92nd PGA Championship Preview

Golf Betting Lines

08/09/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - This year's PGA Championship at Whistling Straits is historic.

Ladies and gentlemen, for the first time since 1997, it's impossible to realistically see Tiger Woods contending for a major championship.

You know how some people just unilaterally take Tiger whenever the prop bet is Tiger versus the field? I know one of them. Johnnie Pie is his name and so I asked if he would take Woods against the field for the PGA?

"No way," was the text reply.

There we have it. "No way."

Woods' game is in tatters the likes of which we've never seen. We have no clue where his ball is going, but worse, neither does Woods. Hank Haney is no longer a factor. He's off with Rush Limbaugh on the Golf Channel talking about clubhead speed and capital gains.

The true tale of Woods' woes manifested itself at last week's Bridgestone Invitational. He's won that championship seven times and what transpired had to be the most discouraging professional week of his career.

Woods' 78th-place finish was his worst as a professional since the 1996 Greater Milwaukee Open. That was his first professional start, by the way. Woods' 18-over par was his worst score in relation to par as a pro.

This is a tournament he won seven times, remember.

What made the performance all the more troublesome was that Woods appeared to be uninterested at times. On Saturday, Woods hit some shots without taking so much as practice swing. He'd walk right into a bunker, hit it, hand the club to caddie Stevie Williams and move on to the green.

On Sunday, his tee shot barely sailed right en route to hitting a spectator in the mouth before Woods started walking after it. He tried to reach the 16th green in two, which Nick Faldo called on Sunday "a suicide shot." Woods never used to do that.

Yes, Woods has had to endure personal problems all year and constant questions from the media. Don't do the crime if you can't do the time. Woods brought everything on himself and he has to endure it.

No one knew exactly what to expect from Woods on the golf course, but no one could have reasonably suspected Woods would actually regress through the schedule.

Some, like The Sportsbook Betting Lines's own Roger Farrell, believed Woods would gain freedom by just playing golf now that his sordid secrets were out in the open. Golf could be the sanctuary, but that theory appears to have been debunked with prejudice.

Remember that Woods' 2010 season started with actual promise. He tied for fourth at the Masters and the U.S. Open. Sure, he had a missed cut and a withdrawal in between, but Woods had a pair of top-fives in majors, and that's nothing to sneeze at.

But, as colleague Gerard Gallagher pointed out, those scores appear to be the anomaly. Woods didn't break 70 at the AT&T National. He shot a 67 at St. Andrews, then didn't break 72. Woods is just nowhere with his game right now.

That has to terrify Woods a little. He's had some slowish periods in his career, but nothing remotely close to this. Woods has no swing coach to fix things and who knows what the status of his personal life is.

Woods is completely lost in the game of golf for the first time ever. Fixing it at the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits is not a rosy proposition, so it's tough to think he has any reasonable chance.

At least Woods was able to hold on to the No. 1 world ranking, although through very little fault of his own. He tied for 78th. Had Phil Mickelson shown anything on Sunday, Lefty would be No. 1 this week.

With Woods already on a plane to Wisconsin, Mickelson needed a fourth or better to finally be recognized statistically as the game's best. He was tied for 10th at the start of the final round, but a front-nine 41 meant another week at No. 2.

Mickelson won this year's Masters and hasn't done much of anything else. He contended at the U.S. Open, but faltered on Sunday and hasn't really flirted with the top of the leaderboard since.

Ernie Els is in a great spot. He's a two-time winner this year on the PGA Tour and leads the FedEx Cup points list. Els' 64 on Saturday in Akron showed his mid-season mini-rut was a thing of the past.

Luke Donald has put together a season almost as good as anyone this year. Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk are both multiple winners on the PGA Tour in 2010. Justin Leonard is finally playing decent golf based on last week and was a runner-up to winner Vijay Singh at Whistling Straits in 2004.

As is the case with the PGA Championship, international teams are to be decided. Corey Pavin's automatic eight on the American Ryder Cup side will be finalized come Sunday.

Does Woods vault into the top eight and spare Pavin from the potentially embarrassing scenario where he asks Woods and Tiger says "no thank you?"

See, even the Ryder Cup questions revolve around Tiger.

This really is historic.