Ben Coley recommended a 4-point each-way wager on Michael Thorbjornsen at 16/1 to land his maiden PGA Tour title in what he called “one of the weakest fields of the season.” Coley noted that seven of the top-10 betting choices have never won on Tour and argued the world-amateur-No.1-turned-pro should be shorter than 16s given current form. Thorbjornsen finished fourth in Detroit two weeks ago, was runner-up in the Corales Puntacana opposite-field event, and closed last week’s John Deere with a ball-striking clinic—ranking first in the field in approach play after his lone weakness had been irons. His power driver remains the main weapon, and Coley drew parallels to Viktor Hovland and Collin Morikawa, who both broke through in similar opposite events. With recent momentum and premier length against a shallow field, Coley believes Thorbjornsen is “the one they all have to beat.”

Brian Kirschner pushed back on the Thorbjornsen hype, saying 16-to-1 is unpalatably short for an amateur in an alt-field event. While he is a believer in the talent and would gladly root for Thor with small "support win" bets, Kirschner prefers to "spread bullets" across the board rather than tie up significant bankroll in a single sub-20-to-1 ticket. He argued that the ISCO has enough variance and unknowns—new course, weaker field—that paying a premium for the favorite offers little betting value, so he is fading Thorbjornsen in outrights and DFS cash builds.

Martin Matthews said he simply cannot pass on Michael Thorbjornsen at 14–16-to-1 in this alternate-field ISCO Championship. Matthews noted that opposite-field events are routinely won by "quality youngsters"—he name-checked Viktor Hovland in Puerto Rico and Vincent Norrman in this same tournament two years ago—and believes Thorbjornsen is the next in that lineage. The Stanford amateur ranks top-tier in old-school greens-in-regulation and iron play, traits Matthews expects to shine on a 7,015-yard, tree-lined par-70 that demands plotting more than power. Thorbjornsen fired a low Sunday round last week and only a double on 17 kept him from a place finish, signaling form is there. With benign weather and a thin field, Matthews thinks sheer class will separate and is betting Thorbjornsen outright despite the compressed number.

Gannon is steering clear of Michael Thorbjornsen, who projects as one of the event’s highest-owned players (~16 %). Although the amateur finished well here last year, Gannon warned that young guns carrying double-digit chalk seldom pay off in DFS. He envisions a respectable T15 ceiling but doubts that return will justify the heavy ownership leverage, making Thorbjornsen a firm fade in tournaments.

Rick Gehman jumped aboard the Michael Thorbjornsen bandwagon after books opened him at 30-to-1—tied for third choice—despite limited PGA-Tour success. Gehman highlighted several bullish indicators: Thorbjornsen just finished T4 at the Rocket Mortgage in his first start with veteran caddie JJ Jakovac, has gained significantly off the tee in three straight, and owns course history (T2 here last season, T17 in 2023). The 23-year-old’s leaks with the short irons are finally plugged, per Gehman’s strokes-gained trend model. At $9,100 on DraftKings, Gehman considers him a core play and an outright bet down to 28-to-1.

Naming him his second Cash-Game Cornerstone, Kenny Kim slotted Michael Thorbjornsen at $9,000 into every double-up roster. Kim acknowledged last week’s mild wrist scare but said the numbers quiet any lingering doubts: Thorbjornsen finished top-10 in BOTH driving distance and driving accuracy at the Rocket Mortgage, and he has now gained strokes on approach in three of his last four events—long the one leak in his profile. Kim views that combination of power, accuracy and trending irons as the ideal high-floor recipe on an easy TPC Deere Run layout that rewards wedge play. With ownership expected to be manageable and the price sitting below other chalk in the 10K tier, Kim believes Thorbjornsen offers the safest 5-of-6 cut path while still carrying 25-under winning upside.

Kenny Kim opened his outright card with Michael Thorbjornsen at 28-1 (each-way to eight places). Kim reminded listeners that the 22-year-old was top-5 in driving accuracy AND top-10 in driving distance last week—“death strong” in his words—a profile almost no one else in the field can match. Thorbjornsen has gained strokes on approach in three of his last four events, shoring up the only statistical leak in his game. Course history is already elite: runner-up here last year, 17th the year before, plus a top-10 at last week’s Rocket Mortgage, another birdie-fest wedge track. With a soft, rain-soaked Sunday expected at TPC Deere Run, Kim believes Thorbjornsen’s fairway-finding power and improving irons set him up to torch a field that lacks true superstars, making 28-1 far too long.

