Golf’s second major, the U.S. Open odds begins on Thursday with Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson the co-favorites at SBG Global.

That’s right, those two are the favorites coming to the 2010 U.S. Open golf tournament. Phil Mickelson won the first major of the season, the Masters, a couple of months ago and now he tries for the second one of the year.

The odds on the board may favor Phil Mickelson but history does not. Only six times in history has a player won the first two legs of golf’s Grand Slam. Craig Wood did it back in 1941, Ben Hogan in 1951 and 1953, Arnold Palmer in 1960, Jack Nicklaus in 1972 and Tiger Woods in 2002.

Mickelson has won four majors in his career but none in his home state of California. He loves Pebble Beach as he has won the Pro-Am tournament a few times. Mickelson could take over the number one ranking in the world if he is able to win this week.

Tiger Woods is still the number one player in the world even though he has not played well this year. The last time the U.S. Open betting was held at Pebble Beach was ten years ago and Woods won by an amazing 15 shots. He is not the same player he was ten years ago and although he is a co-favorite with Mickelson, that honor is based on his reputation, not his recent play.

The defending U.S. Open champion is Lucas Glover and…

Not me, but for those of you who will, here’s what ya’ll need to know.

The 2008 Augusta Masters Tournament, which is commonly referred to as ‘The Masters’ or ‘The U.S. Masters,’ is one of four major championships in men’s professional golf and the first of the four to be played each year. The final round of the Masters Tournament is always scheduled for the second Sunday in April.

The 2008 Masters Tournament marks the 50th anniversary of Arnold Palmer’s first of four victories at Augusta National. It also marks 50 years since Amen Corner got its name. Gary Player will be competing in his 51st Masters, breaking the record for most consecutive appearances he shares with Palmer.

Arnold Palmer won the Masters Tournament every other year beginning in 1958 and ending in 1964. Only Jack Nicklaus has won more green jackets than Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods, who each have four.

Tiger Woods will attempt to move past Arnold Palmer and begin his quest to achieve golf’s Grand Slam, something that has not been achieved since 1930 when Bobby Jones, co-founder of Augusta National, accomplished one of the rarest of all sports feats.

Tiger Woods held all four major trophies at the same time when he won the Masters in 2001 after winning the U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship the year before. Now Tiger Woods is targeting all four in the same…

Because we all know Tiger will win this one anyway.

The 2008 Masters golf tournament will be kicking off this Wednesday and will stretch until Sunday, April 13. And as always, Tiger will be there looking to win his fifth one.

You read it people, Tiger Woods will be looking to win one for the thumb as he goes for his fifth Masters title. The guy already has four Masters in 10 starts as a professional golfer and with a .400 batting average, the guy is only two Augusta victories shy of the career record held by Jack Nicklaus.

However, while Tiger Woods is the heavy favorite every single time he enters a golf tournament, especially the Masters, recent history proves he’s far from a sure thing. After beginning his pro career as a 50 percent winner (3-for-6) at Augusta National, the number has dropped to 20 percent (1-for-5) since 2003.

STILL, we’re still talking about Tiger Woods here and win no.5 at the Masters looks to be in place.

Phil Mickelson, on the other hand, is going for something different. Four years ago, he buried the notion of becoming the ”best player to have never won a major,” removing the BPTHNWAM (Best Player To Have Never Won A Major, get it?..) label in the bottom of Augusta National’s 18th hole where he clinched his…

Tiger Woods is human.

Yep, as good as Tiger Woods had been in these golf tournaments, we found out that the Tiger is human after all. He was two over par at Oakmont Country Club and if he missed an eight-foot par putt on No.16, he would be three over.

Thankfully, he made it, avoiding a wrong turn in the very first round of the 2007 U.S. Open. When he made a birdie on No.17 with a three-foot putt and saved par on No.18 with a pitch to about 3 feet after driving into the rough, he salvaged a one-over-par 71 that had him smiling.

”On this golf course, it’s fine,” he said a few minutes later. ”It’s right there.”

