golf

With some top golf going on at the moment, with the FedExCup Tour Championship and the Ryder Cup on the near horizon, online bookmaker Stan James have rolled out a Ryder Cup Giveaway. The popular and highly recommended bookmaker is offering refunds on all losing outright and correct score bets, if the big clash finishes in a tie. Europe and the USA go head to head at Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, and is one of a line of giveaways that Stan James had given out over the sporting year. The bookmaker refunded lost bets when Spain when the World Cup, when England won the Twenty20 Cricket World Cup, when Rafael Nadal won the French Open and when the USPGA Championship went to a play-off. Notice a theme here? The offers which Stan James have put forth for some of the biggest sporting events this year have come true. England’s cricket victory was against the Odds, it has to be said, but again, this provides some good coverage on your Ryder Cup betting for the big event.

What the deal is, is that when you place an Outright Winner bet, or a Correct Points Score on the Ryder Cup, if the tournament ends in a tie, then Stan James will refund any lost stakes on the above markets, as free bets. After the USA dominated proceedings last year, Europe will be hungry to get their hands back on the coveted trophy, having previously won it three times in a row. That last tie was in 1989 at The Belfry, but five of the subsequent ten Ryder Cups have all finished with a margin of no more than two points, making a tie a genuine possibility. Your qualifying bet needs to be a minimum of £5 and you will be eligible for a free bet refund up to the maximum of £250, making Stan James the ideal place for your golf betting. The FedExCup Tour Championship is on right now, with the Top 30 ranked players left in the tournament, battling it out over four days. There are some very good prices to be taken at the moment, with some power houses of the games at good prices, such as Phil Mickelson and Steve Stricker both 10/1 and Paul Casey in the hunt at 9/1. Outright favourites in play at the moment are Jim Furyk and Geoff Ogilvy both at 8/1.

Head on over to Stan James to get some of the best golf betting around. For new customers who will need to open an account to make the most of this offer, then they will be cheered to know that you can get a nice welcome bonus of £25 for signing up with Stan James. This comes in the form of matched first stake. So when you make your first bet on a new Stan James account and it gets settled, the online bookmaker will reward you with a free bet, matching that initial stake.

Stan James Ryder Cup Odds
Europe to win: 8/13
Draw: 10/1
USA to win: 13/8

PGA Tour Championship, September 23rd-26th at East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta, Georiga

The culmination of the PGA Golf FedEx Cup will arise next week, as the last thirty players left in the completion make for the final shoot out at East Lake CC in Atlanta for The Tour Championship. Some of the top names in golf have fallen by the wayside already during the playoffs including current champion Tiger Woods.  You can add to that list Rory McIlroy, Ian Poulter and Vijay Singh (who is the only other winner of the title along with Woods) as well, and they fell at the culmination of the third play off tournament, the Deutsche Open. The FedEx Cup is the grand finale of the PGA Tour for the year. All through the golf calendar, players earn points for performances on the Tour throughout the year, and the Top 125 ranked players go forth into the Play Offs. The FedEx Cup play offs are held over four tournaments, The Barclays, the Deutsche Bank Championship, the BMW Championship and the big season ender, The Tour Championship. After the Barclays, twenty five players are cut, after the Deutsche Bank Championship, another thirty players are cut from the play offs, and after the BMW Championship only the top thirty players left in the FedEx rankings will go forward to win the chance of golf glory and a mammoth pay out. That bonus? A cool $10 million, and the winner of each of the play off tournaments will earn $1,350,000.

Online Bookmaker Golf Betting Promotion:  ExtraBet are the only online bookmaker to pay out in full if a player you have backed finishes in a tied position. All you have to do, is back any player to finished in the Top 5, the Top 10 or Top 20 in their sports book, and if your player finishes in a tie for a place within your selected market, then ExtraBet will pay out in full. ExtraBet are really worth stopping by, as new customers can also earn up to £100 in free bets with the online bookmaker. With the PGA Tour season finale starting on Thursday, now would be a great time to take advantage. 

With the points accumulated over the season, the Top 125 ranked players go into the FedEx Cup play-offs. Typically, around 500 points can be earned for a win on Tour, but points varied from tournament to tournament depending on things like the class of field. Ernie Els was the leader at the end of the Regular Season points standing, his two Tour wins and six top ten finishes just enough to hold on to top spot ahead of Steve Stricker. Jim Furyk came in third, big Phil Mickelson fourth, and England’s Justin Rose 5th.  Any points won in the FedEx Cup play off, are then added to the total points earned from the regular season, and players are cut from the play offs if they fall outside the cut line in the rankings after each play off. Points in the FedEx Cup play off are worth five times as much as regular tournament points, which means that players back down the rankings really can catch up if they have a good play off. However, at the end of the third play off tournament, all points are reset for the final thirty heading into the Tour Championship. This is so that all thirty players will stand a chance of winning the FedExCup in the final event. Basically what happens, is the top ranked player going into the Tour Championship is given 2500 points, the second ranked player has 2250 and so on, right down to the thirtieth ranked player, who starts the tournament with 210 points.

