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Today’s Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott

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Jose Mourinho and Frank Lampard went through a lot together as boss and player at Chelsea. Tonight they go head-to-head in the EFL Cup third round tie at Old Trafford as managers of Manchester United and Derby. Lampard will know that Mourinho takes these matches seriously and respects the competition by not playing the second string. At Chelsea winning this competition led to becoming champions of England. The tie is decided tonight as there is no provision for a replay.

Mourinho values winning trophies and even though the Premier League and Champions League are at the top of his wish list he would like to win the League Cup and beating Derby tonight is part of that process. United have won all but three of their last 19 home matches in the League Cup and it could be Lampard who prioritises promotion from the Championship by not sending out his best team.  However, United struggled against Wolves in the league and Derby are playing well so the DRAW in 90 minutes is the best option at 11/2 with William Hill.

Its Ryder Cup week but the main focus of attention of the golfing world over the last two days has been Tiger Woods. He won his 80th PGA title and first for five years in the Tour Championship on Saturday. Money is not an issue with the former world number one so he was probably not too upset that Justin Rose won the FedEx Cup and $10 million bonus. There are no financial incentives to play in the Ryder Cup but WOODS now sees the bigger picture after two years of trauma. He is 13/8 to be the top American wildcard and that is a price worth taking.

There are three Flat meetings today in Britain and they race on the All-Weather in Chelmsford but there is no racing in Ireland. It’s the big Cambridgeshire meeting at Newmarket at the end of the week but there’s not a great deal to get excited about in the racing programme today. The five furlongs conditions race at Beverly (3.55) is the best race of the day. PERFECT PASTURE has the form and ratings to prevail and the horse can be backed at 10/11 with bet365 to win this race.

Donald Can Deliver Again In The Heritage – By Ian Hudson 

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The Law of Hilton Head applies this week and states that any player that was in contention at the US Masters must be opposed in the following week. The RBC Heritage has a regular date in the calendar in the week after the first major of the season. The players that are prominent in the betting played at Augusta National last Sunday so there could be some value in backing players at big odds. Luke Donald is a former world number one with an excellent bank of course form.

The tournament was known as the Heritage Classic for many years and it’s now sponsored by the Royal Bank of Canada. It was first played in 1969 and the host course has always been Harbour Town Golf Links at Hilton Head. The mid-April date means the field is generally moderate because the better players rest in the week after a major. World number one Dustin Johnson is an exception but he didn’t feel the heat of contending over the last round of a major at the Masters.

The course is relatively short and measures less than 7,100 yards and has a par of 71, made up of nines of 36 and 35. There are the usual quota of par 3s and par 4s but only one par 5 on the back nine. The venue is primarily a test of accuracy with some of the smallest greens on tour placing a premium on sound iron play. As a seaside location it is exposed if the wind is blowing when scores increase.

The Heritage is one of five PGA tournaments that has invitational status. There is reduced field of 132 players and no qualifying. The top 50 players in the world ranking get an optional place invite and PGA tournament winners are also invited. Ian Poulter won the Houston Open two weeks ago and now has full exempt status until the end of the 2020 season and has taken up his place. After some injury problems Poulter is now in the great position of picking and choosing where he plays for the best part of three years.

Masters contenders should be opposed due to the significant demands, especially mentally, of being in serious contention in the season’s first major. Mental letdown and reduced concentration can then apply. Harbour Town is very different to Augusta. In the US Masters the players face large, lightning-fast greens whereas in the Heritage the greens are less contoured, not as quick and much smaller. Donald never really got to grips with Augusta but he has been second five times at Hilton Head.

Donald’s rise to the summit of the world game was based on sound course management and excellent putting. At his best he was a leading contender for the majors but has never figured in the four tournaments that matter most. Donald has played in 54 majors and recorded just five top fives which is a poor record from somebody who was ranked the best player in the world. In 2011 Donald was the number one player on the PGA and European Tours and that was a first.

