The last dozen Major golf events have produced 12 different winners so it's no wonder that golf betting on the last Major of the season, the PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club, Aug. 11-14, is spread as wide as a duffer's tee shots.
Rory McIlroy, who went off as a solid 9/2 favorite in the most recent Major, the British Open, is a more modest 8/1 betting choice to win the PGA Championship. McIlroy never was a threat at the British Open, finishing 25th at Royal Saint George, July 14-17. McIlroy famously fell apart while leading The Masters on the final day but found redemption (and a slew of new golf betting fans) when he captured the US Open, June 19.
Phil Mickelson, who surged into a tie for the lead at the British Open only to crumple on the back nine, is the 10/1 second choice to add another PGA Championship title to his resume while also halting a streak of six straight Major events without an American victory. Lefty won his first PGA Championship trophy at the 2005 event.
Luke Donald, who currently is ranked No. 1 in the world despite never having won a Major, is listed at odds of 13/1 to win the 2011 PGA Championship. Donald does not have a sparkling history at the PGA Championship, failing to make the cut and finishing out of the top 20 in six of his last seven efforts in this Major. Only a third place finish in 2006 offers some hope of a change of fortune.
Lee Westwood, who ended Tiger Woods' streak atop the golf rankings when he assumed the No. 1 ranking late in 2010, is quoted at odds of 14/1. Like Donald, Westwood still is seeking his first Major but finishes of third or better in all four majors the last three years encourages optimism.
Woods is offered at odds of 16/1, a future book price that would be considered ridiculously high only two years ago. But Woods has not won a Major since the 2008 US Open and has slipped to No. 20 in the world rankings. A winner of 14 Major titles, including four PGA Championships, Woods holds the tournament record, twice shooting 18 under par. But bettors have not seen that version of Tiger Woods for more than three years and Woods, who is still nursing injuries that kept him out of the 2011 US Open and British Open, is a longshot to even compete in Atlanta. What's more, Woods recently dismissed longtime caddie Steve Williams, hardly a confidence building sign if you're thinking of backing Tiger.
Others in the hunt include defending PGA Champion Martin Kaymer, 20/1; Dustin Johnson, 25/1; Steve Stricker, Sergio Garcia and Nick Watney, each 30/1; Jason Day and Matt Kuchar, each 35/1; and Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, 40/1.
David Toms might be an interesting longshot at odds of 45/1. Toms won the PGA Championship the last time it was hosted by the Atlanta Athletic Club, in 2001. Toms shot 265 over four days, the lowest score ever recorded in a Major.
In addition to straight win wagering, some sportsbooks also are offering a proposition on the winning margin at the 2011 PGA Championship. Golf betting fans can take 12/5 that the event is decided in a playoff, 5/2 that the margin of victory is exactly one stroke; 7/2 that it's two shots; 9/2 that the margin is three strokes, and 10/3 that four or more shots separates the winner from the runner-up.
As is often the case in Major championships, the world's best golfers will have to share the spotlight with the golf course, which plays to 7,457 yards and is a par 70. The final five holes are brutal, including the par 4, 507-yard 18th—the toughest hole on the course--that is fronted by water. Toms famously laid up at No. 18 in 2001 before hitting an iron to within 12 feet and sinking the putt for a tournament-winning par four.
Water also is a factor on the par 3, 207 yard 17th as it is at the par 3, 260-yard 15th, the second toughest hole on the golf course. No. 14, a 468-yard par 4, and No. 16, a 276-yard par 4, each require a precise drive.
With no one golfer having dominated over the past three years and challenges down the stretch of a difficult golf course, PGA Championship golf betting fans should find wagering on the final Major of the year a difficult but potentially rewarding endeavor.
