The tour heads west this week for the Shell Houston Open in Humble Texas.For me one eye will be on the first major of the season "The Masters" played next week at Augusta Georgia.But first this week!!!
The Redstone Golf Club tournament course has hosted this event since 2006 and it is fairly long at 7457 yards and is a par 72 with four par5's.The course has been deliberatly set up to try and make conditions similar to those at Augusta(fast greens reading 13 on stimpmeter etc)There is a fair amount of water hazards and bunkers and the course has not played that easily in the last couple of years but its main defence-"The Texan winds" are not forcast this week.
The course seems to suit big hitters and driving accuracy is not to important.Also alot of the top players may be here just to test their game for next weeks major challenge and would probably be happy with a midfield finish and go to Augusta under the radar.On the flipside there are some players who know that this is their last chance to drive up Magnolia lane next week and need a win here or a big place finish.It's these types of player that i'm looking at this week,not betting to big and eachway on all.Hopefully can get a place or even a winner and look forward to the greatest show on earth next week!!
ROBERT GARRIGUS(100/1 Brucebetting)
I'm starting off with the biggest hitter on the PGA tour.This guys game is built around power but has skills around the greens too.Robert was 5th here in 2007 and has a liking for the course as he has only missed the cut here once.Beaten in a playoff in the season opener at the long Kapalua course which followed his first PGA tour win at Disney.A win here gets him to the Masters next week so he knows what he has to do!!
J.B.HOLMES(33/1 Paddypower)
Can you see the trend...Big hitters!!!!Another who's game is built around power.His form so far this season reads 47-12-13-5-63 so definitely playing great golf in 2011.Has course form here too....was beaten in a playoff by Paul Casey back in 2009.J.B is the highest world ranked player(60th)not to be in the Masters and his only chance of getting there is to win or go close this week.
JASON DAY(45/1 Boylesports)
Another long hitter who has a great record when playing in Texas with an 8th place here in 2008,was 4th in the Crown Plaza in 2009 and won the Byron Nelson last year.A great putter and have a gut feeling we can see him go close if in the hunt come Sunday.
JHONATTAN VEGAS(66/1 Paddypower)
Was hoping to get a better price on rookie of the year Jonny Vegas as 66/1 looks a little skinny and anyone who plays on betfair can get him at 90's.With the exception of Paul Casey all winners here have had pretty good links with Texas-Kim lives there,J.Wagner was born there and Scott has a great record there.Jonny vegas left Venezuela to live in Houston,Texas to study and improve his game.Think he might be happy to leave the courses of Florida behind him as they did not suit his game and he will feel right at home here in Houston cheered on by family and friends.Hits the ball miles and although his putting looked suspect on the bermuda greens of Florida,is now back on his preferred bent grass greens so look out for Jonny to get his second PGA tour victory this week!!!
Best of luck!!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Arnold Palmer invitational at Bay Hill
Staying in Florida again this week for the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Orlando.Usually when this tournament comes around you think of Tiger Woods who owns this competition with six wins since 2000.
Thick rough,trees and water make this course a stiff test of golf.After some changes which toughened up the course in 2009 expect the scoring to be fairly high.Previous winners here include-Woods,Els,Singh,Pampling,Perry,Campbell and Mickelson.
Brandt Snedeker(55/1 Paddypower)
Love the way this guy plays golf,no messing about,stands up and hits his shots!!3 top 10's already this year- 9th at Torrey Pines,8th in Phoenix and 4th last week at the transitions.Was one of only a handful of players under par after the first round at the Honda only to withdraw from the tournament due to the birth of his first child.In Tampa last week he sounded full of confidence about his game"Yeah i feel like its the best i've hit it my whole career to be honest with you,i feel like every part of my game is alot better than it was at any point in my career"
He ranked 4th in putting last week and is 7th in all round ranking.Brandt has never finished outside the top 30 at Bay Hill with finishes from 2007 reading 22-14-17-30.At 55/1 i make him my TOP TIP!!
Tiger Woods(9/1 Paddypower)
As i have mentioned before Tiger woods owns this competition with six wins here since 2000.Glimpses of his new swing coming to fruition with a tenth last time out at Doral,closing with a 66.Has to be confident after that final round,he's going to win soon and at a course where he has such a good record i think it could start here.
