U.S. Open prop bets: Which LIV players will miss the cut?

We covered the outright market and discussed who has the best chance of beating Scottie Scheffler at Oakmont Country Club.

Now it's time to turn our attention to the secondary markets and pick our favorite props for the week, which won't have anything to do with the winner and will protect us against a potential Scheffler runaway victory.

Sepp Straka: Top-20 finish (+180)

It's another week and another opportunity to cash in on the most undervalued golfer in the world.

Sepp Straka continues to rack up high finishes, but his odds don't reflect his results. Yes, he's missed both cuts in majors this year, which is a tad concerning. However, he tied for third at the Memorial in his most recent start, won the Truist Championship three starts ago, and finished inside the top 20 in 10 of 15 events this year. Straka is one of the most accurate drivers of the ball in the field, a great iron player, and a well-above-average putter.

If he carries the form he showed two weeks ago into Oakmont, you're getting fantastic value on him to place in the top 20 at +180, available at theScore Bet/ESPN Bet.

Shane Lowry: Top-20 finish (+175)

Shane Lowry shares a lot of similarities with Straka - both are very accurate drivers of the ball, which will help keep them out of the thick and penal Oakmont rough. They're also strong iron players. That combination might not win them the tournament, but it's enough to get them in the mix.

Lowry held a four-shot lead after 54 holes at the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont. He shot 76 in the final round but still finished in a tie for second. He's playing consistently well this year, with eight top-20s in 12 starts. Expect another solid outing from the Irishman at a course that rewards his style of play.

Ludvig Aberg (-120) over Justin Thomas

Justin Thomas is having a nice season, winning the RBC Heritage and finishing second at the Truist Championship and Valspar Championship. But those courses didn't penalize wayward drives, which Thomas has struggled with all year. He's 121st in driving accuracy this season, and missed fairways at Oakmont will lead to a lot of bogeys. Thomas has also missed back-to-back cuts at U.S. Opens.

Meanwhile, Ludvig Aberg is one of the world's best drivers of the ball and seems to be rounding back into the same form he had when he won at Torrey Pines earlier this year. A fluky quadruple bogey in Round 2 of the Canadian Open prevented him from finishing second, and he placed T16 at the Memorial two starts ago. Aberg has a huge advantage over Thomas off the tee, yet he's only a slight favorite in this head-to-head matchup, one that may cash before the weekend.

Lucas Glover (-105) over Tom Kim

Tom Kim is having a forgettable season. He has one top-10 result and no other finishes inside the top 35. He doesn't have the distance required to keep up with the field at Oakmont and isn't hitting enough fairways to compensate for his lack of length off the tee. Lucas Glover's results won't blow you away, either, but he's having a consistent season because of his strong approach play. We'll bank on Glover making the cut and Kim missing it to cash this head-to-head Friday evening.

Tournament hole-in-one: No (-160)

The four par 3s at Oakmont are no joke. One of them (No. 8) is 289 yards, forcing most of the field to hit driver. The shortest par 3 is 182 yards, and the greens are so severe at this course that getting balls close to the pin will be tough.

Min Woo Lee: Round 1 score over 73.5 (-130)

Min Woo Lee is plenty long off the tee, but he's extremely erratic and in poor form. He hasn't had a top-40 result since his win at the Houston Open, and Oakmont isn't a good course fit for him. The Round 1 scoring average could be three or four strokes over par, and it's easy to see Lee come in well below the average to open his week.

Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood, Sepp Straka, Shane Lowry, and Corey Conners all to make the cut (+337)

Packaging these five players together to make the cut will give you a nice +337 payout. Xander Schauffele has never finished worse than T14 in eight U.S. Opens. Tommy Fleetwood's game suits Oakmont well, and he has two finishes (no missed cuts) outside the top 25 in his last 12 starts. Corey Conners is one of the best ball-strikers in the world, which bodes well at this tough venue. And we already waxed poetic about Straka and Lowry.

Brooks Koepka: To miss the cut (+120)

The dominant Brooks Koepka we once saw at majors is no more. Since winning the 2023 PGA Championship, he's failed to finish inside the top 15 and has missed back-to-back major cuts. What's most concerning is Koepka's lack of distance off the tee, averaging only 300.9 yards and hitting 55.65% of the fairways on LIV this year. For a player who relies heavily on his driver, those numbers won't hold up at Oakmont.

Cameron Smith: To miss the cut (-105)

According to DataGolf.com, Oakmont is a horrible course fit for Cam Smith. It makes sense - he's short and inaccurate off the tee but has a tremendous short game off tight lies, which are present at a course he's had success at - Augusta National. However, there's no short grass around Oakmont's greens, meaning Smith's chipping skills will be largely neutralized.

Additionally, Smith has missed the cut in three straight majors. It should be no surprise if he makes it four straight this week.