Golf – Tour Championship

No great surprise as to who leads the way in the golf Tour Championship in Atlanta. The one and only Tiger Woods picked up his game after a slow start to lead Ireland’s Padraig Harrison by a shot in the second round. Woods hit a second round 68, including four birdies, to streak to the front of the pack. His lead could easily have been much wider had he not netted a bogey on the 18th hole, as well as missing some putts in the round which one would expect the great man to sink.

East Lake Golf Club is the setting for the final FedEx Cup point-getting tournament, and if Woods holds on to his lead then he’ll bag himself a cool $10million for the title. Padraig Harrington, who is only one of two Europeans competing (the other being Luke Donald), can also claim the FedEx Cup title if he wins and Woods gets beaten down into third place or worse. Odds will be against that happening though, as the Irishman hasn’t won on the PGA Tour, nor the European Tour this season, despite having the prestige of being a three time majors winner.

The lack of winning form for Harrington is in stark contrast to his closest rival, for Woods has won 6 titles this year, and has won the Tour Championship before in 2007. He wasn’t happy with his round though, despite getting himself to the head of the pack. He appears to expect a lot of room for improvement over the next two rounds. Rain could play a big factor over the next couple of days in Atlanta.

Tour Championship Outright
Tiger Woods – 1/2 Boylesports
Padraig Harrington – 7/1 Boylesports
Sean O’Hair – 12/1 Stan James
Zach Johnson – 33/1 at Boylesports
Dustin Johnson – 40/1 at Boylesports
Stewart Cink – 66/1 at Bet365

Betting Tip: Woods will know what’s wrong with his game and what he needs to do to win. If he gets to the front of the pack playing scratchy shots and missing putts, then it will be game over should he find his rhythm.