Ricky Fowler(33/1 Paddypower)
With wide open fairways,Ricky should do well here.189th driving accuracy is pretty poor but 2nd in putts per round and 23rd in scoring average has given him some decent finishes this year.68-66 finish at Doral two weeks ago sets Ricky up for a big week here.Has said that he loves the course as he played here many times as a junior and i like his chances this week!!
Camillo Villegas(125/1 Brucebetting)
Mad?? Maybe....Was between him and Justin Rose for my last pick but have plumped for Spiderman!!His game is definitely in a slump but has such a good record on courses in florida and is a bermuda specialist.Signs that his putter was coming back to life at Doral and he has me dreaming of a huge payout.A champion at both the Honda classic and the Tour Championship its just a matter of time before he's back winning again and at odds of 125/1 has to be worth a small each way bet if only for the interest!!
BEST OF LUCK!!
Thick rough,trees and water make this course a stiff test of golf.After some changes which toughened up the course in 2009 expect the scoring to be fairly high.Previous winners here include-Woods,Els,Singh,Pampling,Perry,Campbell and Mickelson.
Brandt Snedeker(55/1 Paddypower)
Love the way this guy plays golf,no messing about,stands up and hits his shots!!3 top 10's already this year- 9th at Torrey Pines,8th in Phoenix and 4th last week at the transitions.Was one of only a handful of players under par after the first round at the Honda only to withdraw from the tournament due to the birth of his first child.In Tampa last week he sounded full of confidence about his game"Yeah i feel like its the best i've hit it my whole career to be honest with you,i feel like every part of my game is alot better than it was at any point in my career"
He ranked 4th in putting last week and is 7th in all round ranking.Brandt has never finished outside the top 30 at Bay Hill with finishes from 2007 reading 22-14-17-30.At 55/1 i make him my TOP TIP!!
Tiger Woods(9/1 Paddypower)
As i have mentioned before Tiger woods owns this competition with six wins here since 2000.Glimpses of his new swing coming to fruition with a tenth last time out at Doral,closing with a 66.Has to be confident after that final round,he's going to win soon and at a course where he has such a good record i think it could start here.
Ricky Fowler(33/1 Paddypower)
With wide open fairways,Ricky should do well here.189th driving accuracy is pretty poor but 2nd in putts per round and 23rd in scoring average has given him some decent finishes this year.68-66 finish at Doral two weeks ago sets Ricky up for a big week here.Has said that he loves the course as he played here many times as a junior and i like his chances this week!!
Camillo Villegas(125/1 Brucebetting)
Mad?? Maybe....Was between him and Justin Rose for my last pick but have plumped for Spiderman!!His game is definitely in a slump but has such a good record on courses in florida and is a bermuda specialist.Signs that his putter was coming back to life at Doral and he has me dreaming of a huge payout.A champion at both the Honda classic and the Tour Championship its just a matter of time before he's back winning again and at odds of 125/1 has to be worth a small each way bet if only for the interest!!
BEST OF LUCK!!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Transitions Championship
The PGA tour stays in Florida for a third week with the Transitions Championship.Played at the Copperhead course,Tampa Bay.This was the 13th toughest course on the PGA tour last year.The par 71 course is 7340 yards long which is actually longer than last weeks Blue Monster course which is a par 72!!The fairways are tight and tree lined which means we need accuracy off the tee.Also the greens are small so good scramblers do well here.
The winners here over the years have all been good ball strikers and very experienced-Furyk(10) Goosen (03&09) O'hair(08) Calcavecchia(07) Choi(02&06) Petterson(05) Singh(04)
So experienced pros with good records here fits the bill.....Let's find them....
Justin Rose(33/1 Brucebetting)
Justin is a player i always look at on tough courses.Very steady player and so far in 2011 he's finished 12th,13th,25th,9th and 42nd while in his five apperance's in this event has never finished worse than 30th which was his debut.Has a 3rd and a 4th finish here also.Played recently in the Tavistock Cup and played some great stuff with Ian Poulter shooting a combined 61.Justin tweeted afterwords "Good day,plenty of birdies out there...my putter warmed up"He brings a confident putting stroke into this tournament and that will do me TOP TIP!!
Padraig Harrington(25/1 Paddypower)
Paddy looks to be finally getting his game back and hopefully this week can put another 4 good rounds together.Paddy loves tough courses and seems to like courses in florida with its bermuda greens(won first PGA tournament in Florida)Finished 10th last week and finished 8th here last year.We all know how good a scambler he is and would'ent it be great to see him win on St Patricks day weekend....COME ON PADDY!!!