What all this means, is that the 30th player, with the 2500 Play Off win points available in the final event, can win the tournament. While this makes things exciting, realistically, the top five ranked players going into the final event of the FedEx Cup has the best opportunity of winning the title. This is because if any of the top five win the Tour Championship, they will be guaranteed to win the FedEx Cup, as no one behind them will be able to  catch them. For the thirtieth ranked player to win it, they could win the Tournament, but because of points distribution throughout the rest of the field, they would need the top five for example to all finish right at the back of the field. So when it comes to golf betting on the FedEx Cup, you really should be looking at the top five players going into the tournament. Anyone outside of that needs other results to go their way, even if they win the tournament. Who are those players? Well, lets take a look at the top five, and their reset points going into the Tour Championship.

1st Matt Kuchar 2,5000
2nd Dustin Johnson 2,250
3rd Charley Hoffman 2,000
4th Steve Stricker 1,800
5th Paul Casey 1,600

Next, let’s take a look at the FedEx Cup Play Off winners for 2010 and you will see the huge importance of picking up a win in the play offs.

The Barclays: Matt Kuchar
BMW Championships: Dustin Johnson
Deutsche Bank Championship: Charley Hoffman

Hoffman, for example, with his surprise win, moved up from the ranking of 77th at the end of the regular season to put himself in with an enormous chance of winning the FedEx Cup from nowhere. He will be the outsider though of the top five, as that was his first victory on Tour all season, and when you stand him up against the other four, you really wouldn’t look to back him too strongly. Let’s take a quick golf betting preview of the top five players going into the Tour Championship, plus a couple more of the players on the outside fringes, who will need some help, but are in with a great chance of winning the Tour Championship. Odds in brackets are for FedExCup winner outright odds.

Matt Kuchar (2/1 at ExtraBet)
Has been playing really well all season, and has been greatly consistent. That consistency has carried over into the Play Offs where he has a win, a third place and an 11th place finish to keep him at the head of the FedEx Cup rankings. The win at the Barclays was his first win of the season, but he is a worthy challenger after coming close a few times this season. Well worth a punt as he is in the driving seat an should be strongly confident on what could be considered his home course.

Dustin Johnson (7/2 at BetFair)
Was one of the first players to really shine at the start of the season and his win at the BMW Championship was his second tour win of the season. Winning tournaments on the PGA Tour takes a lot with such huge fields, so consistency is all important throughout the long season. Lost his way in the middle part of the season, but recovered strongly with some good finishes to put himself back into contention. Slipped badly to finish down in 57th at the Deutsche Bank Championship though. Johnson has made some big mistakes at crucial times during the season. Will the pressure of the occasion get to him again?

Charley Hoffman (21/1 at BetFair)
Has actually been gaining some good momentum going through to the FedExCup play offs. With his surprise win at the Deutsche Bank Championship, that secured his fourth top ten finish out of his previous six starts. Up until then, he really had not threatened that much during the season. That was indicative of his performance at the BMW Championship where he lost a lot of his momentum and had a very poor tournament. An outside chance at best.

Steve Stricker (6/1 at ExtraBet)
More than capable of picking up a win at the Tour Championship. Has two wins under his belt for the PGA Tour season, and three top ten finishes in the play offs, including a third place finish, shows just how strong he can be. In good form, and could well end up as the player of the year and deservedly so. Another very consistent player and that is why he is where he is here in the position which he is. Makes for a strong bet sitting in one of the top five positions.

Paul Casey (10/1 at ExtraBet)
Hasn’t won a tournament on the Tour this year, but has looked pretty good at times. There have just been small glitches which have upset his tournament runs, like the three consecutive bogeys he picked up when in a strong position at the BMW Championship. He should have won really, but his final back nine was a huge disappointment and left him in second. Casey was left out of the Ryder Cup team by Colin Montgomerie, but if he wins here, the World Number eight would prove a big point that he should have been considered a little more. Again, there are signs that he just finding the consistency needed to pick up what would be his first and most important win of the season so far.

