Sports Betting

Wachovia Championship

AOD - Thursday May 1st

The absence of Tiger Woods will truly be felt for the first time this season when the PGA tees it up beginning Thursday at Quail Hollow in Charlotte, North Carolina for the Wachovia Championship.

Woods won this event last year after setting a new tournament record by shooting 13-under par. However, Woods won't be back to defend his tournament title after undergoing knee surgery following The Masters which will sideline him until at least the end of May.

With Woods out of the picture, the oddsmakers' favorite at Quail Hollow this week is Phil Mickelson at +1000. Lefty hasn't recorded a win since February and his tie for fifth place at The Masters wasn't as good as it appears because he faded badly on Sunday when he had a chance to make a run. Mickelson has never won the Wachovia but he has been in contention numerous times, including last year when he tied for third place.

Following Mickelson on the odds list is Adam Scott at +1400. Scott is coming off a win in last week's EDS Byron Nelson Championship for his first PGA Tour victory of the season. Scott defeated Ryan Moore in a playoff after both finished 72 holes seven-under par. Moore is also returning to the links at Quail Hollow this week where he is a long shot at +8000.

Aside from Woods, only four other players have won the Wachovia, which first debuted on the tour in 2003. Three of those four players will be among the field at Quail Hollow this week, including 2006 winner Jim Furyk, 2005 titleist Vijay Singh and 2003 champ David Toms. Singh is the favorite out of that trio at +1600, while Furyk checks in at +2000 and Toms is a big underdog at +12500.

Odds to win the Wachovia Championship

The American League schedule is highlighted by the Yankees at Cleveland, the Angels at Detroit and Oakland at Seattle. Also on tap in the AL is Boston at Tampa Bay, Minnesota at Texas, Toronto at Kansas City and Baltimore at the White Sox.

Week 9 of the AFL season kicks off on Friday night with three games on the schedule. The early game on Friday night is Kansas City at Grand Rapids, followed by Utah at New Orleans and Chicago at Colorado.

The AFL is very busy on Saturday with four games on tap, including Cleveland at New York, Tampa Bay at Orlando, Georgia at Arizona and Los Angeles at San Jose.

After taking last week off, the drivers of NASCAR return to the track this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway for the Aaron's 499. Jimmie Johnson recorded his first win of the season two weeks ago in Phoenix, while his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon won at Talladega last season.

Formula 1 also returns to the track this weekend in the Spanish Grand Prix. The F1 drivers last raced three weeks ago in Bahrain where Felipe Massa took the checkered flag, and he is also the defending champ of this weekend's race.