Even hockey blog writers will be paying attention to the 2012 golf season, which teed off Thursday in Hawaii, as Tiger Woods takes aim at the record for major championship victories, which is Jack Nicklaus’ 18 titles. Woods has been in the news for his scandal, and then injuries took its toll on the former No.1 player, but a win at the Chevron World Challenge was a step in the right direction. Here is a look at his chances in this year’s major championships.
The Masters
Augusta National is one of Woods’ favorite courses as he has four Green Jackets, and in 1997, he set the record for the lowest score. Sportsbook reviews would even tell you that Woods have fared well there in the past couple of years despite everything that has gone on as he hasn’t finished lower than T-6 since 2004. Woods came in T-4 here last year, but injured his leg in the final round and that kept him out of action for most of the year. The early lines have Woods as a +400 favorite to win Green Jacket No.15, which would be his 15th major win.
The U.S. Open
Woods has three U.S. Open wins here, and this year’s event will be held at the Olympic Club in San Francisco for the first time since 1998, when Lee Janzen came out on top and Woods finished T-18. Woods is a California native, and players that use price per head sports services know that a golfer who feels like they have a home course advantage of sorts can have an edge. Since the course is not a regular stop on the PGA Tour, everyone should be on an even field, but expect Woods to get some practice rounds in before June.
The Open Championship
This year’s edition of the Open Championship, known in North America as the British Open, will take place at Royal Lytham and St. Annes Golf Club in Lancashire, England. It was last held here in 2001, when David Duval claimed the Claret Jug and Woods, a three-time winner, finished a distant T-25. As far as people that work with pay per head sportsbook software go, this would be the tournament where they wouldn’t have Woods as the favorite, although it depends entirely on how he is playing at the time. The Open is always up in the air because of the winds, so this field could be wide open.
The PGA Championship
The final major of the year will be played at Kiawah Island in South Carolina, and it was the site of a memorable United States win in the 1997 Ryder Cup, which Woods was a part of. Even if he hasn’t won a major at this point, Woods will still be near the top of the list of favorites. There isn’t a player that moves the meter like Tiger Woods, so expect to see a lot of him in your online sportsbooks this year.
Comments
Kiawah Island wasn’t the site of the 1997 Ryder Cup. 1997 was in Valderrama in Spain. The Ryder Cup at Kawah Island was in 1991 and Woods was not a member of that team. That team was captained by Stockton and the team was Floyd Stewart, Calcavecchia, Azinger, Pavin, Levi, Beck, O’Meara, Couples, Wadkins, Irwin and Pate.