Sportsbook lines favor Tiger Woods to win the Masters which begins on Thursday even though he has not played in almost five months. Woods is the 3.5 to 1 choice at the sportsbook even though he has won the Masters only once in the last seven years.
Sportsbook statistics indicate that Woods is a four-time Masters champion but there are a lot of questions surrounding Tiger this week. He has not played competitively in quite a while and no one really knows how he will do. There are some other contenders who could give Tiger a run this week.
Ernie Els had won the last two PGA Tour events before the Shell Houston Open. He is a three-time major champion but has never won the Masters. He is listed at 9-1 at the sportsbook. He is the only player on the PGA Tour this season with multiple wins. He’s a two-time Masters runner-up and could be a good value at 9-1.
Phil Mickelson is actually the second choice behind Woods to win the Masters. The problem with betting on Mickelson is that he has not finished in the Top 10 since mid-February. He has done well at the Masters though with two wins, three third-place finishes and, two more Top 5 finishes.
Woods, Els and Mickelson are the only three players with single-digit odds at the sportsbook this week. Everyone else has double-digit odds including World #2 Steve Stricker. His best finish at the Masters was last year when he tied for sixth. He has already won an even this season and has four Top-10 finishes.
Another contender this week at the sportsbook should be Retief Goosen. He was second at the Masters in 2002 and tied for second in 2007. He has the most Top-10 finishes on tour this season. Padraig Harrington has three major championships since the start of 2007 and that is more than Tiger has. His best finish at the Masters is a tie for fifth. Last year’s winner was Angel Cabrera. He has only one top-10 finish in six tour events this year though.
Camilo Villegas has won this year and he is tied for fourth in driving distance. He tied for 13th at the Masters last year. Jim Furyk is another contender who is playing well. He is fifth in the World Golf Rankings. Paul Casey has played in four tour events this season been in the Top 10 in all four.