Bodog Beat

Jim Furyk is the odds-on favorite to win the 2008 Buick Open. (AP Images)

Now will be the true test of the PGA's collective mettle.

With its top-ranked player and virtual poster boy Tiger Woods out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury, the tour suddenly takes on a new dynamic. Who'll step up in Tiger's absence? We'll find out this weekend at the Buick Open from Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club in Grand Blanc, Michigan.

One familiar name in the field is Rocco Mediate, who took Tiger to a 19-hole playoff at the US Open before falling one stroke short. Mediate won the Open in 2000 and is looking to carry over the momentum from Torrey Pines.

Also in the field? John Daly. While he's more sideshow than actual tourney contender, there's no mistaking the impact he has on golf fans. People love him and want to drink with him – he'll probably spice up the gallery given how fun he is to watch.

The defending champ, Brian Bateman, has battled through recent shoulder injury to get back into the 2008 field. "Although I've had injuries this year, last year it was more just trying something new every week and hoping to find the magic. And for some reason when I arrived here last year, getting off to a good start, my putter was cooperating, which had not been the case for most of the year, and got through Saturday and came through Sunday and there were 20 guys I think within four shots of the lead," Bateman told the Daily Tribune. "So I knew that if I worried about what anybody else was doing, that it was not going to get me anywhere."

Bodog has all the updated odds and lines for the 2008 Buick Open available now. Jim Furyk is the odds-on favorite to win at 9/1, followed by Kenny Perry (11/1), Justin Leonard (14/1) and Heath Slocum (22/1). Check out all the PGA golf betting options available now!