clarke won the Claret Jug, and since then, has undergone a number of alterations to the course. The 2019 Open was won by Irish golfer Shane Lowry at Royal Portrush in County Antrim. Like all the other golfing markets at this early stage, fortune favours Johnson.