Jonathon Byrd(35/1 Boylesports)
Got off to a great start this season winning the Hyundai Tournament of champions in Hawaii but has a couple of quite months since.Maybe happy to be back in Florida and finished with a pair of 68's at Doral last week to grab a top ten place.His form at Copperhead has got my attention with four top ten finishes in the last five years and with a win already under his belt this year,might be about to get his second!
Stuart Appleby(66/1 Brucebetting)
Stuart seems to be getting his game back after a bit of a slump over the last few years.Won at the end of last year and latest three results read 15-12-10.Missed the cut here last year and in 07 but in 08 and 09 he finished twice inside the top ten.Think Stuart is worth a punt this week at big odds of 66/1.
*others to go well here due to recent and current form- Jerry Kelly,Stephen Ames and KJ Choi.
Best of luck!!!!
The winners here over the years have all been good ball strikers and very experienced-Furyk(10) Goosen (03&09) O'hair(08) Calcavecchia(07) Choi(02&06) Petterson(05) Singh(04)
So experienced pros with good records here fits the bill.....Let's find them....
Justin Rose(33/1 Brucebetting)
Justin is a player i always look at on tough courses.Very steady player and so far in 2011 he's finished 12th,13th,25th,9th and 42nd while in his five apperance's in this event has never finished worse than 30th which was his debut.Has a 3rd and a 4th finish here also.Played recently in the Tavistock Cup and played some great stuff with Ian Poulter shooting a combined 61.Justin tweeted afterwords "Good day,plenty of birdies out there...my putter warmed up"He brings a confident putting stroke into this tournament and that will do me TOP TIP!!
Padraig Harrington(25/1 Paddypower)
Paddy looks to be finally getting his game back and hopefully this week can put another 4 good rounds together.Paddy loves tough courses and seems to like courses in florida with its bermuda greens(won first PGA tournament in Florida)Finished 10th last week and finished 8th here last year.We all know how good a scambler he is and would'ent it be great to see him win on St Patricks day weekend....COME ON PADDY!!!
Jonathon Byrd(35/1 Boylesports)
Got off to a great start this season winning the Hyundai Tournament of champions in Hawaii but has a couple of quite months since.Maybe happy to be back in Florida and finished with a pair of 68's at Doral last week to grab a top ten place.His form at Copperhead has got my attention with four top ten finishes in the last five years and with a win already under his belt this year,might be about to get his second!
Stuart Appleby(66/1 Brucebetting)
Stuart seems to be getting his game back after a bit of a slump over the last few years.Won at the end of last year and latest three results read 15-12-10.Missed the cut here last year and in 07 but in 08 and 09 he finished twice inside the top ten.Think Stuart is worth a punt this week at big odds of 66/1.
*others to go well here due to recent and current form- Jerry Kelly,Stephen Ames and KJ Choi.
Best of luck!!!!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
The Blue Monster
Another WGC event this week and the blue monster course at Doral,Miami Florida hosts the Cadillac championship.This is the 5th time this wgc event has been held at Doral(had been held at Mount Julliet in Ireland twice before) And the previous champs here have been Els,Mickelson,Ogilvy and Woods(All major winners)
The course overall ranks in the top 25% easiest courses.It's not to long either at little over 7,200 yards so no monster really!!The fairways are fairly wide with generous landing areas so big hitters tend to do well here.Also as usuall players with good GIR and putting stats end up at the business end come Sunday.
Winning total scores in the last few years have been between -15 and -20 so lots of birdies can be made.Have to say the betting looks a little crazy this week with Martin Kymer favourite at single figure 9to1,Tiger Woods at his highest price since 1997 14to1,so hopefully the bookies have got it wrong and we find some value.So first on the tee for me is:
Nick Watney(22/1 Brucebetting)
Nick might not be a major winner but he's not far off!!He's finished no worse than 6th so far this season.For me is the best of the young American players on tour.Has 3 starts on PGA tour this year and is -34 for 12 rounds of golf so far.He's also 2nd in bogey avoidence this year too.Putting all this together makes Watney a birdie machine that does not drop many shots.2nd here in 2009 so has an eye for the course and i make Watney my top tip for this week.
Geoff Ogilvy(35/1 Boylesports)
Major winner and course winner here in 2008,45th here last year,40th in 2009 and 3rd in 2007.Finished last year with a win and a 2nd in oz,has played 4 times this year,missing the cut at Pebble Beach but was 13th in Phoenix,and 21st at Riviera.Also played well at the matchplay which is a bit of a lottery.Showing signs so of getting back to his best,lovely silky smooth putter has a great chance this week at nice odds.
