Last Updated on August 12, 2026 by Maurya
The LPGA Tour moves to Portland, Oregon this week for The Standard Portland Classic, and the latest LPGA Tour winner betting odds have produced a fascinating head-to-head at the top of the market. Haeran Ryu and Jeeno Thitikul are the clear favourites, but there is considerably more depth behind them, including defending champion Aki Iwai and several players available at double-digit prices.
The Standard Portland Classic takes place August 13-16, 2026 at Columbia Edgewater Country Club and carries a $2 million purse plus 500 Race to the CME Globe points.
For bettors, this is not simply a case of backing the biggest name. Portland has historically rewarded aggressive scoring. Recent winning totals include 24-under in 2025, 22-under in 2024, 26-under in 2023 and 19-under in 2022, so the winner is likely to need four consistently strong rounds rather than simply surviving difficult conditions.
Our LPGA betting analysis therefore places particular emphasis on current scoring ability, recent form, proven winning pedigree and value relative to the available odds.
LPGA Tour Winner Betting Odds 2026
At the time of writing, Betfair Sportsbook lists Haeran Ryu as the 5/1 favourite, narrowly ahead of Jeeno Thitikul at 11/2. Defending Portland champion Aki Iwai is available at 18/1, while Jin Hee Im is quoted at 22/1. Somi Lee and Hye-Jin Choi are among the next group at 25/1. Betfair’s listed each-way terms are one-quarter of the outright odds for five places.
| Player | Current Outright Odds | Betting View |
| Haeran Ryu | 5/1 | Best overall pick |
| Jeeno Thitikul | 11/2 | Major favourite |
| Aki Iwai | 18/1 | Best course-history bet |
| Jin Hee Im | 22/1 | Strong each-way candidate |
| Somi Lee | 25/1 | Value contender |
| Hye-Jin Choi | 25/1 | Value contender |
Paddy Power’s market paints essentially the same picture, quoting Ryu at decimal odds of 6.0 and Thitikul at 6.5, equivalent to 5/1 and 11/2 respectively.
Odds can change quickly before the opening round, so always compare sportsbooks immediately before placing a wager.
Our Best LPGA Bets
Best bet: Haeran Ryu at 5/1
Main alternative: Jeeno Thitikul at 11/2
Best value bet: Aki Iwai at 18/1
Each-way consideration: Jin Hee Im at 22/1
Longer-price option: Hye-Jin Choi at 25/1
Why Haeran Ryu Is Our Best Bet at 5/1
It is difficult to argue against Haeran Ryu being favourite based on what she has produced during the heart of the 2026 season.
Ryu won the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship on June 28, capturing her first major championship by two shots. She then followed it by defeating Brooke Henderson in a playoff at the Amundi Evian Championship on July 12, giving her two consecutive major victories.
That is elite-level form.
The statistics strengthen her case. Ryu currently sits second in the Race to the CME Globe standings with 2,368.715 points, trailing only Nelly Korda. She is also second in LPGA scoring average at 69.51 strokes per round, behind Korda’s 69.18.
Those numbers matter particularly at Columbia Edgewater.
This tournament has repeatedly been won with scores in the high teens or well into the 20s under par. Ryu has demonstrated that she can sustain extremely low scoring over four days, and she arrives with the confidence of a player who has recently closed out two of the biggest tournaments in women’s golf.
Her performance at the AIG Women’s Open also showed that the major-winning run was not followed by an immediate collapse. Ryu finished among the group at 1-under at Royal Lytham & St Annes after contending prominently during the tournament.
At 5/1, the price is not enormous, and bettors should never confuse the most likely winner with automatic betting value. Nevertheless, among the leading contenders, Ryu has the strongest combination of form, scoring statistics and recent winning experience.
Pick: Haeran Ryu to win at 5/1.
Jeeno Thitikul at 11/2: The Biggest Threat to Ryu
If you do not want to take the favourite, Jeeno Thitikul at 11/2 is the obvious alternative.
