British Open Longshot Picks: 3 Sleepers Who Could Win the 2026 Open Championship

British Open Sleepers at a Glance

• Justin Rose (+3300)
• Hideki Matsuyama (+5500)
• Brooks Koepka (+7000)

The season’s final major is here as the 2026 Open Championship takes place this week at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England.

Using the British Open odds from FanDuel Sportsbook, which longshot outright winner picks should be on your radar ahead of Thursday's opening round?

All golf odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook and may change after this article is published.

British Open Sleepers: Long Shot Picks for This Week

Justin Rose (+3300)

Rose may not be the longest hitter anymore, but experience matters at The Open.

The Englishman famously burst onto the scene with his unforgettable finish at Royal Birkdale as an amateur in 1998, and he has since built one of the strongest Open Championship résumés of his generation.

Rose continues to rank among the game's better approach players, and his accuracy off the tee should help him avoid the penal bunkers that define Birkdale.

Hideki Matsuyama (+5500)

Matsuyama is one of my favorite longshot plays. While his Open Championship résumé has been a bit inconsistent, he has shown he can contend on links courses with Open finishes of T6 in 2013, T14 at Royal Birkdale in 2017, T13 in 2023, and T16 last year.

Matsuyama's biggest strength is his elite ball-striking. He continues to rank among the world's best iron players, and his ability to control trajectory and flight the ball in windy conditions makes him an excellent fit for links golf.

A former Masters champion with plenty of major championship experience, Matsuyama has proven he can stay patient when scoring conditions become difficult. The biggest question is always the putter, but if he has even an average week on the greens, he has the tee-to-green game to contend with anyone in the field.

Brooks Koepka (+7000)

Koepka is rarely considered a true longshot in majors, but at 70/1, he's an intriguing value.

His five major championships speak for themselves, and Royal Birkdale should reward his controlled driving and ability to hit penetrating iron shots in the wind. Koepka also finished inside the top 10 the last time The Open was played at Birkdale, proving the course suits his game.

If he gets into contention on Sunday, few players in the field have a better track record under major championship pressure.

Golf Betting FAQ

What does it mean to bet on a golfer to win outright?

An outright winner bet — sometimes called a "to win" bet — is a wager on a specific golfer to finish first in the tournament. Because golf fields typically range from 70 to 156 players, winning outright is difficult, which is why odds for most players are expressed as large positive numbers (e.g., +1200 or +5000). A $100 wager on a +1200 golfer would return $1,200 in profit if that player wins.

What is a Top 5, Top 10, or Top 20 finish bet?

Finish position bets let you wager on a golfer to finish within a specified range on the final leaderboard, regardless of whether they win. A Top 10 bet pays out if the player finishes anywhere from first through 10th place. Odds are naturally shorter than outright markets to reflect the higher likelihood of success — a player might be +1200 to win but only +200 to finish Top 10.

How does a make/miss the cut bet work?

Most professional golf tournaments feature a 36-hole cut, trimming the field halfway through the tourney; the exact number of golfers who make the cut varies by event. A make/miss the cut bet is a simple two-way wager on whether a specific golfer will survive that cut and play the weekend.

What is a head-to-head matchup bet in golf?

A head-to-head matchup bet pairs two golfers against each other for the full tournament or for a single round, with the bet paying out based on which player finishes higher on the leaderboard.

What is a first-round leader bet?

A first-round leader bet is a wager on which golfer will post the lowest score in the first round (usually on Thursday). First-round leader bets tend to carry large odds given the size of the field and the variance of one-day results.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.