Action Report: Bettors targeting Cameron Young, Rory McIlroy ahead of Wells Fargo Championship

The Wells Fargo Championship is another Designated event on the PGA Tour, meaning most all of the top players are teeing it up this week at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The course has hosted the 2017 PGA Championship and 2022 Presidents Cup, which makes it no surprise that bettors at the BetMGM online sportsbook are targeting players who have had success on major championship golf courses.

As of Wednesday, Cameron Young and Rory McIlroy are the two most popular players.

Young (+2000) is drawing the most handle (16.9%) on the second-most tickets (8.9%), while McIlroy (+750) has the second-most handle (16.6%) on the third-most tickets (7.2%) as the outright betting favorite.

The 25-year-old Young has yet to win on the PGA Tour but has come very close, including a runner-up finish at this event last year when it was played at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm.

He has three top-10 finishes this season, including finishing second at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play. Last season he had six top-5 finishes, including the PGA Championship and Open Championship.

It was a disappointing Presidents Cup for Young, going 1-2-1 at Quail Hollow, but he got some familiarity with the course which will help this week.

Meanwhile, for McIlroy, Quail Hollow is a place he’s loved over the years.

He has won three times at the venue and twice set the course record (61). He claimed his first career PGA TOUR win here in 2010, won by seven shots five years later, and is the most recent winner at Quail Hollow (2021).

This will be his first event since the Masters, but it appears McIlroy is refreshed and ready to compete again.

Another betting favorite this week is Viktor Hovland (+1800). The 25-year-old has the third-highest handle (12.3%) on the most tickets (9.3%). Hovland finished T-3 at the 2021 event, which is his only appearance.

Hovland recently finished T-7 at the Masters, so he has some momentum going into the event.

Young, McIlroy and Hovland represent BetMGM’s biggest liabilities for the week. Here’s a look at the current handle and ticket leaders ahead of the opening round:

Current Handle & Tickets

Handle

1) Cameron Young – 16.9%

2) Rory McIlroy – 16.6%

3) Viktor Hovland – 12.3%

4) Jordan Spieth – 5.4%

5) Patrick Cantlay – 4.6%

Tickets

1) Viktor Hovland – 9.3%

2) Cameron Young – 8.9%

3) Rory McIlroy – 7.2%

4) Jordan Spieth – 6.9%

5) Max Homa – 5.2%

Not only is Homa the defending champion, but he also won the 2019 edition when it was played at Quail Hollow. He’s +2500 to win, but only drawing 5.2% of tickets and 3.9% of the handle after missing his last two cuts.

Spieth (+1800) doesn’t have much experience at Quail Hollow besides a dominant Presidents Cup last fall, but is entering with back-to-back top-5 finishes at the Masters and RBC Heritage, where he lost in a playoff.

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