Eric Polzin recommended grabbing Michael Thorbjornsen at 35-1 in the outright market, noting that few players in the mid-$7K range pair his recent form with such a clean course fit. The amateur star has posted finishes of 4th-41st-54th-33rd-7th-2nd in his last six worldwide starts and ranks 1st in the field in scoring on short tracks. He already owns a runner-up and a 17th at TPC Deere Run and checks the key stat boxes with plus ball-striking and birdie rates, though Polzin admitted the putter and approach numbers need a small bump. Because of that variance he is not a cash option, but Polzin likes Thorbjornsen as a single-entry GPP play and believes the 35-1 number correctly compensates for the risk.

Steve Bamford said Michael Thorbjornsen is “ready to pop” and backed him each-way at 28/1. Bamford noted the 23-year-old’s course comfort: T-17 here as an amateur in 2023 and solo 2nd last year after pouring in 27 birdies. Thorbjornsen thrives on Bentgrass agronomy (Mid-West upbringing, Stanford Bentgrass win, and two Illinois amateur titles) and can fully attack TPC Deere Run’s two driveable par-4s with his length. Recent form is sizzling—2nd at Corales, 4th at the Zurich team event, T-41 at the PGA Championship after sitting 7th through 36 holes, and 4th last week at the Rocket Mortgage where he ranked top-10 Tee-to-Green. Across the last eight weeks he ranks top-15 in the field for SG Tee-to-Green and top-10 for current form in Bamford’s model. With the winning score projected in the −20s and Thorbjornsen already proving he can reach that birdie pace, Bamford expects a maiden PGA Tour title.

Bo McBrayer called 75-1 on Michael Thorbjornsen a "massive mis-price" after the 22-year-old landed elite looper J.J. Jakovac—Collin Morikawa’s two-time major-winning caddie. McBrayer believes Jakovac’s course-management chops will be worth multiple strokes for a still-raw talent whose wrist injury is now “great.” Detroit Golf Club rewards aggressive wedge play and streaky putting, exactly the profile McBrayer sees in Thorbjornsen’s amateur résumé. Because of the caddie upgrade and clean bill of health, he is comfortable laddering the rookie across outright, top-10 and top-20 markets.

Pat Mayo said he is locking in Michael Thorbjornsen at 85-to-1 outright for the RBC Canadian Open after the Stanford phenom was confirmed healthy despite withdrawing two weeks ago with a wrist issue. Mayo had already earmarked Thorbjornsen as a perfect match for driver-heavy TPC Toronto, noting the 6-foot-3 bomber ranks top-10 on the Korn Ferry Tour in strokes-gained off-the-tee and long-iron proximity from 175–225 yards—two skills Mayo believes will decide the tournament. Because Rory McIlroy’s sub-5-to-1 price squeezes the favorites, Mayo would rather bypass the top of the board and anchor his card with Thorbjornsen in the high-80s or at 70-to-1 with eight each-way places, calling the 15-point haircut worth the added podium equity. He framed the WD as a convenient rest excuse rather than a red-flag injury and expects the number to shorten once data-driven models catch up.

Dom Cintorino locked in Michael Thorbjornson at 90-1, saying the Stanford phenom is undervalued on a 7,400-yard par-70 that rewards his elite driving. Thorbjornson just hired a full-time Tour caddie, a move Dom believes will sharpen course management. The amateur-to-pro transition worries that depress other rookies are muted here because Thorbjornson already owns a Travelers T4 against a signature-event field. Dom expects the softer Canadian rough to reward his high-launch driver and thinks the first PGA Tour win is coming soon, making any number north of 70-1 a green light.

Gehman tagged Michael Thorbjornsen as an intriguing upside flier now that veteran looper J.J. Jakovac—Collin Morikawa’s long-time caddie—was on his bag during U.S. Open qualifying and is expected to stay on this week. Thorbjornsen already drives it long and gains on approach, but he bleeds strokes around the green and with the putter. Gehman believes Jakovac’s course-management chops can help the 23-year-old clean up those short-game decisions and unlock a ceiling akin to his runner-up in Punta Cana and T4 at the Desert Classic. With five straight made cuts and a healthy bill of health after a minor neck issue, Gehman sees Thorbjornsen as a perfect sub-5 percent GPP play on a layout that minimizes scrambling and maximizes distance.

