Phil Mickelson winning the PGA Championship at aged 50 wasn’t just a sports feelgood story, it was a true triumph against the odds.
‘Lefty’ was widely available at +30000 heading into golf’s second Major of 2021 at Kiawah Island in South Carolina. After all, it was eight years since he’d last won a big one – the Open Championship back in 2013.
Mickelson vs PGA odds
But the living legend turned back the clock on the Ocean Course to finish -6 after four thrilling days of golf, two shots clear of 2018 and 2019 winner Brooks Koepka and South African Louis Oosthuizen. That made him the oldest Major champion in golf history.
For the online bookmakers, there was a tinge of regret along with the happiness for Phil as he lifted the Wanamaker Trophy. They likely lost money on the result.
The Mickelson movement gathered pace through the weekend as it became clear he wasn’t going away. The public latched onto him and the odds tumbled. He was +1400 at halfway, and down to +275 by the end of Round 3. But despite leading at that stage, he still wasn’t favorite, Koepka at +160 was.
In the end though Mickelson hung on to claim a famous victory, and netted some huge wins from small stakes for lucky bettors. They included:
- $1000 at +30000 (win of $300,000) with DraftKings
- $364 at +25000 (win of $91,000) with DraftKings
- $250 at +15000 (win of $37,500) with PointsBet
- 2 x $100 at +20000 (wins of $20,000 each) with William Hill
Mickelson breaking records
Not only did Mickelson provide a stellar weekend of golf viewing for TV networks, he also confounding bookmaking wisdom. The victory made him one of the longest-priced winners ever of a Major championship.
The next question for ‘Lefty’ of course is was this a one-off or can the great man do it again? Next up is the US Open at Torrey Pines (June 17-20). Not surprisingly the odds for that are no longer quite as fancy. Mickelson is best odds at +6600 with William Hill but generally a +5000 shot.