British Open Betting: Round 1 Preview
Though you might not know it from the media coverage, more than one golfer is participating in this year's British Open which is set to begin Thursday morning at St. Andrews' Old Course.
What do you do when your life is crashing down all around you? Change your putter, of course.
Tiger Woods has gone through a number of transformations over his 14 years in professional golf. But one thing that has remained constant since 1999: his old, reliable Titleist Scotty Cameron Newport 2 putter.
That relationship comes to an end this week when Woods whips out his new Nike Method putter, which he says will help him navigate the slower, flatter greens at St. Andrews for the 139th Open Championship.
This should be a positive for Tiger supporters – and they are still legion, although dwindling in number. Since we first previewed this week’s British Open, the betting odds on Woods have lengthened from 9-2 to 5-1. He’s still the favorite by a considerable margin over Phil Mickelson, who has plunged from 12-1 to 16-1 as more bettors clue in on Lefty’s lifelong difficulties with links courses. Rory McIlroy, the young upstart from Northern Ireland, has moved from 18-1 to match Mickelson at 16-1.
But back to that putter. Woods is a tremendous all-around golfer, and he usually checks in somewhere in the PGA Tour’s Top 10 golfers when it comes to average number of putts per green. In 2007, the year before he underwent two separate surgeries on his left knee, Woods ranked fourth overall in putting average at 1.733. In his 2009 comeback, he fell to No. 23 at 1.743 putts per green, and this year Tiger’s even further back at No. 45 (1.760). The last straw was when he blew 15 putts from within 10 feet at the AT&T National, where he finished in 46th place.
Woods appears to be very pleased with his new stick.
“This putter does come off faster with the new groove technology,” Woods told Helen Ross at PGA Tour.com. “It rolls the ball better and rolls it faster.”
And it just so happens that 2009 British Open champion Stewart Cink used the Method 001 putter, which was first unveiled nearly two years ago. Woods is reportedly using a custom version of that model, tailored to more closely resemble the Scotty Cameron putter so it won’t feel remarkably different in Tiger’s hands.
This is obviously a marketing coup for Nike, although it could certainly backfire if Woods struggles at St. Andrews. The props market shows plenty of confidence that won’t happen; Woods is available at -180 to finish in the Top 10. You can find Woods at 8-1 odds to avoid three-putting this week, which he managed to do in winning the 2005 British Open at the same location.
Woods will tee off Thursday at 4:09 a.m. Eastern time in a group with Justin Rose (20-1), who won the aforementioned AT&T National two weeks ago, and Camilo Villegas (66-1), who won the Honda Classic back in March. Villegas uses the Scotty Cameron putter, so if you’re getting up early to watch the coverage on ESPN, you can expect to see a visual comparison with the Nike Method. Rose uses the TaylorMade Rossa Monte Carlo putter, by the way.
If you’re still not in the Woods camp, McIlroy is one of the few second-tier golfers getting much of a push this week. Lee Westwood, the No. 3-ranked golfer in the world and originally the third favorite at 14-1, has slipped to 18-1 following reports of a ruptured plantaris muscle in his right calf. The injury was discovered two weeks ago at golf’s version of the French Open; Westwood finished that tournament in 18th place and skipped last week’s Scottish Open at Loch Lomond to recuperate. The rainy conditions expected Thursday aren’t likely to help Westwood keep his swing together while he fights through the pain.
As for McIlroy, he’s no stranger to St. Andrews, finishing third at the 2007 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in just his second professional tournament. He tees off at 3:20 a.m. Eastern with Lucas Glover and Tim Clark. ESPN’s coverage starts at 4 a.m. ET. And yes, McIlroy uses a Scotty Cameron putter, specifically a 33-inch custom Fastback.
Though you might not know it from the media coverage, more than one golfer is participating in this year's British Open which is set to begin Thursday morning at St. Andrews' Old Course.
What do you do when your life is crashing down all around you? Change your putter, of course.
Tiger Woods has gone through a number of transformations over his 14 years in professional golf. But one thing that has remained constant since 1999: his old, reliable Titleist Scotty Cameron Newport 2 putter.
That relationship comes to an end this week when Woods whips out his new Nike Method putter, which he says will help him navigate the slower, flatter greens at St. Andrews for the 139th Open Championship.
This should be a positive for Tiger supporters – and they are still legion, although dwindling in number. Since we first previewed this week’s British Open, the betting odds on Woods have lengthened from 9-2 to 5-1. He’s still the favorite by a considerable margin over Phil Mickelson, who has plunged from 12-1 to 16-1 as more bettors clue in on Lefty’s lifelong difficulties with links courses. Rory McIlroy, the young upstart from Northern Ireland, has moved from 18-1 to match Mickelson at 16-1.
But back to that putter. Woods is a tremendous all-around golfer, and he usually checks in somewhere in the PGA Tour’s Top 10 golfers when it comes to average number of putts per green. In 2007, the year before he underwent two separate surgeries on his left knee, Woods ranked fourth overall in putting average at 1.733. In his 2009 comeback, he fell to No. 23 at 1.743 putts per green, and this year Tiger’s even further back at No. 45 (1.760). The last straw was when he blew 15 putts from within 10 feet at the AT&T National, where he finished in 46th place.
Woods appears to be very pleased with his new stick.
“This putter does come off faster with the new groove technology,” Woods told Helen Ross at PGA Tour.com. “It rolls the ball better and rolls it faster.”
And it just so happens that 2009 British Open champion Stewart Cink used the Method 001 putter, which was first unveiled nearly two years ago. Woods is reportedly using a custom version of that model, tailored to more closely resemble the Scotty Cameron putter so it won’t feel remarkably different in Tiger’s hands.
This is obviously a marketing coup for Nike, although it could certainly backfire if Woods struggles at St. Andrews. The props market shows plenty of confidence that won’t happen; Woods is available at -180 to finish in the Top 10. You can find Woods at 8-1 odds to avoid three-putting this week, which he managed to do in winning the 2005 British Open at the same location.
Woods will tee off Thursday at 4:09 a.m. Eastern time in a group with Justin Rose (20-1), who won the aforementioned AT&T National two weeks ago, and Camilo Villegas (66-1), who won the Honda Classic back in March. Villegas uses the Scotty Cameron putter, so if you’re getting up early to watch the coverage on ESPN, you can expect to see a visual comparison with the Nike Method. Rose uses the TaylorMade Rossa Monte Carlo putter, by the way.
If you’re still not in the Woods camp, McIlroy is one of the few second-tier golfers getting much of a push this week. Lee Westwood, the No. 3-ranked golfer in the world and originally the third favorite at 14-1, has slipped to 18-1 following reports of a ruptured plantaris muscle in his right calf. The injury was discovered two weeks ago at golf’s version of the French Open; Westwood finished that tournament in 18th place and skipped last week’s Scottish Open at Loch Lomond to recuperate. The rainy conditions expected Thursday aren’t likely to help Westwood keep his swing together while he fights through the pain.
As for McIlroy, he’s no stranger to St. Andrews, finishing third at the 2007 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in just his second professional tournament. He tees off at 3:20 a.m. Eastern with Lucas Glover and Tim Clark. ESPN’s coverage starts at 4 a.m. ET. And yes, McIlroy uses a Scotty Cameron putter, specifically a 33-inch custom Fastback.