Ernie Els (26/1 at BetFair)
Had been leading the FedEx Cup rankings for most of the season. Looks to have lost his way a little bit after a good run at the US Open where he finished third. Top quality player of course, but once momentum is gone, it is hard  to get it back. He has finished in the top take at East Lake for the past two years, and with a little push could be in the reckoning. Two wins on the Tour this year, but finishes of 71, 30th and 13th in the play offs have left him lingering down in eighth.

Phil Mickelson (12/1 at ExtraBet)
One of the top players in the world and winner of the Masters this year, who has had several chances to knock Tiger Woods off the top of the Official World Golf Ranking charts, and has missed them all. Has been struggling a bit with health, but the big leftie could round off a great season if things go his way here. A shocking missed cut at the Barclays, the first play off tournament has really cost him dearly though, picking up no points. His subsequent finishes of 25th and the 8th showed a big more perhaps to come from Mickelson, but has maybe left things just a little to late to grab the FedEx Cup title.

Luke Donald (20/1 at ExtraBet)
Unlucky not to win the Deutsche Bank Championship really, as Hoffman’s amazing performance there was all that stood between Donald and him pushing for a win. Donald came in second then and a 15th finish at The Barclays has kept him in the hunt, as he starts from the rank of seven for the Tour Championship. Has had a decent year but is without a win, but has five top ten finishes to his name. Still has a chance at the FedEx Cup but needs his most clinical performance of the season.

The Tour Championship Winner Outright Odds
Phil Mickelson: 15/2 at SportingBet
Steve Stricker: 9/1 at Bwin
Dustin Johnson: 10/1 at SkyBet
Matt Kuchar: 11/1 at Stan James
Paul Casey: 16/1 at Totesport
Adam Scott: 18/1 at Bwin
Ernie Els: 20/1 at Bet365
Luke Donald: 25/1 at Victor Chandler

Sports betting week 9 - 15 August

Date	Sport	Org.	Venue	Event
11 Aug		FIFA	worldwide	Friendlies
13-16 Aug		DFB	Germany	Cup
14-16 Aug		FA	England	Premier League
14 Aug		FFF	France	Ligue 1
14-22 Aug		WTA	Montreal	Rogers Cup
7-15 Aug		ATP	Toronto	Rogers Cup
12-15 Aug		PGA	Chaska, Minnesota	PGA Championship
1 Aug-1 Sep		UCI	Germany	Germany-Tour

Number One Spot Up For Grabs By Mickelson

Golf Betting Preview. England gold star Lee Westwood’s hopes of claiming number one spot in the world, has come crashing down as he has had to withdraw for the Bridgestone Invitational in Ohio, an injury which will keep him out of next week’s USPGA Championship. His place in the Ryder Cup, which starts on October 1st, could also be in jeopardy, because of ruptured a calf muscle. It is the same muscle problem which he went into The Open with, where he pulled off a fantastic second place. But after a disappointing second round at the Bridgestone Invitational, Europe’s finest player has had to drop out as the problem has been getting worse during this busy period of the golf year. Now he will need to sit down and take a break in order to give the muscle time to recover. Defending Champion of the Bridgestone Invitational Tiger Woods, shot another poor round, scoring two over for the second round, leaving him six over for the tournament. It’s not been a good couple of days at the office for Woods which is a blow in golf betting, who has dominated this event for years. With Westwood out of action and Woods having a bit of a nightmare, the door has been left open for Phil Mickelson to claim a place in golf history. Here we take a look at the front runners at the end of day two.

Phil Mickelson: 5/2 at SportingBet
-6 Under
The Big Leftie is now in pole position to claim the crown as World Number One after the second round of the Bridgestone Invitational. Mickelson only fired two under for the second round, after picking up a double bogey on the fourteenth hole. The second round was not as good as his first, where he finished four under, but now standing at -6 Under after 36 holes, Mickelson is just one shot off the lead. All Mickelson needs to do to take over as World Number One is to finish in the top four, and with Tiger Woods floundering, if Woods finished outside of the top 44, Mickelson goes top. It really won’t take too much for him to push on and claim a high finish here, as he is arguably one of the best in the world at the moment with every incentive to motivate him. A win here would be the third time he has won a World Golf Championship event, and this would probably feel the best as it would clinch the world number one spot too. It wasn’t a vintage round by Mickelson, and he rode his luck a little bit, especially with the greens being a little softer, helping par saves. Mickelson is one of those very adventurous golfers on the Tour, who isn’t afraid to do something a little different and brave. He’s changed driver to give him more accuracy and holding himself well up near the top after the second day in a tournament which has no halfway cut, he goes from a strong position for the weekend. The 2010 Masters winner could be on for a momentous year.