Tiger Woods(14/1 Paddypower)
This is a huge gamble but so is his price.Maybe i'm getting sucked in here and maybe i'm the only person in the world backing him but i cant leave him out at odds not seen on him since 1997.Woods has won this tournament 3 years in a row from 2005 to 2007(6 times in total!!).O.k has not been at his best recently but he's back playing in Florida where he lives,is playing on a course he has won on before,a course with wide fairways and a course where putting is of upmost importance.Has only another 68 guys to beat and at odds of 14/1 he has to be worth the gamble(at least you'll get to see lots of him on the t.v coverage!!!)
Jonny Vegas(250betfair 125/1 brucebetting)
My outside bet this week is for rookie of the year so far Jonny Vegas.Already a winner of a PGA tour event(Bob Hope) and nearly won the week after at Torrie Pines(T3rd)Remember that this is his first year on tour!!Has been a little quite lately which means he comes here under the radar.Reminds me of tiger when putting as he is pretty fearless.Playing this week in Miami which will be like playing back home in Venezuela as there is a large latin population here that will be cheering him on.A huge price for a kid full of confidence and who has 8 top 25 finishes already this year.So come on Jonny,if you win a trip to Vegas awaits!!
BEST OF LUCK.
WELL DONE TO NICK WATNEY FOR COMING FIRST A MAKING ME A NICE PROFIT.........ST PADDYS WEEK COMING UP........THANKS NICK!!!!
The course overall ranks in the top 25% easiest courses.It's not to long either at little over 7,200 yards so no monster really!!The fairways are fairly wide with generous landing areas so big hitters tend to do well here.Also as usuall players with good GIR and putting stats end up at the business end come Sunday.
Winning total scores in the last few years have been between -15 and -20 so lots of birdies can be made.Have to say the betting looks a little crazy this week with Martin Kymer favourite at single figure 9to1,Tiger Woods at his highest price since 1997 14to1,so hopefully the bookies have got it wrong and we find some value.So first on the tee for me is:
Nick Watney(22/1 Brucebetting)
Nick might not be a major winner but he's not far off!!He's finished no worse than 6th so far this season.For me is the best of the young American players on tour.Has 3 starts on PGA tour this year and is -34 for 12 rounds of golf so far.He's also 2nd in bogey avoidence this year too.Putting all this together makes Watney a birdie machine that does not drop many shots.2nd here in 2009 so has an eye for the course and i make Watney my top tip for this week.
Geoff Ogilvy(35/1 Boylesports)
Major winner and course winner here in 2008,45th here last year,40th in 2009 and 3rd in 2007.Finished last year with a win and a 2nd in oz,has played 4 times this year,missing the cut at Pebble Beach but was 13th in Phoenix,and 21st at Riviera.Also played well at the matchplay which is a bit of a lottery.Showing signs so of getting back to his best,lovely silky smooth putter has a great chance this week at nice odds.
Tiger Woods(14/1 Paddypower)
This is a huge gamble but so is his price.Maybe i'm getting sucked in here and maybe i'm the only person in the world backing him but i cant leave him out at odds not seen on him since 1997.Woods has won this tournament 3 years in a row from 2005 to 2007(6 times in total!!).O.k has not been at his best recently but he's back playing in Florida where he lives,is playing on a course he has won on before,a course with wide fairways and a course where putting is of upmost importance.Has only another 68 guys to beat and at odds of 14/1 he has to be worth the gamble(at least you'll get to see lots of him on the t.v coverage!!!)
Jonny Vegas(250betfair 125/1 brucebetting)
My outside bet this week is for rookie of the year so far Jonny Vegas.Already a winner of a PGA tour event(Bob Hope) and nearly won the week after at Torrie Pines(T3rd)Remember that this is his first year on tour!!Has been a little quite lately which means he comes here under the radar.Reminds me of tiger when putting as he is pretty fearless.Playing this week in Miami which will be like playing back home in Venezuela as there is a large latin population here that will be cheering him on.A huge price for a kid full of confidence and who has 8 top 25 finishes already this year.So come on Jonny,if you win a trip to Vegas awaits!!
BEST OF LUCK.