Despite winning 17 professional tournaments Donald has slumped to 196 in the world rankings. He has received an invitation based on his tournament form and not anything he has achieved over the last few years. Even during his slump Donald has been the runner-up for the last two years in the Heritage. Donald’s Ryder Cup team mate, Poulter, gave his career a tremendous boost by winning the Houston Open and Donald would do the same thing if he won the RBC Heritage this week.

El Nino to Finally Become El Hombre in a Major 

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The USPGA Championship used to be known as Glory’s Last Shot but the final major of the season has been rebranded to now be called a chance to join the golfing greats. Sergio Garcia won’t be concerned if the championship is the least prestigious of the four most important prizes in golf if he finally wins one. This could be the week when El Nino becomes a man in the context of major championship golf.

Jason Dufner, Justin Rose and Charl Schwartzel have each won one major but must win one of the four great championships again to prove they are not one hit wonders. Each player has a decent profile for a tournament that is not being played in August for the first time since 1971. The host venue is the Lower Course at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey where the 2005 event took place.

This year’s PGA Championship is being played in July to accommodate golf at the Olympic Games in Rio. However, golf has never been and never will be an Olympic sport but who cares about the ethos behind the Games when any Russian athlete is allowed to take part. Professional tennis players seem to have bought into the Olympic ideals but golfers are fundamentally selfish. Winning a Claret Jug or Green Jacket is much more important to most than winning a gold medal. Several players have expressed concerns about the Zika virus but that is a red herring because fundamentally the benefits of ‘flying down to Rio’ are not that attractive.

Baltusrol usually serves up hot and steamy weather and that was the case when Phil Mickelson won his only PGA title there 11 years ago. He won with a total of four under which equated to 276 strokes on the par 70 layout. Mickelson led from wire to wire and could afford a pair of two over par rounds of 72 over the weekend and still win by one shot from Steve Elkington and Thomas Bjorn.

The Lower Course must be unique for a championship venue in that the last two holes are par 5s but by no way easy birdie opportunities. The course has staged eight major championships but there has only ever been one eagle at the 649 yards 17th hole in its last two spins as a major venue. The last hole is more manageable at 554 yards in length that and is the conclusion to a test that is 36 yards longer than in 2005.

The air will be heavy so the ball will stay higher than normal for longer and that could bring the difficult rough into play. There will be a premium on accuracy over distance but bogey avoidance on the shorter holes will also be key to good scoring. Mickelson was fifth from last for driving distance in 2005 and 37th for fairways hit. Scrambling is a major strength of his game but mental letdown from almost winning a second Open championship just two weeks ago could be a handicap.

Garcia is scheduled to represent Spain in the Olympics and it would be fitting if his loyalty to the sport and country of his birth was rewarded by him teeing it up in Brazil as a major champion. He is the shortest priced player in the betting to have not won a major. All four majors are currently held by a player who has only won one and the leading contender to maintain that trend is Garcia. He has had his chances but a weak putting stroke and mental fragility have affected his chances several times in the past.

Garcia won on the PGA Tour in May and since then has recorded two top five finishes in a row and that run has been in majors. His game is in fine shape and he is currently 18th for total driving, third for greens hit and sixth for adjusted scoring. Sergio deserves to win a major and he could finally have his day in the sun when a major drops in his lap rather than him grasping one or wasting a winning opportunity. Henrik Stenson is now 40 and Garcia is four years younger so age is not a barrier.

Dufner, Rose and Schwartzel are all built for Baltusrol and are proven major champions. The PGA Championship does not always go to form and the seven players at the head of the betting have won majors. However, this year’s renewal could finally see that elusive first major for Garcia.

Golf Bet Profits

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Patrick Reed came of age on Sunday night when he held on to win the Cadillac WGC at Doral. The Blue Monster turned into a complete monster and a record was set for a PGA event for the most balls going in the water.

Tiger Woods developed a bad back again on Sunday afternoon and though we got place money Dustin Johnson proved yet again that along with massive talent he has a huge space between his ears as he played some suicidally stupid golf.

Hats off to Donald Trump and the design team who have turned the Blue Monster into a scary test of the game we all love. I’ve been lucky enough to play many of Floridas best courses but I think I may well give this one a miss unless I just turn up and jump in the lake, cutting out the middle man as it were.

