Steve Palmer's US Open matches preview and free golf betting tips

Where to watch the US Open

Sky Sports Main Event and Golf, 3pm Thursday

Best bets

Cameron Smith to beat Jason Day
4pts 5-6 Hills

Jon Rahm to beat Rory McIlroy
4pts 4-5 Betfair

Harris English to beat Sergio Garcia
3pts 4-5 Betfair

Gary Woodland to beat Matt Kuchar
3pts 8-11 BoyleSports

Kurt Kitayama to beat Andrew Putnam
2pts 20-23 BoyleSports

US Open matches preview

Cameron Smith has been sneaking back into top form in recent weeks and the Open champion looks a solid US Open match-bet investment against his compatriot Jason Day.

Smith has LIV Golf form figures of 4-7-2-11 – and he closed with a 65 for ninth place in the US PGA during that streak. The Aussie admitted that he had taken his eye off the ball at the start of the year and was not practising as much as he used to, but the Florida-based star is knuckling down again and getting results.

Smith will appreciate the firm, fast conditions at Los Angeles Country Club – and his majestic short-game will stand him in great stead – so there is every reason to believe he could be a title contender.

Day won the Byron Nelson for a second time last month, but he has missed three of his last four cuts and has had health problems, with vertigo becoming an issue again. Smith seems much more likely to produce his best golf.

Jon Rahm to defeat Rory McIlroy at 4-5 in Betfair's draw-no-bet market seems another solid option. Rahm has won five PGA Tour events in California, including a US Open, and the Masters champion has been in generally magnificent form all year.

McIlroy has appeared fragile mentally since missing the cut in the Masters in April. Rahm had a potentially difficult media conference to deal with on Tuesday – rumours were rife that he had been about to join LIV until the PGA Tour announced a union – but nobody asking the Spaniard questions at LACC was brave enough to broach this subject. It will be a shock should Rahm fail to make a serious impact this week.

Harris English has finished in the top four in two of the last three US Opens and the four-time PGA Tour champion has been in tidy form, finishing third in the Wells Fargo and 12th at Colonial. English can be much preferred to Sergio Garcia in a draw-no-bet match with Betfair.

Gary Woodland won the 2019 US Open in California (Pebble Beach) and has been striking his ball well enough to be a title threat again. Woodland can be much preferred to match-bet foe Matt Kuchar, who has missed eight of his last nine cuts in Majors. A tee-time with the abrasive Patrick Reed is unhelpful for Kuchar, too.

Complete your match-bet attack with Kurt Kitayama to beat Andrew Putnam. Although LACC is playing firm and fast, this is still a long course – and one where power is of great advantage on certain holes. Kitayama, who triumphed on a firm, fast, difficult layout in the Arnold Palmer in March, has a significant length advantage over Putnam. Californian Kitayama finished fourth in the US PGA last month.

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