logo
2025 U.S. Open match-up picks, predictions: Corey Conners vs. Jordan Spieth, Ben Griffin vs. Shane Lowry

2025 U.S. Open match-up picks, predictions: Corey Conners vs. Jordan Spieth, Ben Griffin vs. Shane Lowry

New York Post4 days ago

Gambling content 21+. The New York Post may receive an affiliate commission if you sign up through our links. Read our editorial standards for more information.
The U.S. Open kicks off Thursday at one of golf's most iconic venues, Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania.
Scottie Scheffler is a historic favorite after a dominant showing during the PGA Championship, but there are plenty of other betting opportunities to target.
Here's a look at a couple of matchups we're targeting for this weekend's action.
Corey Conners vs. Jordan Spieth
Corey Conners has been one of the breakout PGA Tour stars of 2025.
The Canadian has five top-10 finishes so far this season and has proven to be a cut-making machine, playing the weekend in 14-of-15 starts, including 13 straight since falling short at the Sony Open in January.
Since mid-February, Conners has finished 30th or better in 10 of 11 tournaments he's entered.
Jordan Spieth, who is slightly favored to finish ahead of Conners this weekend at Oakmont, has been more of a wild card of late.
He's missed the cut just twice this year, but Spieth has finished outside the top-30 in four additional tournaments, suggesting he's having a hard time putting four solid rounds together.
Conners has finished ahead of Spieth in both majors this season. Look for the up-and-comer to do it again this weekend.
The play: Corey Conners to finish ahead of Jordan Spieth (-105, BetMGM Sportsbook)
Ben Griffin of the United States prepares to play a shot on the third hole during a practice round prior to the 125th U.S. OPEN at Oakmont Country Club on June 10, 2025 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.
Getty Images
Ben Griffin vs. Shane Lowry
Ben Griffin comes into the U.S. Open as the hottest player in golf outside of Scottie Scheffler.
Over his past three tournaments, Griffin has won the Charles Schwab Challenge, finished second at the Memorial, and finished T-8 at the PGA Championship.
He's a big underdog to beat out Shane Lowry this weekend, despite playing as well as anyone in the field.
Lowry has enjoyed a strong season, with two runner-up finishes and two additional top-10s, but he's struggled during the majors, finishing T-42 at Augusta and missing the cut during the PGA Championship.
The Irishman is a much more familiar name to the average golf fan, but Griffin is the hot hand to ride in this matchup.
The play: Ben Griffin to finish ahead of Shane Lowry (+110, FanDuel Sportsbook)
Why Trust New York Post Betting
Dylan Svoboda is a versatile writer and analyst across many sports. He's particularly knowledgeable about the big three — MLB, the NFL and the NBA.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Lynch: Rory McIlroy vs. the media is one battle in a bigger war, and no one is winning
Lynch: Rory McIlroy vs. the media is one battle in a bigger war, and no one is winning

USA Today

timean hour ago

  • USA Today

Lynch: Rory McIlroy vs. the media is one battle in a bigger war, and no one is winning