Thoughts have to turn towards the Masters now and if Patrick Reed hits his irons like he did last week he would have a chance. People say Augusta is about the man who putts best, it isn’t it’s about the man who can put his ball in the right parts of the greens the most and this guy hit irons in like arrows.

The PGA tour has the Valspar Challenge this week while on the European Tour it’s the Trophee Hassan. Both are good courses with strong fields and providing the caddies on the European Tour can keep their minds off what they’ve backed at Cheltenham then we should be in for a good week.

Remember it’s the quiet golf weeks when we can sneak in and land the big pot from right under the Bookmakers noses and we have some big priced selections this week .

I look forward to seeing you on the fairways.

Back next Tuesday.

Simon Holden
Golf Bet Profits
http://go.betfan.com/1000/47

Golf Bet Profits

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After last weeks unpredictable matchplay event the PGA Tour returns to some kind of normality with the start of the Florida Swing. I’m not going to hold a competition as to why it’s called the Florida Swing section of the Tour suffice to say if you cannot work it out then I fear life is set to be a struggle for you.

It’s the Honda Classic played on one of the most difficult courses on Tour the Championship course at PGA National. It contains the notorious Beartrap 15 to 17, 2 par 3s and a hellish par 4 so called as the designer Jack Nicklaus must have been in his meanest mood ever when he designed these three pieces of golfing pure evil.

Bad news for the players as the wind is due to be quite lively so the Beartrap with water surrounding all three holes will ensure the scoreboard will be changing very quickly. This is the sort of Tournament where you watch smugly as your player leads then pop to the fridge to lessen by one its stocks of Mcewans Export only to return to find him missing from the first three pages of the leaderboard having got wet three times.

If Maximus had been a golfer then Oliver Reeds advice would have been “Win the Bear Trap and you will win your freedom.”

It’s not the whole Tournament but it is pivotal.

The Tiger is on the prowl but such was the horror of his last performance with wild swings and constant cursing that it’s a brave man that bets him this week. Rory leads a strong and powerful European Challenge who have done well at this Tournament. With so many of them living in Florida this is more of a home event than one at Wentworth. I expect a strong challenge from our boys this week as they are precision iron players which this place needs. If he drives well Rory will contend but his price is on the skinny side and there is value elsewhere.

We love the Florida Swing at Golf Bet Profits, the season is moving into top gear and the form lines are there if you know where to look. Join us it should be quite a week, just don’t leave the room when our players are on the Bear Trap holes, send others they will understand!

Have a great Golf Betting week.

On Fridays I will be presenting BetFan.com/tv look out for the occasional nugget from the fairways.

Back next Tuesday.

Simon Holden
Golf Bet Profits
http://go.betfan.com/1000/47

Match Play Golf

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Hunter Mahan, Ian Poulter and Rory McIlroy are my three against the field for the Accenture Match Play Championship. However, stakes should be kept to a minimum due to the nature of the format which involves matches over just 18 holes ahead of the final which is played over 2 rounds. Sixty four players are competing in the first World Golf Championship event of the season but Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott are noticeable absentees.

The players are divided into four brackets and seeded based on world rankings. That means the player at number one in the rankings plays the 64th best player in the world in the first round. If players decide not to compete the world standings determine which reserves get a place. The organisers will be disappointed that three of the five best players in the world have not entered.

The objective of these WGC events is to get the best players to compete against each other more often. However, nothing can be done about those who decide not to play but it must be galling for the sponsors that two of the current major champions plus the world number one are swerving the event. One round is played on each of the first four days, then the semi-finals, 3rd/4th place match and final are held on Sunday.

For punters the event is a mix of the expected and the unexpected. In the history of the event there have been several winners at over 100/1 but the early round matches go generally to form. Backing the favourite in the first round over the last three years would have resulted in a strike rate of over 65% and a decent return on investment. However, as a betting medium the short matches represent an inherent flaw.

More fancied players have won over the last four years with the biggest priced winner in that spell being Poulter at 50/1 in 2010. The last winner at over 100/1 was Geoff Ogilvy in 2009 and even he was a former champion. Tiger Woods is the only successful favourite and he was the market leader in each of his winning years in 2003, 2004 and 2008, the last year in which he won a major.