RIGHT THERE. After years and years of watching this guy kick ass on the golf course, RIGHT THERE still is his favorite phrases in major golf tournaments like this. Hey, after all, after the first of four rounds into the 107th offering of the U.S. Open, RIGHT THERE is where he wanted to be.

Tiger Woods is only three strokes behind the leaders.

Woods is on the verge of tying Jack Nicklaus for his record of 18 majors. Tiger has won 12 but only two of them were U.S. Open victories. His first U.S. Open win was back in 2000 at…

Yep, both of these guys sure love to talk going to their WBC Light Middleweight title match on May 5.

They don’t like each other, let’s make that one clear. The trash-talking between ”The Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been going on for quite some time now, starting waaay back when their championship bout was still a month away.

De La Hoya (38-4, 30 KOs) was training in Puerto Rico while Mayweather Jr., the same man dubbed as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, (yep, it’s Maywaether Jr. NOT Manny Pacquiao…) was thousands of miles away in Las Vegas. But even though both guys were miles apart, they can’t seem to stop talking about each other.

What did Floyd Mayweather thinks about the ”Golden Boy?”

”He ain’t real,” Floyd Mayweather Jr. said. ”And you all keep believing all of them stories he be telling you all, all that media stuff he been telling you all. Oscar De La Hoya is a fake-ass fighter. And it’s just like he says stuff like I don’t deserve to be in the sport of boxing, and I don’t deserve certain things. It’s more like we all know Oscar De La Hoya is greedy. He’s ungrateful and he’s a brat, and HBO will tell you that.”

Nice stuff heading to their big boxing match on May 5 eh? Of course, the immortal Oscar De La Hoya has something to say about his opponent as well.

”I truly feel that Mayweather Jr. needs a humbling experience,” Oscar De La Hoya said. ”He really is a little brat, you know? That’s just the way he comes across. I mean he’s very arrogant. Obviously we were on a press tour for so many days, and he can get up on the podium and say a few nice things, and then…”

Have they ever met these two men, for face to face it would be like peering into a mirror of genius.

They share fertile imaginations, are friends of finesse and pals with power, and wear greatness with such confidence it seems they were fitted for it by a Saville Row tailor.

And indeed the meet. Woods met Federer  on Sunday, a few days after Federer said he followed Woods’ career and hoped to meet him. At the British Open this year, Wood had said he was an avid tennis fan.

But perhaps their closest connection is found in a stalking of history; at one level their contest is with their peers, at another, they compete with the spirits of men who came before them.

Tiger Woods will understand what Pete Sampras means to Roger Federer, and Roger Federer knows what Jack Nicklaus means to…

Does Tiger wants to surpass Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 majors? Sure, he does but money can’t buy him Green Jackets or trophies. One of golf’s most respected analysts believes that Tiger Woods will not beat Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major victories. Now let’s see if Woods can peak in his 30’s and set a date with golf immortality.

Nassau, Bahamas has two casinos already, with plans for a third in the works. From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel:

"First came the massive Atlantis resort on Paradise Island.

"Now, the Bahamas is gearing up for a new mega-resort: a $1.6 billion venture in Nassau to feature more than 3,500 hotel rooms, a Harrah’s casino, an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus golf course, a retail village, luxury spas and a slew of other amenities on 1,000 acres."

Of course, you’ve got to be a Vanderbilt or lottery winner to enjoy all the gambling Nassau has to offer.

While betting on golf isn’t our bag, looking for live longshots is. According to Jason West of GolfingGods.com, if you’re bored with the same old Cablanasian play, look to the East in the World Golf Championships instead.

Shigeki Maruyama: a player who has had a poor season by his standards however did finish second last week to K.J Choi. A streaky players who can shoot low, he could be a live outsider this week at a very big price.

· If the hole captain at the Jack Nicklaus Memorial catches you betting, he’ll kick the crap out of you with a sand wedge. [The Columbus Dispatch]
· Dwyane Wade is playing! Dwyane Wade is playing! Grab Miami at -2! Now, you moron! Now! [Covers]
· Success of Borgatta makes Atlantic City all cocky and think that [...]