What makes Tiger Woods the 11/4 favorite at this week’s U.S. Open? The same two things that make any champion: breeding and training.

Now that the Triple Crown has come and gone, let’s take a page from our horseplayer book and look Tiger Woods in the teeth. Woods is the son of Earl Woods, a U.S. Army Special Forces lieutenant colonel of mixed ancestry, and Kultida Punsawad, also of mixed ancestry. They met while Earl Woods was serving in Thailand during the Vietnam War. Those are some impressive bloodlines.

But talent isn’t everything. You also need character, and Earl Woods had a serious passion for golf. He was committed to turning his son into the best golfer that ever lived, starting at the tender age of two. That may sound like a tragedy waiting to happen; however, Earl wasn’t your typical nightmare “Sports Dad” trying to live vicariously through his offspring. “My dad was my best friend and greatest role model,” Tiger said last year after Earl succumbed to cancer at the age of 74. “He was an amazing dad, coach, mentor, soldier, husband and friend. I wouldn’t be where I am today without him.”

The apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree. Like his father, Tiger’s charisma is off the charts – just ask his wife, Swedish bombshell Elin Nordegren (now Elin Woods), or the many golfers on the PGA Tour who have gone on record saying how much they enjoy playing alongside Woods. That character took Tiger from appearing on The Mike Douglas Show at age 2, where he putted against Bob Hope, to winning three straight U.S. Amateur titles by age 20. And that’s just his amateur career. Woods has won the Masters four times, the British Open and PGA Championship three times apiece, and the U.S. Open twice.

Mr. and Mrs. Woods are expecting the couple’s first child this summer. Tiger may have to miss the British Open, but it will be well worth it to see if Tiger proves to be the same kind of father Earl was.

Odds to win the 2007 US Open

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