Lynch: Rory McIlroy vs. the media is one battle in a bigger war, and no one is winning OAKMONT, Pa. — For people whose concerns extend beyond existential issues — the quality of food in media centers, the proximity of restrooms to media centers, and WiFi functionality in media centers — the simmering war between Rory McIlroy and golf's press corps must seem a peculiar and petty squabble. The Masters champion stiff-armed reporters after all four rounds at last month's PGA Championship and for the first two rounds of this U.S. Open. The reasons at Quail Hollow were varied —Thursday he was pissed after a poor finish to his round; Friday he wanted to see his daughter before she went to bed; at the weekend he was irked by coverage of his driver having been deemed nonconforming during routine testing, a fact that is supposed to be confidential. McIlroy's was the only name reported, despite Scottie Scheffler's driver also having been among those failed. A mundane occurrence that happens every week was treated as breaking news and duly weaponized by bad faith bullshitters determined to present it all as extraordinary and suspicious. Whether McIlroy cares to distinguish between the bullshitters and those he sees regularly on Tour is a question no media member seems eager to pose, perhaps knowing there is at least some overlap in that pen diagram. But it's not as though McIlroy has been in the witness protection program. He had pre-tournament press conferences at last week's RBC Canadian Open and earlier this week at Oakmont, and will do so again at the Travelers Championship next week. He's doing what he feels is appropriate, but not what the media thinks is appropriate. That chasm is unlikely to be bridged anytime soon. The media has few advocates these days, a combination of the cancerous malevolents eager to undermine any source of information that contradicts their conspiracy theories, and the verifiably lousy performance and dumbing-down of so much in the industry. But golf media isn't oversubscribed with wannabe Woodwards and Bernsteins, and players have no justification for acting like they're dealing with pit bulls when the reality is closer to golden retrievers eager to please their masters. This standoff is practical in one sense (reporters want answers to inform their work) and philosophical in another (weighing privileges or rights on one side, obligations versus responsibilities on the other). There are media members who believe they have a right to hear from golfers post-round and some who consider it a privilege earned by their conduct or coverage. It's neither. It's a grace and favor routine established over generations, and certainly not a privilege since those can be withdrawn at will or extended only to the sycophantic. It's really an opportunity to be grasped when available and worked around when it isn't. McIlroy is entitled to dismiss requests for his time, and the generous accessibility he has granted over the years makes for predictable griping when the door is inexplicably slammed shut. Whether he should limit media is a separate argument, and a reckoning looms for the PGA Tour between players' mandated obligations and their optional responsibilities. McIlroy took questions after his third round Saturday and was asked if he feels he's earned the right to step back from the microphone after several years as a de facto spokesman for the Tour in the LIV war. His answer was much broader than the question: 'I feel like I've earned the right to do whatever I want to do, yeah.' Actually, he's always had that right. Tour players aren't required to accommodate media requests and plenty have rejected reporters more frequently and disdainfully than he, as anyone who covered Vijay Singh can testify. When Collin Morikawa was criticized for skipping press after a tough loss at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March — 'I don't owe anyone anything' — McIlroy defended him, noting that press availability isn't mandated by Ponte Vedra. Today he was asked if he's daring the Tour to make it compulsory, which is about as likely as a member of the press hoisting the trophy at Oakmont on Sunday night. 'I'm not daring them to do anything,' he said. 'I hope they don't change it because it would, you know -- this is, it's a nice luxury to have. But I'm just pointing out the fact that we have the ability to do it.' So there is no obligation for McIlroy to speak, but is there a responsibility? And to whom? Because this isn't really a row about whether players owe media anything — they don't — but whether they owe something to the consumers of their product. The Tour and its investors believe that players became co-owners of the business after they were granted equity last year. Sponsors pay handsomely because fans are willing to invest time and attention, and that audience is entitled to the final chapter of the weekly serial, and not to be left hanging because someone is pissed at choking away a lead or rushing to catch a flight. The media is the conduit to those consumers, whether players connect the dots or not. Sure, they can post to their own social channels, but the vast majority of fans don't engage with those platforms because they know most of it is sanitized spon-con thanking whatever corporate 'family' has bunged them a few bucks. Professional golfers are not paid for their wit or charm, and only partially for their performance. The compensation of athletes correlates with their value to the league and impact on the business. Marketing is a key component of that. In January, Justin Thomas sent a memo to his fellow players encouraging greater media co-operation to better sell their shared product. For all but the last few weeks of his lengthy career, McIlroy has been a leader in that effort, admirably so since requests for his time far outnumber those for his peers. So this is not simply a Rory McIlroy issue. But at some juncture, those who administer men's professional golf need to decide whether they're in the 'we' business or the 'me' business, because right now the expectations of their consumers and the compliance of their players are not at all aligned.

Rory McIlroy Gives Unacceptable Answer on Driver Controversy
Rory McIlroy Gives Unacceptable Answer on Driver Controversy

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Rory McIlroy Gives Unacceptable Answer on Driver Controversy

