Paddy Power have opened a Masters 'Top American' market which includes Tiger Woods, but I'd much rather take the world No.1 out of the equation altogether and bet without him.
Here, Phil Mickelson is the overwhelming favourite and deservedly so based on his superb Masters record of two wins, six top-threes and ten top-10's from 13 Masters appearances. That said, he's failed to win this market for the last two years and missed the cut in Houston last week, so I'm quite prepared to give him the swerve at around the 2/1 mark, despite the fact that many of his fellow Americans are hard to fancy for one reason or another.
Anthony Kim (12/1 bet365) is undoubtedly a future Major winner but is making his Masters debut and Augusta, perhaps more than any other course, favours experience. It's no coincidence that no debutant has won since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979 and Kim might need a couple of year's worth of course form under his belt before he's capable of mounting a serious challenge.
Jim Furyk (18/1 Totesport) is a past US Open winner and has been a regular contender in majors down the years, but this has been his worst Major by far having made the top-10 just three times. At least that's better than Steve Stricker (22/1 Paddy Power), who has only reasonable effort to his name (10th in 2001) to go with five missed cuts, and Kenny Perry (20/1 Boylesports), who has a best ever finish here of just 29th place.
Therefore, the biggest challenge to Mickelson is likely to come from 2007 champion ZACH JOHNSON, who has since proved that was no fluke. He has now won five times on the PGA Tour, and shown a particular liking for fast greens, a skill which will always bode well for Augusta. As I've already said, this is one course that favours experience and, as a result, the same faces tend to feature on the leaderboard every year, so he looks a value bet at 12/1 (Ladbrokes).
Besides Johnson, one other player worth considering in this market is NICK WATNEY. The 27-year-old Californian has been in blinding form on Tour this season, the highlights of which have been winning the Buick Invitational back in February and his performance at Doral, where he pushed Phil Mickelson all the way before eventually losing in a playoff.
However, it's his play at Augusta last year that makes him really interesting. Making his debut, he was one of the few players to handle the gusting 35 mph wind during the final round, shooting one of just four under-par rounds (71) that day to finish in a tie for 11th. That gave him an automatic invite for 2009 and he clearly believes he can have further success here. "The golf course suits my eye off the tee. I play a draw, and we all know it's a draw-type golf course."
As Watney strikes me as a cracking bet at 50/1 in Paddy Power's outright market, I simply can't can't resist a dabble in this market too at a tasty 14/1 with the same firm.
Recommended Bets:
Zach Johnson 1pt @ 12/1 Ladbrokes
Nick Watney 1pt @ 14/1 Paddy Power