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Tiger Woods U.S. Open odds: Tiger’s updated chances at Pebble Beach

June 10, 2019

Fresh off a promising performance at the Memorial, Tiger Woods is one of the favorites to take home this week’s U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.

For Woods, there was no full-month layoff between the PGA Championship and the U.S. Open, as there was between the Masters and the PGA. He took to Jack’s tournament looking to remedy some of the woes that troubled him when he missed the cut at the PGA. The result was largely positive, stamped by a final-round 67 to tie for ninth at nine under par.

Now, back at the familiar confines of Pebble Beach, some are pegging Woods to take home his 16th major championship. According to GolfOdds.com, Woods has 10/1 odds to take home the title. Both the familiarity and setup of the course cater to the strengths of his game — iron play and mental acuity.

Pebble was the site of one of Woods’ most dominant moments, when he stampeded the field to a 15-shot win in the 2000 U.S. Open. If he found away to top the field 19 years later, it would be a different, if equally impressive, feat in the scope of his career.

There are reasons to think it could be done. He’s tied for second this year in ball striking and tops on Tour in greens in regulation. At a course that will reward precision over power, course knowledge over sheer talent, Tiger’s path to victory seems clearer than, say, at Bethpage Black.

To claim that 16th major, he will have to stop Brooks Koepka from a U.S. Open three-peat. He’ll have to top Rory McIlroy, who is coming off a blistering seven-shot win at the Canadian Open. He’ll have to overcome Dustin Johnson and the ascendant Jordan Spieth. Still, oddsmakers appear to like his chances about as well as anyone else.

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