British Open Odds 2013: Expert Outlook for Tiger Woods and More

The Open Championship is always one of the most intriguing tournaments in golf, as it's never apparent exactly how the long, winding links courses will play, and the weather is often unpredictable. That makes picking a winner extremely difficult, and the up-to-date odds seem to reflect that.

Aside from Tiger Woods being a hefty favorite as he so often is, it appears as though the oddsmakers think the British Open will be a total crapshoot at Muirfield Golf Links in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland. With so many contenders in the mix, that isn't necessarily a big surprise.

Here is a complete breakdown of the odds attached to some of the biggest names in golf as the 2013 Open Championship is nearly upon us.

Tiger Woods

Even though Woods hasn't won a major championship since the 2008 U.S. Open, the fact that he is favored to win the British Open comes as a shock to nobody. Woods has faltered a bit in majors this year but always seems to be in the mix, and all signs point to that being the case this weekend. According to Kyle Porter of CBS Sports, Woods is an 8-1 favorite, which is actually down a bit from where he was last week at 13-2.

This should only encourage bettors to take a chance on Woods, though, since it isn't as if Woods has somehow gotten worse over the past week. Porter calls him "pretty good value," which is tough to argue with, as Woods is the top player in the world and has four wins to his credit this year. Betting on golf is always difficult, but it's a bit easier to justify when a player like Woods is laying 8-1.

The main concern regarding Woods is his elbow, but Woods said that it is "good to go," according to The Associated Press. Woods was probably going to say that regardless of how he actually felt, but there's no reason not to take his word at face value right now. It will probably be pretty apparent early in the tournament if his elbow is truly fine or if he's simply putting on a brave face. At 8-1, it's worth gambling on the notion that Woods is healthy.

Phil Mickelson

One tournament Phil Mickelson has never had the pleasure of winning is the Open Championship, but based on the way he has been playing as of late, it might be worth taking a flier on old Lefty. Mickelson won his first tournament of the year last week when he took the Scottish Open, so he'll enter the British Open on a bit of a hot streak. Momentum is a funny thing, so there is no telling how it will impact his play at Muirfield.

According to Porter, Mickelson is currently installed as the No. 3 favorite behind Woods and U.S. Open champion Justin Rose at 18-1. That's a fairly significant jump, as he was at 25-1 last week, so the bettors are clearly on Lefty after his fine Scottish Open performance. That calls into question whether Mickelson is now the proper pick or if he should be avoided at all costs due to the huge odds swing.

With that said, Mickelson has four major championships to his credit and is a surefire Hall of Famer, so it wouldn't be wise to write him off entirely. The thing about Mickelson is that he tends to either play extremely well or extremely poorly at majors, so his British Open story will probably be written by the time the first round comes to an end. Based on the way he has played recently, though, Mickelson isn't a bad bet at all.

Rory McIlroy

Rory McIlroy's fall from grace is tough to explain, as he was the toast of the golf world last year and most believed he had already surpassed Woods. It didn't take Tiger long to reclaim his top spot, though, and now McIlroy is on the decline. The Northern Irish star still hasn't won a tournament this year, and he hasn't even been close in most cases. McIlroy finished a disappointing 41st in the U.S. Open despite being considered a top contender, and he is coming off missing the cut at the Irish Open last month.

No player's odds have taken a bigger hit than McIlroy's. According to Porter, he opened at 12-1 but fell to 18-1 before ultimately settling in where he is now at 25-1. It's tough to argue with those odds, because McIlroy simply hasn't played like a top golfer this year. With that said, he has all the talent in the world, and he could potentially put it all together at any time.

McIlroy is a streaky player much like Mickelson, and Porter believes McIlroy is worth betting on because of that. His streakiness means he could finish totally out of the running and potentially even miss the cut at Muirfield, but he could also be right there during the latter stages. Based on that, I would avoid McIlroy, but it's possible he'll never have better betting value than he will prior to this year's Open Championship.

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