Woods would probably swap 10 match play championships for that elusive 15th major. His career aim of surpassing Jack Nicklaus’s tally of 18 is becoming increasingly unlikely. His focus is now on winning a fifth US Masters in April so doesn’t feel the need to disrupt his break for an event that could be all over in less than four hours.

The championship is being played at Dove Mountain Golf Club in Arizona but on the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club and not The Golf Club course that has staged the event since 2011. That means there is no course form to assess which only adds to the imponderables for golf bettors. Such is the unpredictable nature of the event the OnParProfits golf service is taking a week off.

This subscription based service managed through Winning information Network is on a tremendous run of form. The service has highlighted five outright winners in the last four weeks at rewarding odds of 40/1, 28/1, 12/1, 11/1 and 8/1. This is unprecedented for golf tipping product for which a winner every three weeks will keep the selections in profit. Readers can subscribe by visiting this website:

http://go.winninginformationnetwork.com/1000/57

The match play event can throw up some strange results due to the short length of the matches. The prize money attracts most of the world’s best but Woods, Mickelson and Scott are now not motivated by money and probably think travelling to Arizona for what could less than a full round of competitive golf is just not worth the bother. In their absence McIlroy is the favourite to win the event for the first time.

Matt Kuchar is the defending champion this week but since the first staging in 1999 only Woods in 2003 and 2004 has won in successive years. Of the 15 champions nine have been Americans, four Europeans have won the event and Geoff Ogilvy from Australia is a two times winner. Seven of the winners have been current or former major champions. Mahan has the best recent form as the winner in 2012 and runner-up 12 months ago.

With a new course in Arizona the venue there are there possible ways of finding the winner. Getting a pin and hoping is the least scientific but focusing on players with form in Arizona and decent records in recent renewals are more logical methods of beating the bookies this week. Temperatures will me modest so coping with severe desert heat does not enter the equation.

Mahan lost in the final to Kuchar last year and beat McIlroy in the 2012 deciding match. He contended in two major championships last year and is currently on a solid run of form. He is 54th in the FedEx Cup rank, scoring at an average of less than 70 and at 33 in the world rankings is a typical former winner, except in the years when Tiger was the champion.

Our main pick has played in four events on the PGA Tour this season, made the cut each time, never finished outside the top 25 and has recorded two top 10 finishes. Therefore, he is a player in form, with a good record in Arizona and proven in the 64 field match play format.

Match play golf is what brings Poulter alive. He never gave up in the Ryder Cup and he was probably the only person who believed that Europe could win ahead of the final day singles last September. Poulter has a decent stroke play record and is well established in the top 20 of the world rankings but it is head-to-head golf that really gets his juices glowing. He has the ideal identikit of potential winners this week.

McIlroy is now down to 7th in the world rankings after his ‘annus horribilis’ of last year. He walked off the course mid-round in a PGA Tour event which didn’t go down well with Jack Nicklaus amongst others. He said he was brain dead at the Open Championship, was struggling to adapt to his new Nike clubs and was subject to media speculation over his relationship with Caroline Wozniacki to whom he is now engaged.

The former world number one was the moral winner of the Abu Dhabi Championship in January. He was retrospectively fined two shots in the third round after his partner’s caddie reported a minor rules infringement and eventually finished just one shot off the pace. It doesn’t go down in the record books as a win but he took fewer shots than any other player that week. The loss of world ranking points will be felt more keenly than any financial shortfall.

This is not a week for the golf betting purists and many may refrain from having a bet. The only thing that’s predictable about match play golf over five days is unpredictability but for those looking for a financial interest on the back of some winning weeks for OnParProfits should have Mahan, Poulter and McIlroy in their portfolio.

This Weeks Golf News

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Stephen Gallacher played one of the best nine holes in the history of the European Tour in the third round of the Dubai Desert Classic last Saturday. Not only did that run of scoring help him become the first player to successfully defend the tournament for the first time in it’s 25 year history it rewarded followers of the OnParProfits service with a 40-1 winner. After the first month of the season the service is showing a healthy return on investment of almost 38%.

