Trevor Jones is an expert in iGaming with a passion for writing US sports, such as football and basketball, in particular. He is extremely knowledgeable about US gambling regulations and has previously contributed articles to Augusta Free Press, Tech Report, Basketball Insiders and Legal Sportsbooks. He is an avid sports and betting enthusiast and a huge fan of the Golden State Warriors, though follows all of the major sports leagues.
All posts by Trevor Jones
Neil is a gambling industry veteran with over 15 years experience as a content writer, editor and speaker at events. He has a Masters degree in English Literature and Philosophy and has combined this analytical inquisitiveness with a passion for sports betting and casino gaming. Neil started his career with Bettingpro.com and helped build not only that site but various others such as LiveTennis.com, LiveDarts.com and numerous other sports informational sites, including GG.co.uk and RacingTips.com He then made the transition to the North American market, working both in the UK and in New Jersey to launch various sports betting and casino sites, including AmericanBettingExperts and NewAmericanCasinos. Working with regulators, Neil has helped to review sports betting sites and also test the regulated betting apps in a professional capacity. He now works almost exclusively in the US market and is one of the main reviewers and fact checkers on SportsLens gambling content. He also speaks at various gambling conferences including ICE, iGB Live and SBC Americas and has contributed to GamblingInsider, EGR Magazine and a number of others in a consulting capacity.
All posts by Neil Roarty3 ball betting is a form of golf betting where you wager on the performance of three specific golfers during one particular round of a golf tournament. The golfers are usually playing together in a single group, though they can also be matched by the sportsbook as ‘mythical’ grouping and your bet is based on how they perform relative to each other in that designated round. Your aim is to bet on the golfer in the group of 3 that you think will perform the best either over a round or over the entire event. So, what is 3 ball betting in golf? It is picking the winner of three golfers in a single round or event.
How Does 3 Ball Betting Work?
3 ball betting is quite a simple concept. It can be broken down into four basic steps. Here is how it all works:
Selection: The sportsbook or betting platform will present a list of 3-ball matchups for a specific round of the golf tournament. Each matchup will consist of three golfers who will be playing together in the same group during that round.
Betting odds: For each 3-ball matchup, the sportsbook will provide betting odds for each golfer. The odds represent the payout ratio if your selected golfer wins the 3-ball matchup.
Placing the bet: You select the golfer you believe will perform the best among the three in that specific round and place your bet on that golfer.
Settlement: After the designated round is completed, the 3-ball matchup is settled based on the golfers’ scores relative to each other in that round. The golfer with the lowest score among the three wins the 3-ball matchup, and the corresponding bets are paid out accordingly.
For example, let’s say the 3-ball matchup for the second round of a tournament includes Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, and Jordan Spieth, and the odds are as follows:
- Tiger Woods: +150
- Rory McIlroy: -120
- Jordan Spieth: +200
In this example, Rory McIlroy is the favorite, with negative odds indicating that you need to bet $120 to win $100 if he wins the matchup. Tiger Woods is the underdog, and a $100 bet on him would win you $150 if he comes out on top. Jordan Spieth is also an underdog with +200 odds, meaning a $100 three ball bet on him would win you $200 if he wins the matchup.
What is a Matchup in Golf Betting?
In golf betting, a matchup is a wager on the performance of two individual golfers competing against each other during a specific round or the entire tournament. The bet is settled based on which golfer performs better relative to the other. It’s a straightforward way to bet on head-to-head competitions within a golf event.
Difference Between 3 Ball and 2 Ball Matchups
In golf betting, a 3-ball matchup is a wager on the performance of three individual golfers during a specific round of a tournament. The bet is settled based on which golfer has the best score among the three in that round.
On the other hand, a 2-ball matchup involves two golfers directly paired together in the same group during a specific round. The bet is settled based on which golfer has the better score between the two in that particular round.
Typically three balls take place during the first two days of a four day golf event, before the field is reduced following the cut. Then two ball betting takes places when players are paired together for the final two days, based on their proximity on the leaderboard. For example, in the final round of the 2023 Masters, the leader, Brooks Koepka, was paired with second-placed Jon Rahm.
18 Hole Matchups vs. 72 Hole Matchups
In golf betting, an 18-hole matchup is a bet on the performance of two golfers against each other in a specific round of the tournament. The bet is settled based on who has the better score for that round only.
In contrast, a 72-hole matchup is a bet on the performance of two golfers over the entire tournament, spanning four rounds. The bet is settled based on who has the better total score for the entire event.
What Happens if a Player Misses the Cut?
When a player misses the cut in a golf tournament, they fail to qualify for the final rounds, leading to their elimination from the competition. Basically, an average score is set (the mean average of the tournament) after 36 holes. If a player fails to make this score, they are eliminated from the tournament. The cut is usually determined after the first two rounds of a tournament.
What are the Rules on Dead Heats in 3 Ball Betting?
In 3-ball betting, a dead heat occurs when two or more golfers in a matchup have the same score at the end of the designated round for which the bet is being settled. In such cases, sportsbooks have specific rules to determine how the dead heat is handled and how the bets are settled.
The rules may vary depending on the sportsbook, so it’s crucial to check their terms and conditions for dead heat rules. Here are some common ways dead heats are typically resolved in 3-ball betting:
Full Return: Some sportsbooks may consider a dead heat as a tie, and in such cases, the bettors’ stakes are fully returned. No winnings or losses are incurred, and the bets are treated as if they had never been placed.
Half Loss: Other sportsbooks may settle a dead heat as a half loss for each bettor involved in the tie. This means bettors would receive back half of their original stake while the other half would be lost.
Average Odds: In certain cases, the sportsbook may calculate the average odds of the tied golfers, and bettors would receive a return based on the average odds. Any winnings would be paid out accordingly.
Countback: Some of the best offshore sportsbooks might use a “countback” rule, which means they would determine the winner based on the tied golfers’ performance over the previous rounds or holes leading up to the designated round for the bet. The golfer with the better previous performance would be declared the winner of the dead heat.
3 Ball Betting Strategy
You can utilize a number of betting strategies for 3 ball betting on the top golf betting mobile sites, but a solid option for this kind of betting would be an arbitrage betting strategy.
Arbitrage betting in 3-ball golf betting involves finding differing odds for the same matchup across multiple bookmakers. When bookmakers have slightly different opinions on a golfer’s chances, you can use calculations to identify arbitrage opportunities. If the combined probabilities of all possible outcomes are less than 100%, you can place bets on all golfers with different bookmakers to guarantee a profit, regardless of the matchup’s outcome.
However, to be honest; this will require a little more effort on your part. You will need to do some homework on the odds across multiple bookmakers to see if this particular betting strategy is viable for certain 3 ball matchups. With that said, if you find the right odds with the right sportsbooks, you really can ensure that you take home a profit.
