A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
In the eyes of many – especially TV networks – the PGA golf season won’t truly start again until Mr. Eldrick “Tiger” Woods returns to action.
In a literal sense, however, the 2010 season is under way and it’s a free-for-all to win all those tourneys Tiger would’ve won if he played this year. Next up is the Sony Open in Hawaii.
Here are some golfers to watch this week and, for any bettors out there, odds are posted.
The TOUR Championship odds signify the end of the FedEx Cup playoffs, and the event at East Lake should be filled with excitement.
Five players hold their fate in their hands and can win the $10 million prize by winning here, so let’s check out their scenarios and the standings after we bring you the particulars for this weekend’s event:
TOUR Championship Preview
Current FedEx Cup Standings:
Tiger Woods (TOUR Championship Odds: +100): The world’s No.1 romped to an eight-stroke win at Cog Hill two weeks ago, but with the reseeding that gives everyone in the field a chance to win, his lead fell to 250 points over Steve Stricker. That’s no matter, though. The last time he was at East Lake, Woods won.
Steve Stricker (TOUR Championship Odds: +1600): Stricker is coming off his worst result of the season, a T-52 at Cog Hill, and he was T-24 here last year. If he is going to overtake Woods, he’ll need the tournament of his life this weekend.
Jim Furyk (TOUR Championship Odds: +1400): Furyk is a steady play for online sports betting players, and he racks up top-10s like it’s going out of style. He was T-3 at East Lake last year, and he finished second to Woods at Cog Hill (albeit a distant second). With six top-10s at East Lake, look for Furyk to be there on Sunday afternoon.
Zach Johnson (TOUR Championship Odds: +2200): Johnson was fifth at Cog Hill, and he certainly likes East Lake: he has the course record there with his 60 in 2007. He has four top-20s in his last five events and he’s improved his score each week in the FedEx Cup playoffs.
Heath Slocum (TOUR Championship Odds: +10000): Slocum is used to being a darkhorse in your handicapping software, because quite frankly, he wasn’t even supposed to be here at this point. He jumped from 124th in the 125-player FedEx field to third with his surprising win at Liberty National in the first event, but has since cooled off with a missed-cut and a T-38. In his last East Lake appearance in 2007, Slocum came in T-17.
Prediction: Padraig Harrington (+1400) should win the event as he has five top-10s in a row, including four in the top-six, but he needs to win and for Woods to finish third or worse, which isn’t the best scenario. Woods to win the FedEx Cup is one of the easiest sports picks of the weekend.
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* – Tiger Woods photo credit: TopNews.in