OnParProfits is managed through Winning Information Network and you can find more details and subscribe by following this link:

http://go.winninginformationnetwork.com/1000/57

The service gives outright and 72 match bet tips for the European and US PGA Tours. However, this week is rare in that the Joburg Open in Europe will not be covered. This is basically a South Africa Sunshine Tour tournament and we feel there is not enough form to warrant viable selections.

Therefore, the service will focus on the Pebble Beach Pro-Am on the PGA Tour, with a selection of outright tips and several matchbets. We are looking to build on a great start to the season which could have been even better but for schoolboy typing error from the tipster behind OnParProfits. We wanted to advise Charley Hoffman to finish in the top 10 of the Farmers Insurance Open. He duly made those payout places but the bet appeared as a top 5 finish so we have to stand by what was posted.

The Pebble Beach Pro-Am is played on three courses in the Pebble Beach area of California. Pebble Beach itself is short by modern standards at under 6900 yards while Spyglass Hill also measures less than 7000 yards. The Monterey Peninsula course is of a similar length but the only one of the three courses with a par of 72 while the others are par 70 tracks. Rarely for a pro-am the courses are not set up to provide an easy challenge for the amateurs. In the last six yeas the average winning score has been 15 under.

The event is a pro-am in which 180 professionals play each of the courses with an amateur partner over the first three days. The top 60 professionals and the top 20 teams then play Pebble Beach on Sunday. Rounds can take up to six hours and players must feel relaxed with the format in order to contend. The amateur element will always get most media attention but this is still a regular Tour event that carries a two exemption for the winner.

Pebble Beach, the host course for this event, has staged five US Opens, most recent in 2010. Clearly the set up is nothing like as difficult for this event but when the pins are hidden on Sunday it still represents a significant test. Pebble Beach has a spectacular setting with 9 holes running along the Pacific Ocean, so weather can be a huge factor. It has generally wide fairways but the greens are the smallest on Tour. The other two courses generally play easier but all three demand accuracy to the greens.

There is a definite weather warning with this event. It was abandoned completely in 1996 and has been reduced to 54 holes several times and as recently as 2009. The Pebble Beach course in particular is an entirely different proposition in windy conditions so is advisable to check the weather forecast before placing your bets. In good weather form usually prevails but storms can cause upsets as everybody is faced with the same daunting test.

Benign conditions mean the draw has little impact on scores so there no advantage to playing the three courses in a particular order. The average scores for each course are fairly similar, totalling about 216 strokes over the first three days for the last three years. Bad weather brings about changes in the degree of difficulty for each course and hence bigger variances for average scoring at each venue. The 10 day weather forecast for Pebble Beach points to cloudy conditions but only moderate winds so we can assume this year the weather will not be a major factor.

A proven record in the mentally demanding pro-am format is an important pointer to potential winners. Phil Mickelson is one player that relishes the format as he has the temperament to keep his focus even when the amateurs are distracting him. Padraig Harrington seems an intense character but he is another player that can keep his form in the context of playing alongside two amateurs.

Pat Perez has built up a decent bank of course for in this event. He has a reputation for being something of a hot head on the course, which suggests the mental exertion of four long rounds in a pro-am would find him out. However, he has often done well in this tournament and his solid iron play and putting brings him into the mix. However, OnParProfits is ignoring the claims of these three players but will be highlighting other players that represent better betting opportunities at the relative odds on offer.

This Weeks Golf Betting News

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Tiger Woods makes one of his trips to Dubai this week but for the first time in probably more than 10 years he is not the bookmakers’ favourite to win a regular 72 hole tournament. Rory McIlroy is a shorter price for the Dubai Desert Classic on the European Tour but there appears to be some value in looking elsewhere for potential winners.

The OnParProfits golf service has highlighted other players at bigger prices who could beat the two market leaders.

This service managed through the Winning Information Network had a great winner last week. The main tip for the Qatar Masters was Sergio Garcia and he did the business for his backers by beating Mikko Ilonen in a play-off. Garcia has famously never won a major championship. However with a new partner he has stability away from the course and may have matured and finally moved on from the days of always being known as El Nino.