WELL DONE TO NICK WATNEY FOR COMING FIRST A MAKING ME A NICE PROFIT.........ST PADDYS WEEK COMING UP........THANKS NICK!!!!
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
The Honda Classic
Back to normal strokeplay golf this week after last weeks WGC Accenture matchplay.A tough competition to find a winner in but well done to Luke Donald.
Anyways,the PGA tour moves on to the east coast and the start of the Florida swing.The honda classic is played at PGA national championship course - Palm Beach Gardens,Florida.The 7100 yards,par 70,Jack Nicklaus designed course is hosting the event since 2007 so we have four years of previous form to go by.
Mark Wilson(two time winner already this year!) won in a four way playoff in 2007,Ernie Els in 2008,Y.E.Yang in 2009 and Camillo Villegas in 2010...All great ball strikers!!!
The course is one of the toughest tracks on the PGA tour(usually ranked about 8th most difficult)with water on 16 holes so accuracy is of upmost importance.So lets find the winner!!
Robert Allenby(33/1 Brucebetting)
Has three top FIVE!! finishes at PGA National but missed the cut last year.Knocked out at the first hurdle at the matchplay so has had a full week off.Came forth at the Northern Trust two weeks ago,but his putting on the final day was terrible.If he can get the putter hot this week he'll be hard beat.TOP TIP!!
Fredrik Jacobson(60/1 Boylesports)
Another guy with great course form with two top ten finishes in the last two years.Has made a consistent start to the season with three top thirty finishes including T19th last week in Mexico.Tends to go really well then seems to choke a little which is a worry,but recent form and and course form means i can't leave him out this week.
Jason Dufner(80/1 Paddypower)
This guy is going to win soon and i have a gut feeling that this week could be his time to shine.Has only played five times this season with a top 25 finish,a top 10 and a second(beaten in a playoff in Phoenix)to his name already.Has good course form here also-T40th,T9th and T13th.Think his odds are way over priced (50/1 at some other firms) and worth an each way punt!!
Brian Davis(175/1 Brucebetting)
I'm a fan of Brian Davis on par 70 courses and at 175/1 it's just to tempting to me to leave alone.Has been on the first page of many leaderboards already this year only to have a nightmare hole that ruins his charge.Should have won twice on the PGA tour last year so has the game and if he can keep that treble bogey off his card can go close here.At odds of 175/1 is worth a small each way punt again!!
BEST OF LUCK.
Anyways,the PGA tour moves on to the east coast and the start of the Florida swing.The honda classic is played at PGA national championship course - Palm Beach Gardens,Florida.The 7100 yards,par 70,Jack Nicklaus designed course is hosting the event since 2007 so we have four years of previous form to go by.
Mark Wilson(two time winner already this year!) won in a four way playoff in 2007,Ernie Els in 2008,Y.E.Yang in 2009 and Camillo Villegas in 2010...All great ball strikers!!!
The course is one of the toughest tracks on the PGA tour(usually ranked about 8th most difficult)with water on 16 holes so accuracy is of upmost importance.So lets find the winner!!
Robert Allenby(33/1 Brucebetting)
Has three top FIVE!! finishes at PGA National but missed the cut last year.Knocked out at the first hurdle at the matchplay so has had a full week off.Came forth at the Northern Trust two weeks ago,but his putting on the final day was terrible.If he can get the putter hot this week he'll be hard beat.TOP TIP!!
Fredrik Jacobson(60/1 Boylesports)
Another guy with great course form with two top ten finishes in the last two years.Has made a consistent start to the season with three top thirty finishes including T19th last week in Mexico.Tends to go really well then seems to choke a little which is a worry,but recent form and and course form means i can't leave him out this week.
Jason Dufner(80/1 Paddypower)
This guy is going to win soon and i have a gut feeling that this week could be his time to shine.Has only played five times this season with a top 25 finish,a top 10 and a second(beaten in a playoff in Phoenix)to his name already.Has good course form here also-T40th,T9th and T13th.Think his odds are way over priced (50/1 at some other firms) and worth an each way punt!!
Brian Davis(175/1 Brucebetting)
I'm a fan of Brian Davis on par 70 courses and at 175/1 it's just to tempting to me to leave alone.Has been on the first page of many leaderboards already this year only to have a nightmare hole that ruins his charge.Should have won twice on the PGA tour last year so has the game and if he can keep that treble bogey off his card can go close here.At odds of 175/1 is worth a small each way punt again!!
BEST OF LUCK.
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