Thitikul has already won twice during the 2026 LPGA season. She won the Honda LPGA Thailand in February and added the Mizuho Americas Open in May, successfully defending her title there and collecting the ninth LPGA Tour victory of her career.
Her season totals are impressive: LPGA records currently show 14 starts, 12 made cuts, seven top-10 finishes and two victories.
She is also fifth in the current Race to the CME Globe standings and fourth in LPGA scoring average at 70.18.
More importantly for anyone assessing recent form, Thitikul remained competitive during the recent major championships. She opened the 2026 AIG Women’s Open with a bogey-free 64 and eventually finished tied alongside Nelly Korda at 2-under, just three strokes away from the playoff-winning score.
The case against Thitikul is simply price.
At 11/2, there is almost no value cushion if she merely plays well without winning. When betting a full-field golf tournament, taking single-digit odds requires a very high level of confidence.
Still, her combination of consistency and genuine winning upside makes her considerably more attractive than blindly searching for a 40/1 outsider.
Pick: Jeeno Thitikul at 11/2 as the leading alternative to Ryu.
Aki Iwai at 18/1 Is the Best Value Pick
If there is one price that immediately stands out beyond the favourites, it is Aki Iwai at 18/1.
Why?
Because Iwai has already demonstrated that she knows exactly how to win at Columbia Edgewater.
She captured the 2025 Standard Portland Classic at 24-under, closing with a final-round 66 and defeating Gurleen Kaur by four strokes for her first LPGA Tour victory.
Course history is sometimes overrated in golf betting. A golfer playing poorly should not automatically become a good bet because she performed well at the same venue 12 months earlier.
Iwai, however, combines course history with current evidence.
At July’s Amundi Evian Championship, she finished alone in third place, behind Haeran Ryu and Brooke Henderson.
She also sits 13th in the current Race to the CME Globe standings.
That combination makes 18/1 interesting.
Iwai does not need to prove that the sightlines, green complexes or scoring demands at Columbia Edgewater suit her game. She has already produced four winning rounds here and knows what score will probably be required.
At nearly three times the price of Ryu and Thitikul, defending champion Iwai offers a more attractive risk-to-reward ratio for bettors comfortable moving beyond the two favourites.
Best value pick: Aki Iwai at 18/1.
Jin Hee Im at 22/1 Has Each-Way Appeal
Jin Hee Im at 22/1 is another name worth keeping on the shortlist, particularly for each-way bettors.
Her 2026 LPGA record shows 16 starts, 15 made cuts and four top-10 finishes. She has not yet won this season, but that made-cut consistency is encouraging when assessing a golfer at a bigger price.
Im also came extremely close to winning the JM Eagle LA Championship earlier in the year, eventually losing in a playoff won by Hannah Green.
Her statistical profile is intriguing as well. LPGA data currently has her gaining 0.82 strokes putting, ranking 10th in that category.
Strong putting weeks are particularly valuable at tournaments where the winning score is expected to approach 20-under or better. When birdies are plentiful, players who continually convert chances from 10 to 20 feet can separate themselves from equally strong ball-strikers.
Im is currently 10th in the Race to the CME Globe rankings with 1,147.639 points, another indication that her season has been considerably more consistent than the absence of a victory might suggest.
At 22/1, she is not our preferred outright winner over Ryu or Iwai, but she has enough upside to warrant each-way consideration.
Why Columbia Edgewater Rewards Aggressive Golf
Understanding the tournament’s scoring history is essential when analysing LPGA Portland Classic odds.
The last five champions and winning scores are:
- 2025 – Aki Iwai, -24
- 2024 – Moriya Jutanugarn, -22
- 2023 – Chanettee Wannasaen, -26
- 2022 – Andrea Lee, -19
- 2021 – Jin Young Ko, -11
The 2021 score stands out, but the subsequent four renewals have all required at least 19-under.
That tells bettors something important: par avoidance alone is unlikely to be enough.
We want players who can generate birdie opportunities repeatedly, convert enough putts and continue attacking even after reaching double digits under par.
