Masters Odds 2018: Breakdown and Analysis of Top Favorites' Chances
The Masters field is loaded this year, and fans may find themselves watching some of the best golf played at the famed Augusta, Georgia, course since Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player were in their heyday.
The sport's superstars are expected to dominate the leaderboard from Thursday through Sunday. The oddsmakers think golfers like Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Dustin Johnson will make an excellent run at the green jacket.
Of course, there are also a couple of golfers named Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods who have both been playing well. Those two could make the tournament even more dramatic if they can remain competitive into Sunday's final round.
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At the start of the week. McIlroy and Woods were co-favorites at +900 (bet $100 to win $900). However, as the tournament gets closer to Thursday's opening round, the odds have changed a bit.
Spieth is the +900 favorite, followed by McIlroy at +1000 and Johnson and Thomas at +1100. Woods and Justin Rose are both +1400, according to OddsShark.
Here's a look at the odds for the top 20 golfers in the field:
Jordan Spieth +900
Rory McIlroy +1000
Justin Thomas +1100
Dustin Johnson +1100
Tiger Woods +1400
Justin Rose +1400
Bubba Watson +1600
Jason Day +1800
Phil Mickelson +1800
Rickie Fowler +2200
Jon Rahm +2200
Paul Casey +2200
Sergio Garcia +2800
Hideki Matsuyama +3300
Henrik Stenson +3300
Alex Noren +4500
Tommy Fleetwood +4500
Matt Kuchar +5000
Patrick Reed +5000
Adam Scott +6000
Spieth has endured some difficulty this season, but he is one of the game's great players with three majors to his credit, including the 2015 Masters.
The 24-year-old has not won a tournament this year, but he finished third in last week's Houston Open, and he also has two other top-10 finishes to his credit.
Spieth is not a power player, but he is known for his accuracy and his ability to come up with the clutch shot from the fairway or rough when the pressure is at its highest. Spieth is finding greens in regulation 71.43 percent of the time, and that ranks 10th on the tour, and he is also averaging 4.11 birdies per round and that ranks 24th on the tour.
McIlroy had been struggling before he put on an impressive charge to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The 28-year-old from Northern Ireland fired a 64 in the final round to put his imprint on the 2017-18 season. McIlroy had not shown any signs of getting back on the victory track prior to that tournament, as had failed to make the cut on two other occasions and his best finish had been 20th in the Genesis Open.
The Northern Irishman is one of the tour's big hitters, as he ranks fifth with an average drive of 314.1 yards. However, accuracy has been a problem as just 59.15 percent of his drives reach the fairway, ranking 121st on the tour.
Thomas emerged as one of the game's superstars in 2017 when he won five tournaments, including the PGA Championship.
Thomas has continued this year, as he has two victories and has already exceeded the $5 million mark in earnings. He is the tour's leader in FedEx Cup points, and he is a big hitter with an average drive of 312.5 yards and finds the green in regulation 70.14 percent of the time.
While all of the big-name golfers who are expected to contend are excellent ball strikers, it is doubtful that any player can match Johnson when he is on his game.
Johnson was the favorite to win last year's Masters before he suffered a back injury the day before the tournnament started. Johnson had to withdraw from the Masters, and now he gets a chance to show off his sensational talent.
He is a huge hitter, and it's a bit surprising that his average drive of 311.0 yards ranks 12th on the tour. However, Johnson is first in birdies with 4.95 per round and also ranks first in eagles.
Johnson says he is comfortable playing the famed Augusta course.
"The more you play here, the more comfortable you get around this golf course. You know what tee shots and where to hit it and the flags and kind of how to attack the golf course. So that plays a part in it," Johnson said, per Nancy Armour of USA Today
Woods has been playing solid golf as he comes back from back fusion surgery. Woods has finished 12th, tied for second and tied for fifth in his last three tournaments, and he has shown off his signature creativity when he has been faced with difficult shots.
Tiger has been quite solid around the greens, and he has also made some long putts at the Valspar Open and the Palmer Invitational.
Tiger is playing in the Masters for the first time since 2015 and he is attempting to win his first major since the the 2008 U.S. Open. He has been hitting the ball well with an average drive of 304.2 yards, but accuracy is an issue. He is finding the fairway just 51.61 percent of the time, and that ranks a challenging 201st on the tour.
Rose is one of the sport's most consistent players, and he is not going to be nervous about playing on the big stage. He has finished second in the Masters in two of the last three years, and this could be his time to don the green jacket.
Rose won the HSBC Champions tournament at the start of the 2017-18 season, and he finished third in the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Rose ranks seventh with an average of 4.54 birdies per round, and he ranks ninth in scoring with an average of 69.7 per round.
Analysis
Any of the favorites mentioned can win this tournament, but the belief here is that if everyone is at their best, Johnson may have the most to offer of any of the golfers in the field.
There is no doubting Johnson's power, and he can also be a spectacular player with his short irons when he can hone in on the flag stick. Johnson needs to make a couple of putts early if he is going to put his signature on this tournament.
Spieth is one of the most accurate players on the tour, and once he starts to make a couple of early birdies, he is capable of putting low numbers on the board.
There is no doubting McIlroy and Woods when it comes to spectacular talent, but can either player muster the consistency needed to play well for 72 holes?
The great players in this tournament have the stage in front of them, and it appears to be set up well for Johnson to get his first green jacket.
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