He's Even Money in Vegas...You Have to Talk About Him

Like most everyone else that doesn't think a Red Sox - Yankees series in April is huge news, I have been watching every second of the Masters....on four different channels (God, I love DirecTV). As usual, I am fascinated by the tournament, the course, the weather, the coverage. You name it, and I am into it like women in thong bikini's - or bikini waxed greens. Whatever, I love this month! The Final Four, the Masters, the NFL Draft, the start of the NBA Playoffs, and there is even this sport called Hockey has its playoffs going on.

Anyway, I am driving to get coffee this morning and I am listening to a local sports radio station when I hear the following:

Tiger Woods is only 7 strokes back. Being in red numbers is very significant here. I expect Tiger to have a share of the lead at a minimum today, and to win this tournament tomorrow. I just don't see anyone on the leaderboard that can hold him off

You know what? I didn't even flinch. And this scares me.

Are you aware that Tiger Woods is a losing proposition bet in Las Vegas this week? You have to give away money to bet him against 83 other people playing at Augusta. This is unheard of. Nobody is this dominant at anything! Sports, business, politics, name it.

It is absurd to think that someone will make up 7 strokes and overcome 12 other professional golfers in a tournament where the leader is only 8 strokes under par, and yet we do. Not only do we expect Tiger to make up the strokes, we will be more surprised if he doesn't!

I am not prepared to call Tiger the greatest athlete we have seen, but I am impressed by the separation between him and the next group of golfers chasing him. He never misses cuts, he always finishes in the top 5, and if people think he is in play collapses are inevitable. It's staggering.

There have been very few athletes that have had this kind of run in sports...Babe Ruth was out homering entire teams back in the late 1920's. Mike Tyson was awe inspiring when he ruled the heavyweight division in the 1980's. There have been several track and field athletes that have dominated the landscape like Renaldo Nehemiah and Edwin Moses. But even with that, I don't think that we have a precedent for Tiger Woods.

Enjoy Sunday at the Masters. I don't believe that Tiger can win from 5 or more strokes back, but never rule out what EVERYONE expects to happen. And what everyone is betting will happen.