This is one reason Ryu’s 69.51 scoring average is particularly attractive. It is also why the defending champion deserves more respect than she might receive at another venue.
The winner may need to reach approximately five to six under per round if scoring conditions resemble recent years.
Should You Bet the Favourite in LPGA Golf?
Betting favourites in golf requires a different mindset from betting favourites in head-to-head sports.
At 5/1, Haeran Ryu’s implied probability before accounting for bookmaker margin is roughly 16.7%. In other words, even a golfer correctly priced as the favourite would still be expected to lose the tournament considerably more often than she wins it.
That does not make 5/1 a bad price.
It simply highlights why bankroll management matters.
Outright golf markets involve dozens of viable competitors. A player can hit excellent shots for 71 holes and lose because another golfer holes a 30-foot birdie putt on the 72nd.
The best strategy is therefore not automatically to back five or six players simply because their prices look attractive.
Instead, identify where your assessment differs from the market.
For Portland, our strongest differences are:
Ryu: The favourite appears justified rather than overhyped.
Iwai: Her combination of defending-champion status and recent major form gives her attractive value at 18/1.
Im: Consistency plus putting ability makes 22/1 interesting for an each-way approach.
What About Ruoning Yin and Lottie Woad?
One detail worth highlighting demonstrates why bettors should always verify tournament fields rather than simply copying an odds screen.
Betfair’s market was showing Ruoning Yin and Lottie Woad at 14/1 when checked.
Both would normally demand serious consideration. Woad has already won the 2026 Kroger Queen City Championship, while Yin has five top-10 finishes from 14 listed LPGA starts this season.
However, at the time of our check, we could not verify Woad or Ruoning Yin on the LPGA’s current Portland entries page, while players including Thitikul, Ryu, Iwai, Im, Somi Lee and Hye-Jin Choi were listed as entered.
That discrepancy is exactly why final-field verification should be part of any serious golf betting process.
Sportsbook markets can move faster or slower than official entry lists, and withdrawals can occur. Do not place an outright wager based solely on an attractive number without confirming the sportsbook’s non-runner rules and the player’s tournament status.
LPGA Portland Classic Betting Strategy
There are several sensible ways to approach the tournament rather than putting an entire stake on one outright.
Outright Winner
Our strongest outright combination would centre on Haeran Ryu and Aki Iwai.
Ryu provides the elite current form, while Iwai provides the more attractive price and obvious course credentials.
Each-Way Betting
An each-way wager divides the stake between the player winning and finishing within the bookmaker’s specified place positions.
Betfair was advertising one-quarter odds for five places on this tournament at the time of writing.
That makes players such as Jin Hee Im potentially more appealing than they would be in a win-only market.
Always check individual bookmaker terms, because place numbers and fractions can differ.
Top-10 Markets
Top-10 betting can make sense when you strongly rate a golfer but do not believe the outright price compensates for the volatility of winning.
For example, Betfair’s market priced Ryu and Thitikul very aggressively in its top-finish markets, reflecting how strongly bookmakers rate their chances of remaining near the top of the leaderboard.
These markets generally reduce the potential return but also remove the requirement for your golfer to defeat every player in the field.
Players to Watch Beyond Our Main Picks
Hye-Jin Choi – 25/1
Choi is available at around 25/1 in the quoted market and is confirmed among the LPGA entries.
At that price, she belongs in the second tier of contenders rather than the primary betting card.
Somi Lee – 25/1
Lee is another 25/1 option confirmed on the LPGA entry list.
She offers enough upside to merit attention if the price drifts further before Thursday.
Rose Zhang
Zhang is confirmed in the field through the LPGA entries page and should naturally attract interest from American bettors.
Rather than automatically backing her on name recognition, compare her price against golfers with stronger current statistical or course-history arguments.
LPGA Tour Form Guide for 2026
The 2026 season has underlined just how difficult LPGA outright betting can be.
