LONDON (AP) -- Despite not competing since his car crash in November, Tiger Woods is still the favorite to win the Masters.
Barely an hour after the announcement Tuesday that Woods will make his return at Augusta National next month, the British bookmaker William Hill installed him the 4-1 favorite. Phil Mickelson is second at 6-1, followed by Padraig Harrington at 16-1.
Hill also lists Woods as 1-20 to make the cut at the Masters. He is 25-1 to win all four majors this year.
"All the major courses are Tiger's favorites, so despite a terrible beginning we think that 2010 will end up being terrific for Tiger," William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams said in a statement.
Woods has not played competitively since crashing his car into a tree outside his Florida home, setting off revelations he had been cheating on his wife.
"We're pleased to hear that Tiger is to return to golf," Royal & Ancient Golf Club spokesman Malcolm Booth said. "Golf needs the world No. 1 to be playing."
He showed up last week at Doral with two drivers in the bag -- one to hit high and far, one to keep low to the ground to combat gusting winds.
The idea was better in theory than reality.
When the week was over, Mickelson had hit 20 of 56 fairways -- ranking dead last in the field of 68 players.
The result was a tie for 14th, the fourth time in five events this year Mickelson has finished outside the top 10. A disappointing trend for the player who was supposed to benefit most from Tiger Woods' absence.
"I'm doing the best I can," Mickelson said. "It just is not quite clicking on the course yet. But I don't feel far off. I feel like there's just one key area that needs to get improved upon, and that's on the greens."
DORAL, Fla. -- As dusk overtook daylight in South Florida and shadows slowly stretched across Doral's Blue Monster Sunday evening, the reinvention of Ernie Els as a world-class golfer was announced loud and clear.
For the first time in more than two seasons, and only the second since 2004, Els won a PGA Tour golf tournament. And not just any PGA Tour event, the World Golf Championship's CA Championship featuring a select international field.
"This means so much," Els said. "I didn't think it was ever going to happen again.
"But I felt all week the work that I did, that I finally had to trust it at some stage. I really just wanted to prove myself, and just play good golf."
Mission accomplished. The 40-year-old South African crafted a bogey-free final-round 66 to finish 18-under and four shots in front of young countryman Charl Schwatzel. He did nothing wrong and a lot of things exceptionally well.
On their way to finishing Saturday's third-round of the CA Championship 12-under par and tied for the lead, both Charl Schwartzel and Ernie Els tapped in for easy pars on the 18th hole.
So did a lot of people, one notable exception being Soren Hansen, who made a three footer for birdie after almost holing his approach from 150 yards.
The finishing hole on Doral's Blue Monster might as well have rolled over and begged to have its belly scratched.
"Today it was a birdie hole," Els said. "I never thought I would say that about 18. First two days, I couldn't believe how tough it was and today it was driver, wedge.
"That's the wind conditions. That's South Florida."
Els is Calm Before Storm at Doral DORAL, Fla. -- Blessed by an early tee time, Ernie Els had escaped a wet, dreary South Florida afternoon, and was enjoying his good fortune.
"I'm absolutely glad I'm in here," he said, sitting high and dry inside the Doral Resort as a downpour rained down outside. "It's in the books. I mean, we ran the last two holes just to get it in the house."
Friday's speed-golf finish aside, Els hasn't enjoyed much of a run in quite some time. Once a serious contender for world No. 1, the popular South African has managed only one win since 2004, dropping to 20th in the rankings.
During that time, Els has had to come back from a serious knee injury suffered while tubing behind a boat, and deal with his son Ben being diagnosed with autism. Now, with a 40th birthday having recently come and gone, there's the worrisome possibility that nothing again will ever be as big or as easy as before.
So a second-round 66 at the CA Championship that puts Els 10 under and in front of the elite-field World Golf Championship event is something to savor.
LONDON (AP) -- Despite not competing since his car crash in November, 
Notes, quotes and a week of golf gossip ...
DORAL, Fla. -- As dusk overtook daylight in South Florida and shadows slowly stretched across Doral's Blue Monster Sunday evening, the reinvention of 
DORAL, Fla. -- Now, that wasn't so hard.
