BetMGM Sportsbook faces record loss if Tiger Woods wins PGA Championship
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TULSA, OKLAHOMA - MAY 16: Tiger Woods of the United States plays his shot from the 16th tee during a practice round prior to the start of the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club on May 16, 2022 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
TULSA, Okla. – A Tiger Woods win at the PGA Championship would send shockwaves around the world and have an even bigger impact at the BetMGM Sportsbook.
The betting operator faces its biggest loss in history if the 82-time TOUR-winning Woods repeats his 2007 heroics from Southern Hills and claims a fifth Wanamaker Trophy.
Woods famously made his return to competitive golf at the Masters last month after recovering from a serious car crash in 2021 that almost cost him his leg. The resulting injuries continue to make it impossible for the veteran to play a regular schedule on the PGA TOUR, but Woods will tee it up in Oklahoma this week chasing a 16th major championship victory.
Such a feat would be considered one of the greatest sporting achievements of all time given his injuries, age and five previous back surgeries, but plenty of bettors are on board with the possible fairy tale. It was only a year ago that Phil Mickelson became the oldest ever major champion at 50 in the 2021 PGA Championship.
Having opened at +5000 (50-1) in December of 2021 at BetMGM Sportsbook, the now 46-year-old Woods tightened to +4000 after playing in the Masters before drifting back out to his current mark of +6600.
“I feel like I can, definitely. I just have to go out there and do it,” Woods said Tuesday when asked if he believed he could win. “I have to do my work. Starts on Thursday and I'll be ready.”
It would not be a kind result for BetMGM.
“Tiger Woods is our biggest liability to win the PGA Championship. If Tiger were to win, it would be the biggest losing result in BetMGM history,” VP of Trading at BetMGM Jason Scott confirms. “Tiger missing the cut would be a good outcome for the sportsbook.”
While plenty of fans have backed the winning outcome, there is also some serious lack of faith amongst other sections of the betting public and as of Tuesday morning 97% of the handle in BetMGM’s Tiger to Miss the Cut market sat on the negative side.
Woods is -125 to make the cut with BetMGM and +100 to miss it after one bettor placed a $13,000 wager that Woods would not make it to the final two rounds at +115. As it stands 58% of the tickets have Woods missing the cut, leaving 42% backing him to play the weekend but just 3% of the handle.
In 21 previous PGA Championships Woods has made the cut 17 times. He hasn’t played in the event since a T37 in the 2020 title chase and all four missed cuts came in his last eight appearances at the championship.
Woods won the title in 1999, 2000, 2006 and in 2007 at Southern Hills, the venue this week. He is 47-under par lifetime at the PGA Championship and leads the all-time money earnings at the event with $7,346,862.
As for his more recent performance Woods opened with a 1-under 71 at Augusta National last month before fading with rounds of 74-78-78 to finish a respectable 47th.