The 2011 Players Championship kicks off bright and early Thursday morning at TPC Sawgrass in Florida, and naturally Tiger Woods has quickly become a betting favorite. Although Tiger has been winless in tournament play for some time now, that hasn’t stopped the oddsmakers from installing him as a favorite, or co-favorite with Phil Mickelson.
A quick look at Bodog’s odds for the event reveals Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, and Luke Donald as the three early favorites. After Donald at 16/1, the next closest odds are seven players at 33/1.
Phil Mickelson 14/1
Tiger Woods 14/1
Luke Donald 16/1
Adam Scott 33/1
Ben Crane 33/1
Jim Furyk 33/1
Martin Kaymer 33/1
Matt Kuchar 33/1
Nick Watney 33/1
Steve Stricker 33/1
Bubba Watson 40/1
Charl Schwartzel 40/1
Dustin Johnson 40/1
Hunter Mahan 40/1
Jason Day 40/1
K.J. Choi 40/1
Padraig Harrington 40/1
Bill Haas 50/1
Geoff Ogilvy 50/1
J.B. Holmes 50/1
Paul Casey 50/1
Although I’m sure plenty of people will be throwing down money on Tiger Woods this weekend, Gene Wojciechowski provides plenty of reasons to stay away from Tiger when it comes to betting. He hasn’t won at TPC Sawgrass since 2001 and he has one top ten finish there since 2002. He apparently has played a grand total of 18 holes since last month’s Masters fourth place finish. Heading into Thursday’s tee off one has to wonder whether that’s a good or a bad thing.
Whatever the case, given how the PGA Tour has played out this season, you could very well draw a name out of a hat and be better off than researching the players. As Ernie mentioned in opening this stream, it’s really anybody’s tournament and probably won’t be decided until the closing holes. Make sure and check back all week for more coverage of the 2011 Players Championship. We’ll have tee times each morning, a look at notable pairings, and of course daily recaps of the action.