Sharp bettors have noted the ultimate gambler's television channel on YouTube has added a baseball betting preview.
Both the top sportsbook Bodog and scores and odds website ScoresOddsPicks.com have PGA Players Championship preview. First to ScoresOddsPicks
As any diehard golf fan will tell you, the Players Championship is the "fifth major." It features an amazing field and a famous, challenging course – TPC Sawgrass. Here are some names to keep on your radar when you make a sports betting pick.
Tiger Woods
Odds to win: +705
It's almost our duty to include Tiger among the candidates to win, but is it anything more than a formality right now? Even before his scandal, Tiger had one top-10 finish in his last seven tries at the Players Championship. Now, after a missed cut last week, he's showing plenty of rust. He's simply not a safe play this week.
Phil Mickelson
Odds to win: +805
Tiger lovers won't want to hear it but Lefty is the far superior pick this week. Not only has he finished first and second in his last two tournaments, he won the Players, an event that consistently rewards experienced players, in 2007. He's firing on all cylinders right now.
Ian Poulter
Odds to win: +2550
Too bad he's had knee troubles; otherwise, he may have been my pick to win this week. He's money on the greens, leading the Tour in putting inside five feet, and he's long overdue for a victory.
Henrik Stenson
Odds to win: +3050
He gives better sportsbook value than many other defending champs do and he's always comfortable at Sawgrass, cracking the top 10 three times in his last four starts at the Players. He's a low-risk, medium-reward pick.
Luke Donald
Odds to win: +5050
Based on pure numbers, Donald may be the best choice of all this week. He leads the Tour in two stats crucial to success at Sawgrass: scrambling and sand saves. If you like swinging for the fences, Donald is your best shot at a big pay day.
THE PICK
Donald is extremely tempting but I'll go with the hottest player on Tour right now: Phil Mickelson. His confidence is back, he has a good history at the event and a win could even earn him World No. 1 status depending on where Tiger finishes.
Today's free pick: Phil Mickelson +805
Now to Bodog's preview.
In some respects, we could see an official changing of the guard on the PGA Tour at this week's "fifth major," The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. I write this for two reasons: Tiger Woods could fall out of the No. 1 ranking for the first time since 2005, and young Rory McIlroy can truly stamp himself as the Tour's future superstar if he wins this week (or even contends).
First let's hit on Tiger a bit. You can click here for a Tiger-specific preview at The Players, but basically if he doesn't finish in the Top 5 this week and red-hot Phil Mickelson wins, then Lefty takes over the No. 1 world ranking for the first time in his great career. And if Mickelson wins, he would have to be considered the pre-eminent player in the game until Tiger is able to put all his off-course stuff behind him. Mickelson is actually the 7/1 favorite on Bodog's golf odds this week following his win at the Masters and runner-up finish last week at the Quail Hollow Championship. You can also bet on whether he finishes in the Top 10 on Bodog, with "yes" a -120 favorite and "no" at -110. Mickelson won this tournament in 2007 but has finished T55 and T21 the past two years, respectively.
But if there's one player outside the Phil-Tiger axis that everyone is talking about it's McIlroy after his stunning win last week at Quail Hollow. On Sunday in Charlotte, two days shy of his 21st birthday, McIlroy set a course record with a 10-under 62 for a four-shot victory over Mickelson. The Northern Irishman became the youngest winner on Tour since Tiger when he won his first tournament in 1996. Last year Woods predicted McIlroy was capable of inheriting his crown as world No. 1, and it sure looks like Woods might be right (McIlroy is currently No. 9). McIlroy, who missed the cut in his first Players last year, is 25/1 to win this week at Bodog.
Can Henrik Stenson become the first back-to-back winner of The Players Championship? Including his win last year, the Swede has three top-10s in four starts at Sawgrass. He hasn't played much in the States this year but missed the cut at the Masters in his last Tour start. Stenson is a 66/1 long shot.
