He no longer puts the fear of God into his fellow players but Tiger Woods still has the bookmakers running scared as he prepares to open his assault on the Australian summer.Woods has been listed equal favourite with 2009 champion Adam Scott for next weeks Australian Open which holds between November 10 and 13 at The Lakes in Sydney, a remarkable show of respect as he has gone nearly two years without a win.After 623 weeks as the world No 1, he is down at 56 and drifting. His last win was at the 2009 Australian Masters.While Scott deserves to be among the fancied chances, Woods - by his own high standards - has had a horror year marked by injury and poor results.Woods has played nine events on the PGA Tour in 2011, making seven cuts and grabbing two top-10 finishes. For most players, that would be a respectable performance. But Woods is not most players.Nevertheless, US team captain Fred Couples selected Woods as a member of his Presidents Cup team and he will fine-tune his preparations for that event by playing a pair of charity events before flying into Sydney to play the Open for the first time since 1996.Hes not one you want to take on, a TAB Sportsbet spokesman said.Hes popular regardless of his form at the moment. If it all clicks he could win and we dont want to lose a fortune on him.Woods is expected to arrive in Sydney early next week. Tiger is one of the best players in the world even when hes not playing as good as what he has done in the past, former Open winner Craig Parry said.The issue for Woods is that the players he will confront next week are the same players who have sunk the boot into him this year. Scott, Bubba Watson, Aaron Baddeley, Nick Watney and David Toms are among those to have won on the PGA Tour in 2011.He has that aura about him still and he will bring out the crowds again, Colin Montgomerie said.Its not the same as it was. People arent frightened of him the way they were. Theres less fear as an opponent. But at the same time he is still Tiger Woods.Its good for the game of golf having him play in Australia. Its great that he will travel down here and play two weeks down here. I will be one very interested spectator.Montgomerie, who led the European team to victory over the US in the Ryder Cup last year, was also reluctant to criticise Couples for his selection of Woods.
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