Retief Goosen: 5/1 at Bet365
-7 Under
Overlooked him on the golf betting yesterday, as he hasn’t quite been at his peak of late. But he’s coming good at the Bridgestone Invitational and has played two very good rounds. He managed to back up his solid first round of -3 under to go one better on the second round to finish -4 under, with his -7 under total putting him at the top of the leader board at the end of day two. South African Goosen hit six birdies in the second round, and only two bogeys on the 13th and 18th kept his score back. Goosen is no stranger to winning of course, as he has seven PGA Tour titles to his name and the Bridgestone International could be the one which ends his drought for 2010. He has landed seven top ten finishes this season, and has made 12 of 13 cuts. That is two solid rounds from Goosen to start, even though he hasn’t done great at the event over the years. Has all the experience needed to lead from the front. Could be just a good enough lead to hang on to ahead of the main chasing pack.

Rory McIlroy: 14/1 at Totesport
-3 Under
Just four shots off the lead after two rounds, and hasn’t quite hit the mark just yet. But a round of -1 under par in the second has kept him in contention, but he will be unhappy with the start he had on day two. McIlory is usually a strong starter, but picked up two bogeys in the first four holes, which meant that he was playing catch up. Recovered very well from then on, but on an unforgiving course, it is hard to catch up and move ahead all in one round. Full of confidence, he is never going to play down his chances and all it will take is a bogey free round on Saturday to put him in with a chance. Not to be discounted just yet, and being paired up with Mickelson at the Bridgestone Invitational should help carry him along to his second title of the year.

Paul Casey: 16/1 at Bet365
-4 Under
Liking the look of Englishman Paul Casey as he finished three shots off the lead after day two of the Bridgestone Invitational. Carded another solid round, finishing three under for day two, strengthening his steady first round of -1 under. Casey has had a incredibly consistent year, and his best finish has been a second place at the World Golf Championships Accenture Match Play Championship. That backed up a sixth place finish in the other WGC tournament this year, the CA Championship. Is carrying some good form and looks in great shape. He generally flies under the radar and he is deserving of a win. A very solid player, something which is needed around this long, tough course, and with his good percentage on the all important GIR stat, he could do it, and probably the best outside bet.

Bubba Watson: 20/1 at BetFred
-4 Under
First round leader Bubba Watson slipped back in proceedings after having an unsteady round. He looked as if he was going to strengthen his first round performance after hitting a par on the second hole. But a double Bogey on the fourth put a spanner in the works a little bit and just could not build up any head of steam to open up a lead. He is still in contention realistically being just three shots off the lead, but this second round of one over could prove just a little bit too costly.

Matt Kuchar: 25/1 at Paddy Power
-4 Under
Kuchar is well worth a bet as he is having a great season and could break through to win his first title of the year. Carded a very good round of -3 under in the second round, picking up just one bogey. He is an exciting player with bags of talent, and is right up there in the averages for this season. Has had a host of strong finishes this year, but just hasn’t been able to get over the line first. One to watch out for.

Justin Leonard: 22/1 at Stan James
-6 Under
Fired himself up to second place with a very good round of four under, leaving him tied for second place with Phil Mickelson. Leonard hasn’t won a title for a couple of years, and isn’t scoring as well as he was in the averages as last year. Probably not as strong a threat as the standings are showing at the moment, hence the price on him.

There are a clutch of players hanging around the top of the leader board at the moment, like: Bo VanPelt: 24/1 at BetFair, Adam Scott: 25/1 at Bet365, Peter Hanson: 35/1 at Bet365, Jeff Overton: 50/1 at SkyBet all of which who could sneak in, but in such a world class field, there will be two very good rounds needed by them. Worth a look at them in prices though, and watching their progress through the third round. The tournament is really heating up and you can expect a great weekend of golf. Don’t forget to enjoy live in-play betting at your online bookmaker to enhance your betting experience.

August 05-08 Bridgestone International Golf Odds: Tiger Woods will tee off again this week on the PGA Tour, as he takes part in the World Golf Championships at the Bridgestone Invitational at the Firestone CC in Ohio. Woods will reenter the tournament as the defending champion, and he has pretty much made the tournament his own. With the US Championships and the Ryder Cup coming up soon, this is an important time in golf and golf betting, and this is another tournament where the world’s best will all be gunning for glory. Here we will cast an eye over the front runners in golf betting for the Firestone tournament, offering previews and tips.

