Las Vegas sportsbooks lose big if Tiger Woods wins Masters
For the second straight year, there are Tiger tracks at Augusta National.
Nineteen months after Tiger Woods won his fifth green jacket — and a William Hill bettor won $1.19 million on an $85,000 wager on Woods — Tiger is in the hunt again at the Masters.
The 15-time major champion shot 4-under 68 on Thursday for his lowest opening round at the Masters and his first bogey-free round in a major in 11 years.
Woods, three shots back of leader Paul Casey (-7) in an eight-way tie for fifth place, is 14-1 at updated odds at the Westgate to win the Masters.
He closed at 25-1 before the tournament after being at 50-1 earlier this week.
“He hadn’t done much the last few months,” Westgate sportsbook vice president of risk Jeff Sherman said. “Casey hasn’t been playing well, either. But they’re two guys that have played well at Augusta before.
“You’ve got some guys that course form matters more than their current form.”
Tiger king
Woods, 44, is the largest liability at William Hill and the Westgate, with each book on the hook for six figures if Tiger ties Jack Nicklaus for most Masters titles with six.
“It’s nothing like last year, but enough that it could sting,” William Hill sportsbook director Nick Bogdanovich said. “We’re good with everyone except (Bryson) DeChambeau and Tiger.”
DeChambeau, the pretournament favorite and U.S. Open champion who leads the PGA Tour in driving distance, overcame a double bogey en route to shooting 2-under 70. His updated odds are 12-1.
“Don’t sleep on DeChambeau getting his act together,” said golf handicapper and Sportsbook Radio host Brian Blessing (@BrianBlessing). “His price is better than it was to start the tournament.”
Casey, who tied for second at the PGA Championship in August, is 18-1 to win his first major after closing at 100-1 before the tournament.
Thomas updated favorite
Two shots back at 5 under are Xander Schauffele (10-1 updated odds), Webb Simpson (20-1) and Justin Thomas, the 6-1 favorite at William Hill.
Thomas is 5 under through 10 holes after play was suspended because of darkness. The round was suspended for almost three hours Thursday morning because of inclement weather in the first Masters played in November.
“Justin Thomas can catch or surpass Casey by the end of the first round,” Sherman said.
Play will resume Friday at 4:30 a.m. PT on ESPN. Dustin Johnson, the world’s No. 1-ranked player, is the 8-1 second choice at 3 under through nine holes. World No. 2 Jon Rahm, who shot 3-under 69, is 14-1.
With 33 players within five shots of the lead, Sherman doesn’t like Tiger’s chances to repeat.
“He played almost a flawless round. I don’t think he can replicate what he did (Thursday), not making a bogey,” Sherman said. “Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, DeChambeau and Rahm are right there. All the guys that have been playing very well the last few months ahead of him on the odds board, he still has to contend with.”
The Westgate already won on a prop in which the over-under on Woods’ lowest round was 69½.
“We just took some over money,” Sherman said.
Bogdanovich expects Tiger to stay in contention.
“He’s dialed in, and the weather is supposed to be good,” he said. “It’s good for golf. They bet him in any prop, and in-play wagering will be strong with him in there.
“It’s a star-studded leaderboard. It figures to be a hell of a tournament. It’ll be wild watching the Masters on Saturday and Sunday with football flying around.”
Sherman liked Schauffele before the tournament and is sticking with him.
“He’s sitting 10-1 at 5 under. That’s a good start for him,” he said. “He’s played such solid golf the past few months. I expect him to keep trending in this direction and not have too many hiccups.”
British invasion
Besides DeChambeau, Blessing recommends betting on Englishmen Lee Westwood and Tyrrell Hatton at updated odds of 50-1 each.
Westwood, at 4 under, is one of the best golfers, along with fellow Englishman Casey, never to have won a major.
“My pretournament guarantee was that an Englishman will finish in the top five, and there’s an army of Englishmen that can contend this weekend,” Blessing said. “Westwood’s game is all the way back, and the price is certainly right.”
Hatton, who went off at 30-1, is 1 under through 10 holes.
“Hatton is an overlay,” Blessing said. “He could be 3 under or 4 under at the end of the first round and be right back to his pretournament odds.”
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.