Scottie Scheffler vs. Xander Schauffele: Travelers Championship Matchup Bet

Bet on Xander Schauffele to beat a slumping Scottie Scheffler at this week's Travelers Championship.

Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele line up putts green during the first round of the 2024 Masters. / Adam Cairns-USA TODAY Network

All the best golfers on the PGA Tour will tee it up at the Travelers Championship tomorrow. Well, almost all the best golfers.

Rory McIlroy has decided to withdraw from the event, citing the need to prepare for the European swing of the calendar including the British Open. It's hard not to think that allowing the U.S. Open to slip through his grasp this past Sunday also played a significant role in his decision.

Regardless, it's now clear who the two top dogs are at this week's event; Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele.

DraftKings Sportsbook is offering odds on which of the two major champions will finish further up the leaderboard this week. Unsurprisingly, Scheffler is the betting favorite, but is he the right side to back?

Scottie Scheffler vs. Xander Schauffele Odds

• Scottie Scheffler -160
• Xander Schauffele +130

At -160 odd, DraftKings is giving Scheffler an implied probability of 61.54% of beating Schauffele this week.

Scottie Scheffler vs. Xander Schauffele Prediction

The big question surrounding the No. 1 golfer in the world entering this week is whether or not he can bounce back from last week's poor performance at the U.S. Open. He recorded just four birdies all tournament en route to a T41 performance. We should expect him to rebound in a big way this week, but if we look to the women's game we may see a sign of what's to come for Scheffler.

Nelly Korda, the No. 1 women's ranked golfer in the world, was on a dominant run that mirrored Scheffler's. She won five times in six starts and looked near invincible heading into the women's U.S. Open. Then, a disastrous performance led to her missing the cut at the major and she followed it up with another missed cut at last week's Meijer LPGA Classic. Not to say the same thing will happen to Scheffler, but it goes to show that even the best in the world can hit a bump in the road.

Meanwhile, Schauffele returns to an event he won just two years ago. Now, he's been playing the best golf of his career and will feel a little bit lighter this time around with the Wanamaker Trophy on his shelf.

Last week at the U.S. Open, he finished second in the field in strokes-gained approach en route to a T7 finish. He has now finished inside the top 10 in seven of his last nine starts.

It may be blasphemous to bet against Scheffler, but I look at this as an opportunity to bet against a golfer who could potentially be entering a slump. Wagering on golf is like investing in the stock market and now is the time to sell a few Scottie shares.

Pick: Xander Schauffele +130

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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You can check out all of Iain's bets here!