US PGA Tour Golf betting - The Players Championship

Tiger Woods will hope to put his troubles, both on the golf course and behind the scenes, behind him, as he looks for a return to winning ways at the sport`s most lucrative tournament. The Players Championship is held every year at the TPC at Sawgrass  in Florida and a field of 145 will compete for their share of the huge $9.5 million on offer. Tiger is favourite at 8/1 (bet $10 to win $80 profit), the biggest price he has been in over a decade, but he has enjoyed little success over this very demanding course by his own high standards, winning only once in, 2001. Add to that his poor showing last time out, when he missed the cut at the Quail Hollow championship and many believe there are enough reasons look elsewhere for this year`s winner.

Phil Mickelson is the obvious candidate after winning the Masters and finishing second at Quail Hollow and the American can end Tiger`s 258-week stay at number one in the world with a performance of similar quality this week. Mickelson, who won the Players Championship in 2007, is available at 9/1 with Stan James.

Rory McIlroy, who won at Quail Hollow and only celebrated his twenty-first birthday on Tuesday, is 22/1 for a more prestigious win this week in Florida. The world number nine had disappointed after a bright start to the season, finishing third at the Abu Dhabi Championship, but seems to have returned to form at a good time. However, his previous attempt at this course did see him miss the cut by seven shots.

English golfers have never been more successful than they are right now and the trio of Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and Paul Casey, fourth, sixth and eighth in the world respectively, will all fancy their chances this year, as will every top player looking to take advantage of a sub-par Tiger. Westwood, at 28/1 with Stan James, won the race to Dubai last year and has performed well this season, finishing second in both the Dubai Desert Classic and the Masters. Ian Poulter is generally available at the same price and has already taken the Accenture Match Play Championship in 2010 after finishing second here last year. Casey, who was runner-up in the Match Play, is 45/1.

Last year`s winner, Henrik Stenson, is 50/1 with SkyBet but the Swede has not won since and Sergio Garcia, who won in 2008 and is at 70/1, has also failed to rediscover that form. Other former winners include Stephen Ames at 60/1 with Stan James, Adam Scott at 66/1 and Justin Leonard at 150/1.

The story of the tournament will be the performance of Tiger Woods but, if he fails to show up, whoever wins will not be overly troubled by the lost attention as they claim their $1.71 million. The tournament starts at 12.00 GMT on Thursday afternoon.

The Players Championship winner betting odds

The Players Championship match betting odds

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