Some pundits believe Garcia’s putting will always let him down at the business end of majors. The OnParProfits service thinks he can win one of the four biggest prizes in golf and one course in particular that hosts a major this year is ideally suited to his game. This could be Sergio’s year to win a major and I would suggest it can happen on the Wirral Peninsula of north-west England in July. I think there’s enough clues to work out who I believe will be holding the Claret Jug this summer.

After three rounds of the Farmers Insurance Open Charley Hoffman appeared to be too far back to make the top 10. His five under par round of 67 which included a hole in one meant he made that bracket by just one shot. This is a player to follow on the US PGA Tour this season, especially on courses that require a decent short game for good scoring.

The Dubai Desert Classic is being held at the Emirates Golf Club in the United Arab Emirates for the 14th successive year and forms the third leg of the ‘Gulf swing’. The American-style course has fairly generous fairways leading to large, generally flat greens. Water comes into play on 10 holes. Unusually for a gulf course the 9th and 18th have a shared green which is normally seen on links course.

Greater than average hitting is not a prerequisite to contend but it is an advantage on the four par 5s which are key holes for getting below par. The most important attribute is quality iron play and the ability to hit the greens in the correct number of shots must be considered when identifying players with an advantage over the rest of the field.

There are some course details to bear in mind if betting in running. Three of the four par 5s are on the back nine which plays easier than the front nine. The 18th is reachable in two so an eagle for a player in contention can change the outcome significantly. However, it is a risk-reward hole with a long carry over water to the green so the shape of the tournament can change with one brave shot and holed putt.

McIlroy has built up a solid bank of course form in a relatively short career and he arrives in Dubai on the back of a tournament in which he played the fewest shots but did not win. He was given a 2 stroke penalty in the Abu Dhabi Championship in which he eventually finished just one shot off the pace behind Pablo Larrazabal from of Spain. McIlroy has been priced up as a recent tournament winner but too short to recommend a bet.

Phil Mickelson is favourite for the Phoenix Open on the basis of excellent course form. He went to college in Arizona and players with a local connection often do well at this tournament. Mickelson is the defending champion this week but is unlikely to match his winning score of 28 under twelve months ago. In the previous five years the average winning score in the Phoenix Open was 16 under. Mickelson looks a worthy favourite and only as this is his first outing in 2014 on the PGA Tour does he not warrant a bet.

The Phoenix Open has been held at Scottsdale since 1987. The event is best known for its huge galleries, over 150,00 strong on the Saturday, and in particular the raucous atmosphere at the par-3 16th. The crowd surrounds the entire hole from tee to green. The loudest cheers were probably when Tiger Woods had a hole in one there in 1997. The beer concessions do good business and the Phoenix Open is a tournament at which shouts of ‘your the man’ and ‘get in the hole’ are not only accepted but obligatory.

The TPC of Scottsdale is a typical stadium course, except that it is in the desert so waste areas and bunkers are common. Water is in play on several holes and the Bermuda greens are mainly above average in size. Course experience is more important than any particular skill but it certainly helps to have a good short game and driving accuracy is more important than distance. The stretch around the turn is exposed which is worth noting if the wind is blowing. The local climate produces still, warm conditions in some years and wet and windy weather in others.

In the past it has generally been worth looking at recent course form. The unique atmosphere at Scottsdale doesn’t suit every player and it is a test of temperament as much skill. However, some rookies have done well in the past but only those that relished the atmosphere generated by the huge crowds. The Phoenix Open is the best attended tournament on any tour and it gets more lively towards the end of play.

Local residents probably buy into the occasion more than others. This is Arizona’s biggest week for professional golf and players that live or studied in the state, such as Geoff Ogilvy and Mickelson, seem to have an advantage over the rest of the field. That means the Mickelson-McIlroy double will be popular but there is a case for opposing both favourites this week.

Visit OnParProfits at the link below…

http://go.winninginformationnetwork.com/1000/57

Golf Bet Profits

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Here we are already at the final Major of the season and the question is to Tiger or not to Tiger?

