US PGA Championship Friday Betting Tips: Interesting double attracts

The opening round of the 108th PGA Championship is in the bag and, if anything was learned, it’s that Aronimink Golf Club will certainly be no pushover this week. With dry and warm weather forecast for the remainder of the event, we should be in for an intriguing contest on a hopefully firm-and-fast course in Pennsylvania.

Here are my US PGA Championship Friday betting tips...

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Leaderboard after round one:

T1 – Scottie Scheffler (-3)

T1 – Aldrich Potgieter (-3)

T1 – Stephan Jaeger (-3)

T1 – Min Woo Lee (-3)

T1 – Ryo Hisatsune (-3)

T1 – Martin Kaymer (-3)

T1 – Alex Smalley (-3)

The variety and intricacies of Aronimink have left us with an eclectic, tightly-packed leaderboard at the end of day one, with the top 48 players separated by just three shots.

Seven contenders are tied for 1^st place on -3, with the eye immediately drawn to that ominous figure of defending champion Scottie Scheffler. A month on from finishing 2^nd at Augusta, the world No. 1 was strong in every department, and there is every chance he’ll build on that in his quest to retain the Wanamaker Trophy.

Min Woo Lee is the only other top-50 player at the top of a leaderboard that packs plenty of international flavour. 2010 PGA Championship winner Martin Kaymer rolled back the years to bely his lack of form on LIV, whilst fellow German Stephan Jaeger birdied four of his first six holes to set the early pace before settling for a round of 67.

Nobody putted better than big-hitting South African youngster Aldrich Potgieter in round one, though it was Japanese talent Ryo Hisatsune who set the standard off the tee. Meanwhile, Alex Smalley will be looking to continue his sound run of form of late in one of the game’s biggest events.

Just one shot behind these leaders is another group of seven that includes major winners: Patrick Reed, Xander Schauffele and Shane Lowry. They are joined by consistent major performer Corey Conners, the American duo of Sahith Theegala and Max Greyserman, and PGA Tour rookie, England’s Daniel Brown.

For all of the quality on show, there were also some notable no-shows on Thursday. Masters champion and world No. 2 Rory McIlroy is the most high profile of these, doing very little well to card a four-over 74. Meanwhile, two shots further back is Bryson DeChambeau, who drove the ball well but struggled in every other area, particularly with the intricacies around the putting surfaces. Both of these players – who were among the top five in the betting – will need to find a low one just to make the cut today.

SELECTIONS

Market leaders: Scottie Scheffler 7/4, Xander Schauffele 9/1, Jon Rahm 14/1, Min Woo Lee 14/1, Brooks Koepka 28/1, Cameron Young 28/1

There are so many players still live as we enter day two but after his promising start, it’s no surprise to see that pre-event favourite Scottie Scheffler has shortened into 7/4.

Xander Schauffele is now the second-favourite at 9/1 following his encouraging opener, while Min Woo Lee was the most significant mover, up to third-favourite at 14/1 having started the week at 80/1.

It was a largely disappointing day for my outright selections, though the one bright spot was Brooks Koepka. He struck the ball beautifully and would’ve no doubt challenged for the lead if the putter wasn’t still misbehaving. If he does find any improvement on the greens, he looks sure to be a danger this week.

There’s little need to be dipping back into that market at this stage with such a wide-open leaderboard. Instead, I’ve come up with two three-ball selections to pique some added interest in round two.

2 pts Rory McIlroy each-way (1/4 - 5 places) @ 20/1

David Puig to beat Aldrich Potgieter & Denny McCarthy

David Puig may have lost this three-ball by four shots yesterday, but I’m confident he can flip the script in round two. He’s done almost everything better than each of his playing partners this year and, having gotten the hang of the greens on the back nine on Thursday, I expect him to rise up the leaderboard.

The Spaniard opened with a one-over 71, though after a sloppy start to his round he actually shot one-under-par over the last 14 holes. He was the second-best driver in the field, ranking inside the top 10 for both distance and accuracy, whilst he also hit the top 20 in greens-in-regulation and was solid around the greens.

A ranking of 100^th in putting was disappointing. However, that is an area in which Puig typically excels, ranking 18^th in SG: Putting among this field in 2026, outperforming the other members of the group.

Aldrich Potgieter came out on top of this trio yesterday, tying the lead with his three-under 67. He was decent in approach, but it was with the putter that he really shone, gaining over five strokes in a field-leading putting display. Sitting 109^th on the greens season-long, those numbers look unsustainable and I’d expect him to give something back today.

The third member of the group is Denny McCarthy, who tied Puig on +1. He did so despite a poor ball-striking display – ranking outside the top 100 with his irons and driver – which will surely catch up with him in round two.

With the long game in such strong shape and further progress expected on the greens, Puig looks the most likely player of this three-ball to kick on. Potgieter’s red-hot putting display should be difficult to sustain, whilst McCarthy will need a significant turnaround from tee to green, meaning the Spanish star is well placed to overturn yesterday’s result.

Sepp Straka to beat Marco Penge & Patrick Rodgers

The three-ball of Sepp Straka, Marco Penge and Patrick Rodgers was of low quality on Thursday. That said, the big Austrian was much better than his playing partners in approach and, with plenty of room to grow both off the tee and on the greens, he looks the best equipped to improve in the second round.

Straka shot a three-over 73 in the opening round, but that was still enough to win this three-ball by two shots over Marco Penge, with Patrick Rodgers a further two shots behind. He ranked 22^nd in SG: Approach, though he was surprisingly inaccurate with the driver, considering he’s been hitting it straight, whilst a ranking of 130^th in SG: Putting isn’t indicative of recent form.

Penge and Rodgers didn’t make a single birdie between them, and they were equally poor on the greens and wayward off the tee. The former hasn’t teed it up since the Zurich Classic due to health concerns and, although Rodgers has been steady in recent weeks, he’s still yet to record a single major top-25.

Straka’s 4^th-place finish at the Cadillac Championship two weeks ago is by far the best piece of form on offer here. With more room for improvement in his game than either of his competitors, I think he’ll stamp his authority on this three-ball.

You can check out Jamie's full US PGA Championship Preview here...