Ernie Els Odds to Win the Masters

Written April 7, 2009 by Jason Lowry

Els Masters The former No.1 golfer in the world will have his work cut out for him this weekend at the 2009 Masters, as Els has not won a major since winning the British Open in 2002. He does have 11 top ten finishes from 2003 in the 4 major events, including two runner-up finishes. Even without the any major victories over the last few years, its hard to forget about a golfer who has won 38 times throughout his career on the PGA and European Tours, but then again he hasn’t won on either tour in over a year, as his last win came at the 2008 PGA Tour Honda Classic.

For a while it looked like it was a sure thing that Els would wind up with a green jacket before his career was over, but his play of late at Augusta has many thinking maybe it just wasn’t meant to be. In 2000 Els really came on at the Masters finishing 2nd to champion Vijay Singh, but really made his run for the green jacket in 2004 where he finished just one shot behind champion Phil Mickelson. Those two runner-up finishes marked a streak of 5 straight finishes inside the top 10 for Els, and it looked as though it was just a matter of time before he broke through with a win. Since that 2nd place finish in 2004 its been all down hill, as Els finished 47th in 2005, tied for 27th in 2006, and failed to even make the cut in either of the past two years. Els will have to dig deep and figure out how to get his game back to that of the early 2000’s, or it could be another disappointing showing for the South African. Bet the Masters at Sportsbook.com.

One thing that points to a much better showing at this year’s Masters, is the play Els has displayed so far this season, as he has made the cut in each of his 7 starts, and has had a number of good starts, including a 6th place finish at the Mercedes-Benz Championship, a 5th place finish at the Accenture Match Play Championship, and a solid 14th place finish last week at the Shell Houston Open. A big reason for the good start to the 2009 season, is Els is getting it done off the tee and in the fairways, as he ranks 14th in total driving and 9th in greens in regulation. The key will be his putting, he is currently ranked 74th in putting average, but if he can start making some putts early it could stick around all weekend, and you could see Els near the top of the leaderboard once again. Bet Els +3000 to Win the Masters at Sportsbook.com.

I personally have my doubts about Els this week at the Masters, as his last two starts here have not been a very good sign of things to come. Els has played well at times this season, and I would not be surprised at all if he creeps into the back end of the top 10 this weekend, that is if he makes the cut. Els could easily prove me wrong, but I just don’t think 2009 is going to be any different for one of the best golfers to play the game.

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