Bamford advised a 1-point each-way flutter on Michael Thorbjornsen at 70/1 (8 places) because the rookie’s strengths line up perfectly with TPC Toronto’s generous corridors and long par-4s. Thorbjornsen averages 316 yards off the tee—fifth longest on Tour—and sits 1st in SG: Off-the-Tee over the past eight weeks. He’s also top-25 in SG: Tee-to-Green and top-15 in recent-form rankings. The Bent/Poa agronomy mirrors what he grew up on in Ohio and Massachusetts and what he thrived on while finishing 4th at the 2022 Travelers and 2nd at the 2024 John Deere. Bamford downplayed the Charles Schwab WD as simple rest after a five-week run that included a grueling PGA Championship (T41 after being 7th through 36 holes). With space to swing freely, a driveable par-4 and two reachable par-5s, Bamford believes the 23-year-old can convert his prodigious length into a first PGA Tour win or at least a place return.

Eric Cohen said Michael Thorbjornsen is worth a target-finish wager at +300 for a top-20 this week. Cohen reminded bettors that the 23-year-old Stanford star finished No. 1 in the 2024 PGA Tour University standings, parlaying that into five career top-10s in limited starts. Form is peaking: solo T2 at the Corales Puntacana, T4 in the Zurich Classic team event last month, and he gained 4.9 strokes off the tee en route to a T41 at Quail Hollow last week. Cohen views Colonial’s demand for precision iron play as the only hurdle—if Thorbjornsen can simply be field-average around the greens and with the putter, his length and recent confidence make a top-20 finish “very realistic” at 3-1 odds.

Pat Mayo advised passing on Michael Thorbjornsen in all betting and DFS formats this week. While the young bomber has flashed in weaker fields, Mayo noted he "has not done any damage" when the competition stiffens, a trend underscored by zero top-30 finishes in events featuring a majority of top-50 OWGR players. The model that loves distance and long-iron play still places Thorbjornsen outside the top-45 because his strokes-gained short game turns negative on faster, undulating greens like Quail Hollow’s. Until the Stanford product shows he can translate his raw tools into a contending performance against the Tour’s best, Mayo will keep exposure at 0 % and look to more proven bombers in the same odds range.

Pat Mayo grabbed Michael Thorbjornsen at 125-1 with eight places, touting the amateur star’s raw ball-striking upside. Thorbjornsen finished T20 last week despite hemorrhaging 5.5 strokes with the putter—proof, according to Mayo, that his irons and driver can mask a cold flat stick. The Massachusetts native should feel comfortable on similar Northeast agronomy, and Mayo believes if the putter merely stays neutral, Thorbjornsen can sniff the top of the board while the place component bails out an outright miss.

Blickle tagged Michael Thorbjornson as a sneaky buy because models still carry data from the spring stretch when he unknowingly battled mononucleosis. Thorbjornson revealed he spent months lacking energy, yet he already ranks 5th on Tour in raw driving distance once healthy. Carrying it past the fairway bunkers should give him 60-yard landing zones on half the par-4s, exactly the cheat code Philadelphia Cricket offers to bombers. With his weekend form trending up, Blickle expects projection systems to undersell both his floor and ceiling; he intends to be overweight in DFS (sub-$7K price range) and will grab any outright number north of 90-1 before the market notices the health narrative.

Thorbjornsen is Sobel’s aggressive top-5 at +1100. The former world No. 1 amateur just finished solo 2nd at the Corales Puntacana and followed with a team top-5 at the Zurich Classic. Sobel compared him to Ludvig Aberg’s breakout at the 2023 RSM Classic, stressing his elite talent is finally translating to PGA-level leaderboards. Given the weak Craig Ranch field, Sobel expects sportsbooks will soon shorten Thorbjornsen’s prices and wants exposure before that happens. He will sprinkle outright wagers but considers the top-5 the core position.

Barnett called 75-1 on Michael Thorbjornsen ‘silly’ given the amateur star’s recent runner-up at Corrales (where he had a 10-footer to force a playoff) and T4 at the Zurich team event. Thorbjornsen brings above-average length—perfect for the soft Zoysia fairways—and owns one of the cleaner, more repeatable swings in the field. Barnett emphasized the value of getting a player who is already comfortable contending and who checks every distance-weighted approach bucket in his model. He thinks a birdie-fest like Craig Ranch is the exact venue where Thorbjornsen’s ceiling can finally show up for four straight days.

Dom Cintorino fired on former Stanford teammates Michael Thorbjornsen and Carl Vilips at 50‑to‑1 with a top‑6 each‑way. He called the grouping “appointment television” after seeing they’ll share early‑round tee times with Tom Hoge & Sahith Theegala, predicting a fireworks best‑ball session where both sides push each other. Thorbjornsen finally flashed his elite amateur form with a top‑15 SG:Approach week in Houston, and Vilips owns a 63 at TPC Louisiana from an NCAA sectional, confirming course comfort. Dom thinks two rounds of pure best‑ball let their aggressive tendencies shine—both average north of 4.5 birdies per competitive round on developmental tours. While acknowledging their Friday implosion last year, he framed that volatility as a positive for outrights: “they might shoot 61 or 80, but the ceiling wins tournaments in this format.”

