Tiger's Back! And So Is the Betting
Money flows where Woods goes
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The idea of people betting on 2024 Tiger Woods to win a tournament that he never even won during his peak years — it’s silly, but not so novel. Folks love betting on the guy. Tiger always draws the money crowd.
So it’s maybe not a shock what’s happening with the Genesis Invitational, which started today at Riviera CC in Los Angeles. At the wagering book BetMGM, Woods represented nearly 10% of all tickets played in the 70-man field. Overall wagering on the event, too, was up, up, up.
Can Woods win the tournament? I mean, no. He went off at 125-to-1 odds, the longest for him in any PGA tourney in more than 15 years, according to ESPN. His second-longest odds during that span, 100-1, came at last year’s Genesis, so we can confidently state that while Tiger hosts this tournament, he doesn’t own it. He’s 0 for 14 lifetime at Riviera.
Oh. Also:
—Hasn’t played in a PGA event since last year’s Masters.
—Played five PGA events total since his car crash following the Genesis in 2021.
—At least five back surgeries in the books, plus surgery to fuse his ankle last year.
But there’s still fun to be had! In an effort to spur even more Tiger-related betting this week, DraftKings at one point offered a profit boost of +130 for Woods even making the cut — meaning a $100 bet would return $230 if Tiger tees up Saturday. You can also bet increasingly large payouts for Woods finishing in the Top 30, Top 20 and Top 10.
For that reason, this 48-year-old, jerry-rigged, Gorilla-Glue-and-bailing-wire version of the 82-time PGA Tour winner Woods could wreck his own hosted event. For the sports books, that is.
"Tiger Woods is by far the biggest liability, and not just in winning the Genesis Invitational, but also in making the cut and finishing top 5/10/20," BetMGM's golf trading lead Matthew Wall told ESPN. "We're expecting the action on Tiger to double over the weekend as well. The book needs anyone except for Tiger raising the trophy on Sunday evening."
It’d be worth the laugh, though, wouldn’t it?
Woods on Thursday shot 1-over-par 72 to leave him tied for 56th in the field (at the time he walked off the course) and eight strokes behind the leader. Several golfers were still on the course, so that could change a bit.
Sounds grim. But let’s inspect ye olde tournament rules, shall we? In order to make the cut at the Genesis, you only need to finish in the top 50 — again, in a field of 70. That’s top 50, plus ties, plus anyone within 10 strokes of the leader after two rounds.
So yeah, there is definitely a network broadcast partner that has been trying to figure out a way to get Tiger Woods safely to the weekend at Riviera. Because money flows where Tiger goes. Bet on that, at least.