Tiger Woods Is an Early Masters Favorite in a Deep Field of Favorites

Did you ever think you would see Tiger Woods win a PGA Tournament and your first reaction would be, "Wow…finally"?

It certainly has been a while since Woods held up an official PGA Tour trophy. Woods has gone winless on the PGA Tour since he took the BMW Championship in September of 2009. Wait, did I say has? I totally mean had.

Woods had been winless, until this past weekend, when he dominated the field to take home another trophy from the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. The win caps a really fascinating early-season run for Woods, putting him right in the thick of the favorites for this year's Masters.

But is he the favorite? Let's slow down on fitting him for another green jacket before the tournament even starts.

On Sunday night, national radio hosts were already starting the "Tiger vs. The Field" conversation, and the Masters is still two weeks away. Tiger vs. the entire field of participants in the Masters? Does that include fellow major champions like Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy?

Does it include the two of the top players in the World Golf Rankings, Luke Donald and Lee Westwood, both looking for a first major championship after coming close countless times?

What about Steve Stricker, quietly ranked fifth in the world? Or Justin Rose, who is eighth, or Graeme McDowell—a major champion himself—or defending champion Charl Schwartzel, who is still in the top 10 in the world?

What about Adam Scott, who reshaped his career by essentially mimicking Tiger's swing? Scott finished tied for second in last year's Masters with Jason Day, another player who showed he was capable of making a Masters run.

I haven't even mentioned international players like Angel Cabrera, a two-time major champion who is always near the top of the Masters leaderboard. And what about K.J. Choi, a guy who finished in the top 10 in back-to-back seasons? How about older players like Ernie Els or Jim Furyk? It could happen (Remember—these guys are good, even the old ones. Just ask Fred Couples).

I'm certainly not forgetting about the young guns of golf like Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler and Bubba Watson. Nor will I neglect guys like Hunter Mahan or Geoff Ogilvy or former Masters champs like Trevor Immelman and Zach Johnson, who showed in the past they know how to win at Augusta.

Yes, I did just write six paragraphs where all I did was name players on the PGA Tour who all have a shot to win this year's Masters based on their current run of play and their past history at Augusta. Yes, I certainly did.

Notice that I had restraint, not putting in someone like Martin Kaymer, a major champion and fourth in the world rankings, but habitually terrible at Augusta. That said, maybe he can win it, too! And there are names I'm forgetting! Anthony Kim! Keegan Bradley! The list goes on.

These guys are good—they are all good!

The point in all of this is that Tiger Woods is better than good. Tiger Woods is great, and winning the Arnold Palmer shows that he's getting back into form in 2012 after an abysmal—by his standards—run over the last few years, marred by injury and off-the-course transgressions.

As great as Woods looks to be heading into the Masters, the field looks pretty great, too.

Golf has been just fine without Woods on the course every week. Sure, the ratings may be higher when Woods is playing and in contention, but that is no indication the quality of play has suffered one bit with Woods taking a back seat to some of the other players on tour.

Despite the quality on the course, it's no secret that golf is more compelling to watch when Woods and Mickelson are at the top of their games. Yes, it's great to list a bunch of names who could win the Masters this year, but it's silly to think fans would want anything other than Phil and Tiger in the final pairing on Sunday.

Even when he hasn't been on his game, Woods has always played well at Augusta since turning pro. He hasn't finished out of the top six since 2004, winning once in that time. In his 17 Masters tournaments, Woods has four victories, seven top-three finishes and 12 top-10. Woods could play one tournament a year, and if it's the Masters, he will still be a favorite to finish in the top five.

Mickelson had a terrible year in 2011, capped by a poor performance at Augusta that saw him finish outside the top 25 for the first time since 1997. Mickelson has played in 19 Masters and has 13 top 10s, including three wins and four third-place finishes.

Mickelson has had a strange year so far, working out some early-season changes before winning at Pebble Beach by destroying the field on Sunday, following that with a second place at the Northern Trust after losing in a playoff to Bill Haas. Since then, Mickelson has been completely out of contention in his last two tournaments.

Having said that, Mickelson is playing the Shell Houston Open this weekend in an effort to get his game back in time for Augusta. Mickelson won in Houston last season, his only victory of the year, so winning this week doesn't necessarily mean Phil should be penciled in as a favorite at the Masters.

Having said that, how amazing would it be if we head to Augusta off back-to-back PGA Tour wins by Woods and Mickelson? It would be very amazing.

And yet, there's a strong case that neither of those two should be considered the favorite to win this year's Masters. In the deep field of potential champions, McIlroy is the name, other than Woods, everyone is touting to take home a green jacket. 

McIlroy is the reigning U.S. Open Champion and is second in the World Golf Rankings. Yes, it's odd to consider a player a favorite who has only played in three Masters, never finishing better than 15th and missing one cut, but McIlroy is playing so well right now, he has to be one of the favorites heading into the Augusta.

He has played in three PGA Tour events this season and has finished no worse than third, winning one while holding off a charging Woods in the process. McIlroy also has a win and three top-five finishes on the European Tour this season. Not a terrible start to the year.

At 22 years old, it's ridiculous to think the kid is "due" to win the Masters, but maybe he is. At the very least, McIlroy is due to make a deep run at Augusta. There isn't a golf handicapper in the world who doesn't have Rory in the top five.

And with all that—with all the names of all the players in one of the deepest fields in the history of professional golf—Woods sits atop once more, installed as the favorite to win another green jacket. In 15 stroke-play rounds this season, Woods has really only played one poor round, carding 10 of those in the 60s. If he's not yet completely back, he sure looks close.

Unlike the last few seasons, the question with Woods won't be his game. This season, the only questions will be about his body. Can he physically manage four rounds of hills and ridges and undulations with bad knees and a troublesome Achilles? Can his body keep up with his game?

If it can, as deep as the field is, he's certainly a favorite heading into the Masters. 

Let's just back off on fitting him for the green jacket until next Sunday, though. As great as Woods is, it's a really deep field.