Steve Palmer's US Open first-round threeballs golf betting tips and predictions: Back Finau to boss his playing partners

Where to watch the US Open

Live on Sky Sports Golf from 11.30am on Thursday

Best US Open threeball bets

Tony Finau to win 6.58pm threeball
3pts 7-5 Betfair, Paddy Power

Taylor Pendrith to win 12.07pm threeball
1pt 6-4 general

Doug Ghim to win 11.56am threeball
1pt Evens bet365, Hills

US Open first-round threeball predictions

Scottie Scheffler is a late starter in the US Open as he bids to continue his red-hot streak of form and the world number one will board Oakmont's first tee at 6.25pm UK and Ireland time.

Scheffler will have Collin Morikawa and Viktor Hovland for company and is a best-price 5-6 to defeat them both in round one. The US PGA champion should deliver for his backers, but other options are preferred on the first-round threeballs card.

Perhaps the most appealing of all is the 7-5 about Tony Finau outscoring Mackenzie Hughes and Chris Kirk. Finau has the tools to cut Oakmont down to size and can use a significant length advantage to boss two powder-puff drivers.

Pre-tournament rain has softened the Oakmont fairways, turning it into a giant par-70, and strong driving should be the key to success early in the week. Finau, who fired a 420-yard drive in the final round of The Sentry at the start of the year, carries his ball huge distances off the tee.

The Utah man has had to deal with a few off-course issues this year, perhaps taking his eye off the ball, but his last three performances have been encouraging. A share of 15th in last month's Truist Championship, which was played in the same state of Pennsylvania where the US Open hopefuls have gathered this week, was followed by 19th spot in the US PGA and 31st in the Memorial.

Signs that Finau is getting his act together again can be married to a solid US Open record, which features fifth place in 2018, eighth in 2020 and third spot last year. His Majors record generally is superb and his best result of this year came at a US Open venue – a tie for fifth in the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines.

The mediocre ball-striking of Hughes has seen him struggle in Major competition and he has made only nine cuts in 21 starts. Kirk has missed the cut in 12 of his last 23 Majors and he has missed four of his last five cuts on the PGA Tour.

Another powerhouse can join Finau on the first-round leaderboard. Taylor Pendrith has been in excellent form and could follow fifth place in the US PGA Championship with another bold Major effort. The giant Canadian can certainly be fancied to defeat Tom Kim and JJ Spaun in round one.

Kim slipped outside the world's top 50 on Sunday, having started 2024 in 11th place, highlighting his period of struggle. Losing his caddie to Ludvig Aberg at the end of 2023 seemed to have a significant effect on Kim, who finished almost last of the weekend qualifiers in the US PGA last month. The South Korean has been in dire form for four months.

Spaun is arguably more of a threat to Pendrith threeball backers, but Spaun missed the cut in the Memorial last time out and missed the cut in his only previous US Open appearance.

The tee-to-green solidity of Doug Ghim makes him a worthwhile wager for his 11.56am contest against Alvaro Ortiz and Chandler Blanchet. Ghim, who was 35th in his last Major start in last year's US PGA, has missed only four cuts in 14 PGA Tour starts this season. Ortiz and Blanchet are both inconsistent Korn Ferry Tour players.

Read more on the US Open:

Steve Palmer's US Open outright predictions 

US Open 2025: Racing Post's guide to all 156 players in the Oakmont field 

Recommended Offer

4/5

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Bets

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

• Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG)

CLAIM OFFER

18+ T&Cs apply

Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply. Registration required.

Click for free bets and betting offers from the Racing Post

Commercial notice: This article contains affiliate links. Offers are handpicked and come from operators our experts have first-hand experience of. Opening an account via one of these links will earn revenue for the Racing Post, which will be used to continue producing our award-winning coverage of horseracing and sports betting.

For those looking for even more extensive golf coverage don't miss Palmer's extra pointers every Wednesday in the Racing Post newspaper. 

As well as his tips and insight you will also get expert spotlight comments for all players in our extensive PGA Tour and DP Tour price comparison grids which include course and recent form, plus Palmer's unique attribute icons to help identify the type of players likely to be suited to conditions each week.