Sportsbook fans are focused on the Masters this week. Tiger Woods makes his return to the PGA Tour and much of the attention at the sportsbook will be on Woods. It should be quite a tournament and the interest will be at an all-time high. Sportsbook odds list Tiger as the 3.5 to 1 favorite. No one really knows how well Woods will play though so the odds are probably too low. Woods had not played in almost five months and rarely does a golfer take that long of a break and come back and win his first tournament. Woods is not an average golfer though and many believe he could do it. “Tiger is just a different player,” Ernie Els said, “He’s the one guy who probably could make a success. But it’ll be tough.”
The attention at the sportsbook on the Masters could be as high as it has ever been. Many of the world’s top players believe this year’s tournament is going to be widely popular. “It’s going to be one of the biggest events in golf history,” Stewart Cink said, “The biggest player in golf history is going to come back from this absence and everybody is going to be scrutinizing his game, what he says, where he goes and where he has dinner — everything. It will also end up being a great tournament because he will probably end up in the mix. It’ll be really compelling.”
CBS gets the television coverage on the weekend while ESPN has the first two rounds. CBS sports president Sean McManus said that it will be the “the biggest media event other than the Obama inauguration in the past 10 or 15 years.” Woods loves Augusta and has been practicing there for weeks. Stewart Cink does not expect Woods to have any type of rust in his game. “We’re talking about Tiger Woods, the best player that’s ever played golf,” he said.
Only two other golfers have odds at the sportsbook of less than 10-1. Phil Mickelson is listed at 7.5 to 1 while Ernie Els is 9-1. Mickelson has not played well this season but still gets attention from golf bettors while Els has won the twice this season on the PGA Tour. Other contenders on the golf odds board include Padraig Harrington, Lee Westwood, Paul Casey Ian Poulter, Steve Stricker, Retief Goosen and defending champion Angel Cabrera.