Eaton Thatcher
The 81st Masters Championship kicks off on April 6th and marks the first Major of the year. We have the usual bunch of favorites taking to Augusta, like Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, and Dustin Johnson, and we could even see Tiger Woods back on the fairway for the first time since February.
The greatest golfer of his generation has created a lot of buzz over the last year by declaring his return to golf, and releasing a new book. But he hasn’t taken part in a tournament in over a month, and his chances at the Masters aren’t looking so good.
Let’s take a closer look at the favorites.
Odds to win the 2017 Masters Tournament:
Rory McIlroy: 7/1
Rory McIlroy has picked up every Major Championship except for the Masters. The closest he’s come is a fourth place finish in 2015, and a win this year would place him in the exclusive group of golfers to have won all four Majors.
He’s off to a quiet start in 2017, but he’ll take to the Masters as the favorite.
Dustin Johnson: 7/1
The current world number one is the Masters favorite alongside McIlroy. He’s off to a good start too, picking up wins at the Genesis Open and the WGC-Mexico Championship. He took the U.S. Open last year and finished fourth at the Masters. Look for him to continue to dominate play at Augusta.
Jordan Spieth: 15/2
Spieth had a killer year in 2015, finishing runner-up at the PGA Championship and winning the Masters and U.S. Open. But 2016 was a quieter year for the 23 year old, as he picked up just one PGA win and a second place finish at the Masters.
He’s off to a good start this year, though. He’s already claimed his first PGA Tour win.
Jason Day: 18/1
The former world number one claimed three PGA wins last year, but underperformed at the Majors. His second place finish at the PGA Championship was his most impressive performance, which isn’t anything to scoff at. But after his 2015 display, he was probably expecting more.
It’s not clear if Day will play though, as he withdrew from the WGC Match-Play to be with his mother who is battling lung cancer.
Tiger Woods: 85/1
With 14 Major Championships to his name, Tiger Woods is unquestionably the most decorated golfer of the bunch. But his last win was ten years ago in 2007, and his recent performances don’t exactly inspire confidence. In 2015, he was cut from three Majors and finished 17th at the Masters, and on the PGA Tour, he had just one top-ten finish.
We don’t know if he’s completely recovered from his back issues, and his form is understandably still under question. However, he did recently beat Michael Strahan in a putting challenge on Good Morning America. So I guess there’s still some hope for him.
Tiger Woods Prop Odds
Odds Tiger Woods will compete at the 2017 Masters: 2/5
Odds Woods finishes in top ten at 2017 Masters: 9/1
Odds Woods finishes 2017 in the top 100 of the World Golf Rankings: 4/1
Odds Woods retires after the 2017 season: 5/2
Photo credit: Keith Allison (flickr) CC BY-SA 2.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0]