Eric Cohen told SportsLine bettors to isolate one leg of his eight‑leg mega parlay and play Karl Vilips & Michael Thorbjornsen to finish top‑20 at the 2025 Zurich Classic, grabbing the +150 number at DraftKings (shorter at +115 on Bet365). Cohen likes the former Stanford teammates’ built‑in chemistry for this two‑man format and highlighted their recent form: Vilips already owns a PGA Tour win in Puerto Rico this season and sat inside the top 10 through 53 holes at the RBC Heritage before fading to T54, while Thorbjornsen gained more than 10 strokes on the field last week and finished T2 in Puntacana. Both are 23 years old, earned their cards via Korn Ferry Tour/PGA Tour U and, in Cohen’s words, are a "high‑risk, high‑reward" duo whose talent makes a top‑20 finish a realistic payoff at plus odds.

At $8.3K, the Michael Thorbjornsen / Carl Phillips pairing will be DFS catnip—young, popular, and flush with recent wins on lower tours. Gannon is fading them outright, arguing that their projected ownership far exceeds their experience and that there are superior pivots like the Fitzpatrick brothers directly below. In volatile alternate‑shot rounds, he prefers veterans with PGA seasoning over social‑media hype plays.

Gehman labeled the Thorbjornson–Vilips pairing the ultimate GPP wild card. Both are 23‑year‑old phenoms with minimal PGA Tour reps but eye‑popping amateur pedigrees. Vilips endured a post‑win slump after capturing Puerto Rico yet flashed five strokes gained on approach during a Friday 66 at Harbour Town. Thorbjornson just tied for runner‑up in Punta Cana, his best finish as a pro. Gehman thinks their collective firepower can post the round of the day in best‑ball, even if the floor is a missed‑cut blow‑up. Perfect for DFS lineups seeking first‑place equity rather than safety.

Calling them “the kind of pair that could win by five or six,” Bo McBrayer is laddering Michael Thorbjornsen and Karl Vilips at 40‑1. He loves the built‑in chemistry from their Stanford days and believes the complementary skill sets — Thorbjornsen’s power/irons with Vilips’ finesse around the greens — give them multiple paths to score. While their rookie‑year form has been spotty (expected for 22‑year‑olds, per McBrayer), both flashed top‑10 strokes‑gained weeks on the West Coast swing, proving they have the talent to take down weaker Tour fields. In a volatile two‑man event, McBrayer thinks youthful upside plus collegiate familiarity outweigh recent missed cuts.

Eric Cohen told SportsLine readers to grab a top‑20 ticket on Karl Vilips and Michael Thorbjornsen—available at +150 on DraftKings and +115 at Bet365—as one leg of his eight‑pick, $10 parlay that could return nearly $1.2 million. Cohen likes the former Stanford teammates because they already have early professional success: Vilips captured the Puerto Rico Open earlier this season and sat inside the top 10 through 53 holes at the RBC Heritage before fading to T54, while Thorbjornsen gained more than 10 strokes on the field en route to a T2 finish in Puntacana last week. At just 23 years old, Cohen views them as a volatile but high‑ceiling pairing whose existing chemistry should translate to the Zurich’s team format. He labeled the play "high‑risk, high‑reward" but believes a top‑20 finish is well within reach given their current form and upside.

Wes Reynolds is betting Michael Thorbjornsen outright at 60-to-1, banking on his talent to overcome recent inconsistent form where he's made only three of nine cuts. The former U.S. junior amateur winner ranks fourth overall in driving distance on tour, indicating significant potential suited to Corales Puntacana. Reynolds compared Thorbjornsen favorably to previous standout college golfer Ludvig Aberg, suggesting he possesses elite skill capable of delivering a breakout performance at this course.

Wes Reynolds suggests placing a bet on talented newcomer Michael Thorbjornsen (60-1 at Bet Rivers) at the Corales Puntacana Championship. Reynolds mentions Thorbjornsen's impressive pedigree, having won the U.S. Junior Amateur and earning his spot through PGA Tour University. He highlights Thorbjornsen's elite driving distance (ranking fourth on the PGA Tour), a clear advantage on this lengthy course. While Thorbjornsen's season has seen only three cuts made out of nine events played, Reynolds sees this weaker field as a great opportunity for the young prospect to achieve a breakthrough performance.