Rory McIlroy Gives Unacceptable Answer on Driver Controversy originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Closure is always good. When Rory McIlroy finally spoke on driver testing at the Canadian Open on Wednesday, it somewhat closed one door and opened another. Advertisement If you forgot about what happened three weeks ago at the PGA Championship, let's catch up. USGA representatives test drivers to determine whether they have crossed the line from conforming to nonconforming. Approximately a third of the field is tested at majors and random PGA Tour events, with positive results, and roughly five to 10 drivers are deemed nonconforming. In the case of the PGA Championship, McIlroy participated in random testing, and his driver was determined to be nonconforming. The testing results were to be confidential, but the Ulsterman's positive result was leaked, and the media ran with it. Advertisement For four days of competition, McIlroy didn't talk to the media, and speculation ran rampant about his driver. Rory McIlroy at the PGA ChampionshipAaron Doster-Imagn Images After skipping the Memorial, McIlroy wasn't interviewed about his driver until he appeared on Wednesday at a press conference for the Canadian Open. 'I was a little pissed off because I knew that Scottie's (Scheffler) driver had failed on Monday, but my name was the one that was leaked,' McIlroy said. 'It was supposed to stay confidential. Two members of the media were the ones who leaked it.' Let's be clear: The media don't leak, but report. By definition, they can't leak; they can report what a leaker told them, but they can't leak. Advertisement This means McIlroy's beef is with the leaker, who could come from the USGA testers or the PGA of America. Since it's confidential, even players would not know of a positive test by another player. Or would they? 'I didn't want to get up there and say something that I regretted, either, because there are a lot of people that — I'm trying to protect Scottie,' McIlroy said, explaining his reason for not talking. 'I don't want to mention his name. I'm trying to protect TaylorMade. I'm trying to protect the USGA, the PGA of America and myself. First, how did McIlroy know about Scheffler's positive test if it was confidential? Advertisement Second, who is McIlroy protecting? It's common knowledge that drivers' faces become more flexible with use over time — a phenomenon known as "CT creep" — and move from conforming to nonconforming. So, who or what is he exactly protecting? Three, if you are protecting TaylorMade, the USGA or the PGA of America, what are you protecting them from? Four, someone leaked the results on McIlroy, and it may well have been the USGA or PGA of America, so why are you protecting them? 'I knew that that had happened, but that's not on me to share that, and I felt that process is supposed to be kept confidential, and it wasn't for whatever reason,' McIlroy said of Scheffler's test results. 'That's why I was pretty annoyed at that.' Advertisement McIlroy's annoyance is understandable, but it had nothing to do with the media but those who decided to leak the results. Not talking for four days looked petulant and beneath McIlroy. We still have many questions on the driver, which is why the door is somewhat closed, but that will have to wait until the U.S. Open. Everyone should take a page from the Jack Nicklaus school regarding the media's treatment. Last week, Nicklaus was asked how he treats the media, and as he has in the past, he was forthcoming and understanding of the media's job. He expressed the need for the media to do their job, even when the subject is unpleasant. His answers were a lesson for every professional athlete. Advertisement Related: Jack Nicklaus Surprised That Rory McIlroy Skipped Memorial Related: Rory McIlroy Playing With House Money This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 5, 2025, where it first appeared.

Rory McIlroy resets goals after completing career grand slam win.
Rory McIlroy resets goals after completing career grand slam win.

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Rory McIlroy resets goals after completing career grand slam win.

Rory McIlroy resets goals after completing career grand slam win. originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Rory McIlroy has had a terrific career on the PGA Tour. He's accomplished nearly everything a professional golfer can hope for. Advertisement In April, he finally completed the career grand slam, winning all four major championships. His victory at the Masters at Augusta marked the missing piece in an otherwise decorated career. Now 36, McIlroy believes he still has plenty of championship-level golf ahead. He's spent 122 weeks ranked as the No. 1 golfer in the world. While catching Scottie Scheffler for the current top spot will be a challenge, McIlroy is motivated to keep applying pressure. As he prepares for next week's U.S. Open, McIlroy is working to fine-tune every part of his game. Speaking to the media ahead of the RBC Canadian Open, McIlroy reflected on the time since his Masters win and shared insight into his current mindset. Chris McKee, host of "This Week in Golf," captured McIlroy's candid comments. " I don't know if I am cherishing anything. I would say the last couple of weeks, I've had a couple of weeks off. Going to grinding on the range for 3 or 4 hours every day is maybe a little tougher than it used to be." McIlroy said. Advertisement "You have this event in your life that you've worked towards, and it happens, sometimes it's hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse and go again." McIlroy went on to explain how he used the break to reset. "I think the last two weeks have been good for me, just as a reset to figure out where I'm at mentally, what I want to do, where I want to play, and yeah, reset some goals. I thought it was a good time to do that." he said. "I've had a pretty good first half of the season and want to have a good second half too." Rory McIlroy at Quail Hollow. Aaron Doster-Imagn Images McIlroy turned professional in 2007 and has racked up 44 professional victories, including 29 wins on the PGA Tour. He has five major championships to his name, with the PGA Championship being the only one he's won twice. Advertisement His first major title came at the U.S. Open in 2011, where he dominated the field and beat runner-up Jason Day by eight strokes. From 2016 to 2018, McIlroy missed the cut at the U.S. Open three straight years. However, he now comes into this year's event at Oakmont riding a streak of six consecutive top-10 finishes at the tournament. Related: Scottie Scheffler Earns New Nickname After 16th PGA Tour Win Related: Rory McIlroy Sends Strong Message to Scottie Scheffler After 16th PGA Tour Win This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 5, 2025, where it first appeared.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store