Last week we secured a good profit on the Tournament thanks to the exploits of our main pick Keegan Bradley who finished second but still needed a NASA telescope to see Woods in the distance.

It was the Tiger of old bullying a field into submission on a course he loves more than any other the very long and very dull Firestone. But just before you go down the back of the sofa and attempt to empty the children’s piggybanks to get the Woods to win the PGA @ 4/1 a few words of caution.

This weeks PGA takes place in New York state on the short but oh so tricky Oak Hill Course where you have to drive straight or you are toast. It’s a very different test and the last time it was played here Woods had a shocker and he was in great form leading up to it. The course is a US Open style layout and we remember Woods shocking play at this years at Merrion. My theory is that on this type of course the Tigers confidence is shot to pieces and last weeks demolition job will not change that.

Recent Open winner Phil I can’t stop smiling Mickelson will fancy his chances but like Woods may well be too wayward off the tee here. Last time the event was played here Shaun Micheel won with -4. Shaun Micheel is so obscure when he got home last week his wife asked him for ID but what he did do that week something he has never done since was putt like a demon. Like all US Major venues the greens are set up fast and treacherous so you need to be playing into them from the fairways.

What of the European challenge, well it’s difficult to see Westwood getting over his Open last round antics though he does have the game for here. Luke Donald has shown flickers of form and could contend though it’s hard to see him winning. Rory is the defending Champion but will find this place very different to the wide open Kiawah Island that he destroyed last year.

This is going to be a fascinating week and at Golf Bet Profits we are placing four bets on players who will relish this track. One is at a huge price and I’m convinced is in with a huge chance. Join us I really do look forward to seeing you on the fairways.

Back next Tuesday.

Simon Holden
Golf Bet Profits
http://go.betfan.com/1000/47

Bet Enthusiast

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The British Open Championship returns to Muirfield near Edinburgh for the first time since 2002. Ernie Els won the Open that year so he returns to the East Lothian links as defending champion and course defending champion. Els has won four majors and his wins span the years from 1994 to 2012.

Last year at Lytham when the South African birdied the last hole he probably thought it was to finish the event as runner-up. However, Adam Scott bogeyed the last four holes which mean Els won by 1 shot. At the time there were concerns about how Scott would react to wasting a great opportunity to win a major. He responded in the best possible way by winning the US Masters earlier this year.

The Open Championship is the third of four majors on the global golfing schedule. The Masters is always held at Augusta in April. The US Open is the toughest test of golf and Justin Rose’s winning score of one over par indicates that bogey avoidance rather than birdie conversion is the key skill in the national championship of the United States. The PGA Championship takes place in Augusta and like the US Open is rotated around the best courses in America.

Each of the major championships is unique in its own way. The Masters is the only one played on the same course every year, the US Open puts a premium on accuracy over distance, the PGA provides “glories last shot” and the British Open is always played on a links course. The Open is rotated around courses in Scotland, the north west of England and Sandwich on the south coast.

The Open Championship is the oldest of the majors in professional golf. It is the only major held outside the United States and is administered by the R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside America and Mexico. The Open is traditionally played in the third week of July but even during high summer poor weather conditions can play a part in the outcome.

The Open is a 72-hole stroke play tournament with the usual cut after 36 holes which allows the top 70 players and ties to play over the weekend. The US Open has an 18 hole playoff if two or more players are tied after 72 holes, while the Masters and PGA championships are decided by sudden death in the event of a tie. The Open features a four hole play after regulation play which seems to be a good compromise between the extremes in which the other majors are decided when players return the same score over four rounds.

Since 1980 there have been seven multiple winners, the latest before Els being Tiger Woods who has won this championship three times. Harry Vardon is the only player to win the title six times but Tom Watson was a short putt away from emulating that feat when he lost in a play-off to Stewart Cink in 2009. The last English winner was Sir Nick Faldo at Muirfield in 1992 but with Justin Rose winning the US Open the home contingent may feel more confident of breaking that run of non-English winners.

Back next Friday.

Ian Hudson
Bet Enthusiast
http://go.betfan.com/1000/127