Golf
Irish Open Predictions 2026: Bookies Fear Rory McIlroy Masterclass
Rory McIlroy returns to Doonbeg in a bid to retain the Irish Open title this week, and William Hill News can report that the Northern Irishman has been well backed ahead of the tournament.
McIlroy is one of the best players on the planet and he’ll be bang there if he brings his A-game to Doonbeg this week and he is now as short as 6/1 to lift the trophy in golf betting odds at William Hill.
Irish Open Winner Odds 2026:
- Rory McIlroy – 6/1
- Jon Rahm – 9/1
- Robert MacIntyre – 14/1
- Tyrrell Hatton – 18/1
- Joaquin Niemann – 18/1
- Bar – 22/1
Spokesperson for William Hill, Lee Phelps, said: “Rory McIlroy will embark on his title defence at the Irish Open at Doonbeg this week, and we’re already seeing punters rush to back the defending champion at 6/1.
“McIlroy is by far our worst result for the tournament and is unsurprisingly the most popular selection with our customers, ahead of Alex Fitzpatrick (22/1), Shane Lowry (22/1) and Tyrrell Hatton (18/1).
“The Masters champion’s closest challengers at the top of the betting are Spain’s Jon Rahm at 9/1 and Robert MacIntyre at 14/1, followed by Joaquin Neimann and Hatton at 18/1.
“Rory took down Joakim Lagergren in an enthralling playoff at the K Club last year, sinking a long-range eagle-putt to take the competition to tournament to extra holes; the Swede is 70/1 to go one better this time around.
“Elsewhere, Haotong Li, who was in contention at Augusta earlier this year, has taken just over 8% of money staked in the market, with punters clearly seeing a lot of value at 66/1.”
*Odds subject to change – prices accurate at the time of writing*
