AUGUSTA, Ga. >>

Once America’s elite in the professional golf realm, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson spent Tuesday together in a practice round as the 40-somethings contemplated their chances at this week’s Masters.

They have delighted their fan base through the years with a combined 122 wins on the PGA Tour along with 19 major championships. Woods has won four green jackets, while Mickelson’s Masters closet holds three.

To say they are best buds would be a bit of a stretch, but much like Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus they have grown closer through the fairways and greens each has traversed. The idea either one will be fitted for another jacket on Sunday seems far-fetched with all the talent swinging away in this talented worldwide field.

But fans watching them make a practice run together for the first time can dream, can’t they? The return of Woods is a story well told. Mickelson liked it so much, he added another chapter of his own with a World Golf Championship win in Mexico a month ago to lend credence to his chances of hoisting a trophy on Sunday.

Mickelson is a 16-to-1 choice at the famed Westgate sports book in Las Vegas with Woods coming in at 11-1. At different casinos throughout the state, Woods is as low as even money and can be found hanging around at 7-1 in several major casinos depending on what kind of action they have taken in this week.

Considering Woods opened at 100-1 to win the Masters in January, the idea he could drop all the way to even money is astounding for this 42-year-old whose prime abandoned him years ago.

The class of characters he inspired to play this game of golf seem in better position to beat him. Players like world No. 1 Dustin Johnson (10-1), No. 2 Justin Thomas (10-1), No. 3 Jon Rahm (18-1), No. 4 Jordan Spieth (12-1) and No. 5 Justin Rose (12-1), who lost in a playoff to defending champ Sergio Garcia last year, seem in a better position.

But as Woods reminded everyone during his Tuesday press conference, Masters experience counts as much as anything. Of the four golf majors, this is the only event played on the same course year in and year out. The other three (the PGA Championship, U.S. Open and British Open) travel around their respective countries in search of a different course each year.

You have to be good for a long time to play any of those events on the same 18 more than once or twice in a career. Not so at Augusta National, where Mickelson has played 25 times dating back to 1991. Woods has teed it up here on 20 occasions with the first occurring in 1995.

You have to think that if either is around the top of the leaderboard on Sunday their experience with this course’s quirks could make a difference, particularly if things are close. This is what makes golf such a great game. Nobody in his right mind believes a 47-year-old man like Mickelson would have a chance to win anything with athletes half his age, other than maybe Ping-Pong.

And that doesn’t count.

What does is knowledge and how to apply it in the most critical situations. There is a lot of pressure out here my friends, particularly on the back nine on Sunday. Just ask Spieth. He knows it firsthand with his collapse at Amen Corner just two short years ago.

As for Woods, this is his first tour of duty here since his back and knee took a holiday in 2015. Not until he played in his own Hero Challenge last December in the Bahamas did Woods know for sure he’d be teeing it up today.

“This is a tournament I think where experience does help a lot,” Woods said. “I mean, I have played here and I’ve won here not playing my absolute best, but there’s got to be a certain part of my game that’s on. I think that this tournament really helps with having the experience and really understanding how to play this particular golf course.”

Mickelson echoed that sentiment. His last win here was 2010; Woods in 2005. His last victory prior to the WGC was at the British Open in 2013. Talent is one thing difficult to measure. Experience around Augusta National is the great equalizer.

“Knowing when to attack and when to lay back are important factors to be successful here,” Mickelson said. “And you have to deal with the pressure of the moment. Experience is important.”

Woods and Mickelson aren’t the only golfers in the field over 40. There are another half-dozen or so old-timers who are competitive enough to be around on Sunday, including Henrik Stenson. Throw in PGA Tour Champions competitors Fred Couples (58) and Bernhard Langer (60), and it’s like old home week for these guys.

But can any of them win? Well, Woods is the betting favorite among those over 40. Hell, the 42-year-old is the betting favorite period at many casinos across the state of Nevada, which says a lot about the state of his game and the chances of his winning major No. 15 this weekend.

Star-Advertiser sports editor Paul Arnett will be reporting from the Masters this week.