Tigermania Returns During 2019

We've all gone crazy again over Tiger Woods, especially when it comes to betting on golf. According to the Golf Channel, ahead of last month's US Open at Pebble Beach, Tiger was certainly not the favourite but he 'was still the most popular bet' going into the third major championship of the season.

Much of this is down to his sensational return to form, culminating in a 15th major title earlier this year. But this incredible comeback did not occur overnight, and it came after a number of painful years - both physically and mentally - and followed plenty of hard graft which began to bear fruit around 17 months ago.

Return to Form
After almost five years in the golfing wilderness, the former world No 1 showed he was heading in the right direction again, as he returned to somewhere near his best form during the spring of 2018. A series of promising performances during the PGA Tour's famous Florida Swing provided golf fans the world over with enough evidence to prove that Tiger would soon be winning tournaments again.
In three successive outings, during late February and March of last year, he tied-12th at the Honda Classic, was runner-up in the Valspar Championship and tied-fifth in the prestigious Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill.

Although his next victory was still a few months away, it was a glimpse of how far he had come since the dark days, when his faltering health and not-so-secret private life had filled many column inches in national newspapers and magazines.

He came close to winning the 2018 Open Championship at Carnoustie, where he briefly led during the final round before ending up in a tie-for-sixth - as Tiger's playing partner Francesco Molinari became Italy's first-ever major champion.

And just a few weeks later, he finished second in the PGA Championship at Bellerive, by firing a closing 64 to trail champion Brooks Koepka by two strokes.

It was his highest major championship finish for nine years and, just six weeks down the road, Tiger returned to the winners' enclosure with victory at the season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta. This gave him a first PGA Tour title in over five years, and the 80th of his career.

Glory Days Return
What happened next took most people by surprise. After a consistent, yet low-key start to 2019, Tiger came from two shots off the pace after 54 holes to claim a first Green Jacket in 14 years.



Once again with Molinari as a playing partner, Tiger turned the tables with a final round 70, grabbing the outright lead with a birdie on 15, and thereafter remained top of the leaderboard - as he won by a single shot from three players.

In the weeks following this momentous triumph, he continued to captivate the world of golf, as well as the betting stats, with Tiger Woods odds at US Open, which recently finished, listed at a lowly 10/1. And GolfDigest.com felt these odds were worth checking out, as the event was being played at a venue where 19 years earlier Tiger had won by an incredible 15 strokes. As it transpired, the 43-year-old came home in a tie-for-21st, at two-under-par, and 11 shots adrift of winner Gary Woodland.

Although Tigermania has quietened a little since his popular success at The Masters in April, it is likely to reach a crescendo once again when he travels across the Atlantic to contest this month's Open Championship at Royal Portrush. As things stand, Tiger is ranked joint-third in the betting with Paddy Power, at 12/1, behind Rory McIlroy - who will be on home territory - and world No 1 Koepka. What are the chances of him grabbing a 16th major title in Northern Ireland?