British Open Odds 2012: Handicapping the Round 1 Leaderboard

The 2012 British Open Championship began today and a number of top golfers are ready to hit the links at Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club in England.

It’s going to be a tough but manageable course, which means we should see a number of golfers in contention near the top of the leaderboard

Let’s take a look at some of the players that have a great chance to do well in the first round and wind up with the lead heading into Friday.

*Odds courtesy of Bovada.lv. Odds are for pre-tournament first-round leader.

Tiger Woods: 12/1

Tiger Woods is the favorite and riding an extremely impressive victory at the AT&T National into this major tournament.

Tiger dominated the competition at Congressional and should have no problem getting off to a great start at the British Open.

At 12/1, you can cash in big if the three-time winner of the Claret Jug comes out hot. 

Rory McIlroy: 20/1

The British national has been struggling in 2012, especially during the more recent tournaments. Still, he’s a world-class golfer that has proven he has the chops to compete in a major competition.

Rory McIlroy's struggles happen in the last rounds of events, so betting him at 20/1 to win the opening round of the British Open isn’t bad.

Phil Mickelson: 33/1

Lefty hasn’t traditionally dominated at the Open Championship, but he did finish tied for second in 2011—his best showing.

He’s one of the world’s best golfers, even at the ripe age of 42.

There is no better time for Phil Mickelson to come through with a vintage performance and capture one of the two majors that has eluded him (he has yet to win the U.S. Open despite numerous second-place finishes).

If you want some of the best odds in the first round, lay some money down on Lefty.