The world’s best golfers head for Sawgrass to swing it out in the PGA Tour’s flagship event at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, which begins this Thursday, May 10.
Masters champion Bubba Watson will miss the Players Championship after taking a month off from golf. But there’s a superstar field for the ‘fifth major’ with Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker leading the charge at the top of the betting.
Rory McIlroy… top of the betting for the ‘fifth major’
And it’s no wonder with the total prize money for the Players expected to top the $9.5m awarded in 2011 thanks to extended TV deals in the States.
In recent years, Americans have enjoyed the kind of success at the Players Championship that makes that Venky’s lot at Blackburn seem like champion strategists.
Korean K.J. Choi is the defending champion (80/1 this year) while Northern Ireland’s McIlroy has been installed as 10/1 favourite this weekend.
Paddy Power customers can expect some better fortune, however, as we’re paying SIX places on the Players Championship, unlike some other bookies who’ve chickened out.
The Americans like to think of this event as the fifth major, it ain’t, but it’s great fun to watch (yes, watching golf is fun). Making the fairways is essential (I know having played the course on Sega Mega-drive PGA Golf) and trouble looms if you are not accurate. The 17th is worth the entrance fee/Sky subscription alone.
Apart from a disappointing Masters, Mcilroys form is consistancy unrivelled at the moment so 10/1 favouratism looks about right. However, he has missed the cut in his two previous trips to Sawgrass…
80/1 for David Toms looks big. He has a great record in this event and decent form coming into it.
My golf tipping is mostly pretty poor, but then so was Today FM’s John Duggans and he had a 50/1 Ricky Fowler winner last week