Masters Betting, Golf Odds, Masters Odds, Masters Betting Online

Wandering through the 'Woods' betting options takes time, patience and a great deal of effort but having such a heavy favorite at the top of the list creates excellent value throughout the rest of the card.

Pre-tournament press conferences were in full-swing for the 2009 Masters and as the golfers fielded questions from the media, sports bettors have shifted into full-on research mode trying to dig up the gem that will lead to a win when the final putts are made Sunday afternoon.

Office pools for the Masters are one method that has become quite popular for those looking to have a bit of fun and on the (Tar) Heels of the NCAA basketball tourney that wrapped up on Monday, everyone's bracket-busting skills should be honed to perfection by now. But rather than simply trying to predict the Top 10 money winners, why not explore a few of the avenues being offered by online sportsbooks for the first major of the season and see if you can find some value in the rough.

Wait a minute though; say the casual fans of the sport. Isn't it obvious that Tiger is going to blow away the field and take home his fifth Green Jacket since 1997?

Tiger Woods Odds

Well, while Tiger Woods (+205) is certainly the odds-on favorite to win the tournament, it is worth taking a few things into account before placing any bets. First of all, Augusta is a very long and extremely difficult course. All of the changes that have been made to the track have eliminated many of the birdie opportunities that once existed and it has opened the door considerably to a possible upset. The fact is that the margin for error at Augusta is small and if someone gets into serious trouble in the first or second round, their chance at a recovery can be doubtful.

Another thing to remember is that Tiger will be playing in his first major this week since undergoing reconstructive surgery to his ACL last June. He has not shown any ill-effects from the operation thus far in 2009 but it is still a concern.

Summing up, Woods has never held the lead after Thursday's round and has only been in front of the pack once after 36. He has recorded nine Top 10 finishes in 14 Masters Tournaments and shoots an average score of 70.98 per round and he is favored here for good reason. If his putting is on this week he will likely be near the top of the leader board after the cut but the test from here is trying to find a challenger that might be the upset story of 2009.

Moving onto the rest of the betting options is where things really start to get interesting. The group of young guns entering play this week has received a lot of attention and the question from a betting perspective is whether the likes of Rory McIlroy, Anthony Kim and Camilo Villegas can overcome their lack of experience and out-shoot some of the veterans.

Kim showed a lot of poise in his interview Tuesday and in the right matchup or prop-betting opportunity could be worth a look. Kim has averaged 70.79 per round in his five starts so far this year and has a lot of confidence heading into his first Masters. Of the youth movement, Kim gets the nod for most likely to surprise at Augusta.

There is an amazing list of props being offered at SPORTSBETTING.COM on everything from finishing position Over/Unders to what the lowest single round score will be by any golfer.

The weather was not ideal for golfers trying to get in their practice rounds and it could mess up the routines for some but the forecast for the actual tournament itself calls for temperatures in the 70's and mellow winds from 8-13 mph. The greatest chance of rain is Friday but it is only 40-percent so we shouldn't see any "thunder" unless Phil or Padraig holds the lead late Sunday.

96 players are ready to tee it up Thursday and Tiger will set out at 1:52 pm ET in one of the last groups. The advice for playing Augusta is relatively simple: Hit it straight, hit it on the green and make some putts. Now if anything about golf was really just that easy we would all be pros!

Check out all the Masters Odds