Nelly Korda currently leads both the Race to the CME Globe and Rolex Player of the Year standings, while Haeran Ryu sits second in both categories. Jeeno Thitikul is fifth in the CME standings and third in Player of the Year points.
Ryu’s rise has been particularly significant. She captured consecutive majors at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and Amundi Evian Championship, while Thitikul has won twice during the regular season.
This creates an interesting Portland market because several of the tour’s most accomplished players are either absent or not prominent in the available field, increasing the winning probability of those who are competing.
That is one reason prices such as 5/1 and 11/2 are shorter than casual golf bettors might expect.
Our Final LPGA Tour Winner Prediction
After comparing the latest LPGA betting odds with recent performance, season-long statistics, tournament history and confirmed entries, Haeran Ryu is our pick to win the 2026 Standard Portland Classic.
She arrives with arguably the strongest form profile available: two major championships in rapid succession, second place in the Race to the CME Globe and the second-best scoring average on the LPGA Tour.
The 5/1 price is short enough that we would not chase it if bookmakers cut her dramatically further.
At current prices, however, she remains the player to beat.
For bettors wanting more upside, Aki Iwai at 18/1 is our favourite value selection. Winning this tournament at 24-under last season proves that she can produce the aggressive four-round scoring performance Columbia Edgewater demands. Her solo-third finish at the Evian Championship also provides evidence that her 2025 Portland victory was not simply a one-off peak.
Best LPGA Tour Bets 2026
Haeran Ryu – 5/1: Best outright winner bet.
Jeeno Thitikul – 11/2: Strongest alternative to the favourite.
Aki Iwai – 18/1: Best value outright bet and proven Portland specialist.
Jin Hee Im – 22/1: Best each-way consideration.
Hye-Jin Choi – 25/1: Bigger-price contender worth monitoring.
FAQs
Who is the favourite to win the LPGA Portland Classic 2026?
Haeran Ryu is the current betting favourite at approximately 5/1, narrowly ahead of Jeeno Thitikul at around 11/2 in the Betfair market checked on August 12, 2026.
Who won the Portland Classic in 2025?
Aki Iwai won the 2025 Standard Portland Classic at 24-under par, beating Gurleen Kaur by four shots after closing with a 66.
Who is the best value bet?
Our preferred value selection is Aki Iwai at 18/1 because she combines proven course history with strong recent championship form.
Who is the best LPGA golfer to bet on this week?
Haeran Ryu has the strongest statistical and recent-form profile among the leading Portland contenders, while Jeeno Thitikul is the closest alternative.
Can LPGA betting odds change?
Yes. Golf odds can move significantly because of withdrawals, betting activity, weather information and bookmaker liability. Compare prices and verify the official field before placing a bet.
What does each-way betting mean in golf?
An each-way golf bet consists of two wagers: one on the golfer to win and another on the golfer to finish within the bookmaker’s stated places. Each-way terms vary by sportsbook.
Final Verdict
The 2026 LPGA Tour winner betting odds for Portland offer an unusual mixture of elite favourites and attractive mid-range prices.
Haeran Ryu is the player most likely to win in our assessment, and her 5/1 price reflects a remarkable run that includes consecutive major victories.
Jeeno Thitikul is close enough in ability that an 11/2 victory would be no surprise, but we slightly prefer Ryu’s current form and scoring profile.
For value seekers, Aki Iwai at 18/1 is the standout. Returning to the same course where she shot 24-under and won by four strokes immediately puts her on the shortlist, particularly after a solo-third finish at the Evian Championship.
Our final betting card therefore looks like this:
Best Bet: Haeran Ryu – 5/1
Best Value: Aki Iwai – 18/1
Best Alternative: Jeeno Thitikul – 11/2
Each-Way Pick: Jin Hee Im – 22/1
Golf remains one of the highest-variance betting markets. Prices should be treated as probabilities rather than guarantees, and stakes should always remain within a predetermined bankroll.
Bet responsibly. Odds quoted were checked on August 12, 2026 and may change before the tournament begins.
