posted April 3, 2007 at 18:32 EST in Golf Articles

It’s hard to bet against Tiger Woods winning The Masters this season, but don’t forget that it is Phil Mickelson who has picked up the green jacket in two of the past three years. And, while Mickelson isn’t quite listed as the BetUS favorite to get the victory on Sunday afternoon, Lefty and Tiger do find themselves ahead of the field on the odds list.

Oddsmakers currently have Woods as the +120 favorite to win golf’s first major tournament of the year, while Mickelson is a bit behind, at +700 odds. The next closest golfer to those two on the current odds list is Ernie Els, who is sitting at +1200, while Vijay Singh is listed fourth at +1600. Here are the rest of the top contenders’ odds:

Odds To Win 2007 Masters Tournament

• Tiger Woods +120
• Phil Mickelson +700
• Ernie Els +1200
• Vijay Singh +1600
• Adam Scott +2200
• Retief Goosen +2500
• Henrik Stenson +2500
• Jim Furyk +2800
• Geoff Ogilvy +2800
• Sergio Garcia +3000
• Padraig Harrington +3500
• Paul Casey +4000
• Luke Donald +4000
• Charles Howell +4000
• Trevor Immelman +4000
• Chris DiMarco +5000
• Stuart Appleby +6000
• Jose Maria Olazabal +6000
• Justin Rose +6000
• Stewart Cink +8000
• Darren Clarke +8000
• David Howell +8000
• Davis Love III +8000
• David Toms +8000
• Mike Weir +8000
• Robert Allenby +9000

How much money will be wagered on someone other than Woods or Mickelson this week? Probably not a lot. Over the past ten years, those two have won The Masters a combined six times, and, since 2001, Mike Weir is the only non-Tiger, non-Phil golfer to have been fitted for a green jacket. Here’s a look at the results from the past decade:

Year --- Champion --- Margin of Win

• 2006 --- Phil Mickelson --- 2 Strokes
• 2005 --- Tiger Woods --- Playoff
• 2004 --- Phil Mickelson --- 1 Stroke
• 2003 --- Mike Weir --- Playoff
• 2002 --- Tiger Woods --- 3 Strokes
• 2001 --- Tiger Woods --- 2 Strokes
• 2000 --- Vijay Singh --- 3 Strokes
• 1999 --- Jose Maria Olazabal --- 2 Strokes
• 1998 --- Mark O’Meara --- 1 Stroke
• 1997 --- Tiger Woods --- 12 Strokes

And here’s how Woods and Mickelson have specifically fared in the event back to 1997:

Woods: 3, 1, 22, 15, 1, 1, 5, 18, 8, 1

Mickelson: 1, 10, 1, 3, 3, 3, 7, 6, 12, CUT

There will be a lot of other golfers in the field this week, including recent past champions Weir (+8000), Singh (+1600), Olazabal (+6000), and O’Meara (+40000). If you’re looking for one of them (ANY of them) to knock off Woods and Mickelson on Sunday, you can currently wager on The Field grabbing the tournament victory instead, with this fun golf prop bet:

 

The Big Two vs. The Field

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson -120

The Field -120

Or, you can choose to ignore the battle between the two American golfers completely, and instead wager on who will be the event’s top golfers from other places around the world. Sergio Garcia and Henrik Stenson lead the European list at +500 odds, while Paul Casey (+185) is seen as the best bet among players from England. Ernie Els currently leads a strong South African contingent at +125 odds, Geoff Ogilvy and Adam Scott top the Australia/New Zealand list at +220, and Henrik Stenson is given EVEN odds to be the top Scandinavian. Here are the rest of the top contenders for those bets:

Top European Player at The Masters

• Sergio Garcia +500
• Henrik Stenson +500
• Paul Casey +700
• Padraig Harrington +700
• Luke Donald +800
• Jose Maria Olazabal +1100

Top English Player at The Masters

• Paul Casey +185
• Luke Donald +300
• Justin Rose +350
• David Howell +750
• Lee Westwood +750
• Ian Poulter +1000

Top South African Player at The Masters

• Ernie Els +125
• Retief Goosen +250
• Trevor Immelman +350
• Tim Clark +600
• Rory Sabbatini +1000
• Gary Player +50000

Top Australia and New Zealand Player at The Masters

• Geoff Ogilvy +220
• Adam Scott +220
• Robert Allenby +450
• Stuart Appleby +650
• Aaron Baddeley +1000
• Nick O’Hern +1000
• Rod Pampling +1000

Top Scandinavian Player at The Masters

• Henrik Stenson EVEN
• Thomas Bjorn +375
• Robert Karlsson +650
• Niclas Fasth +700
• Johan Edfors +800
• Carl Pettersson +800

After competing in the first major tournament of the season, the golfers of the PGA Tour will head to Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head, South Carolina for the Verizon Heritage (which features a purse of $5.4 million). Meanwhile, the European Tour will be at the Shanghai Silport Golf Club for the Volvo China Open (which features a purse of £2 million).

Check out all the latest Honda Classic Odds in the BetUS Sportsbook. Check out all the latest PGA and LPGA future odds in the BetUS Sportsbook futures section.

Take a swing at online sports betting in the BetUS.com online sportsbook. Not just par for the course, at BetUS.com we have all the golf odds, lines and props you’ll ever need to bet on golf. Join BetUS.com today to make betting on golf earn you cash.