Tiger Woods: 9/2 at Totesport
Woods is slowly gaining momentum in his return to the PGA since his self imposed exclusion at the beginning of the year. You won’t hear such stats as Woods is without a win in seven tournaments this year, but surely he has to come good at some point, and online bookmakers instantly put him at the top of golf betting as soon as he is confirmed for any tournament. While he finished T23 at The Open at St Andrews in his last outing, Firestone is one of the venues which he likes. Woods has won seven times at Firestone during his illustrious career, and that stat alone is enough to instill him as favourite. Last year’s final round was a classic, with Woods having to come from behind to overtake Padraig Harrington and Robert Allenby, and eventually ran out winner by four shots. For Woods, who has never finished outside of the top four at this event, could well end his wait for a 2010 win here. The course is one of the favourites that Woods likes playing on, as it has turned out to be a pretty good pay day for him in the past. Woods has more than his losing streak to be concerned about at Firestone this week, his status as World Number One is also under threat again, this time with two players in with a chance of taking his crown. Either Phil Mickelson or Lee Westwood could now steal away the number one spot from him. Woods has also been pushed out of the top American players on the Tour this year, which kicks him out of an automatic spot for the Ryder Cup, thanks to Jeff Overton’s second place at last week’s Greenbrier Classic. If Woods ever needed firing up for one of his great performances, then it will be here.

Phil Mickelson: 13/1 at Blue Square
American Mickelson has had a couple of chances to wrestle the world number one spot away from Tiger Woods this season, most recently at the Scottish Open, but he has choked on both occasions. With less than a great performance at The Open, the big left hander needs to bounce back quickly. Mickelson won the Masters this year, and finished second at the Quail Hollow Championship. He is scoring pretty consistently this season, and has nailed five top ten finishes out of his 14 events this year. The only cut he has missed was the Scottish Open when he had the chance to become World Number one. You can look at the stats on Mickelson and see that he is above average in most things. The only place where maybe he could pick his game up, is in his driving accuracy where his well below the PGA Tour average. Still one of the modern greats out there and should be fired up with a third chance to get the better of Woods in the standings, and to put The Open behind him.

Lee Westwood: 14/1 at Bet365
Having never own a major, Westwood is almost becoming known as the nearly man, and after finishing in second place in both The Open and The Masters this year, the Englishman is on top of his game and should be a strong contender. He, for the first time has the chance to claim number one spot in the world and if he can do so, then it will be the first time since 1994 that a European player has been World Number one. Westwood ironically could do it with a second place finish, but if wins at Firestone, the only way that Woods will hold on to his top spot will be by coming in second place to Westwood. Westwood has been playing some excellent golf this year, as expected from one of the top players in the PGA. Like Mickelson, he will have his hands full in chasing down Tiger Woods on one of his favourite courses. Westwood hasn’t picked up a tour win this year, but you can expect him to be in the running come the final round. To make this more interesting, Woods and Westwood have been paired together for the first two rounds.

Rory McIlroy: 24/1 at BetFair
The Northern Irishman has been strongly tipped to win the last two tournaments he has entered, The Open and the Irish Open, but has fallen short. McIlroy is one of the most exciting young talents in the game, and has bags of potential. He was undone by one poor round at The Open, but it will have taught him a lesson in self control. McIlroy won the Quail Hollow Championship this year, and came in tied for third at St Andrews in the British Open. He is playing well and his stats back that up. He really has the all round game to back strongly in golf betting, whichever tournament he enters. Has made 18 cuts out of 23 events played in this year, with 6 top ten finishes. He is a little bit maverick at times, but that is what makes him so exciting to watch and make him a truly great talent. Would not have any hesitation in backing him, because if anyone is really going to push the envelope and be brave in taking chances to catch Tiger Woods, then it will be McIlroy.

Padraig Harrington: 25/1 at Extrabet
High up in the betting list, but still needs to find that little bit of an extra gear to win here, one feels. He is a greatly consistent player to watch, but he just doesn’t get into the top three enough for his talents. His best finish this year was a third place at the World Golf Championships, but has four other top ten finishes for his year. He hasn’t won a title since 2008 and how he was playing in that year, he needs to rediscover to get a little closer to another title. Playing well, but just doesn’t quite have that ruthless cutting edge that will take him all the way. Consistent, but does he have the finishing power to win?

Steve Stricker: 30/1 at Bet365
With the American picking up two titles this year at the Northern Trust Open and the John Deere Classic, Stricker is enjoying a good season. Is scoring well with an average of 69.90 for the season, which should be able to put him in contention. After a strong start to the year, he hasn’t quite backed up his strong start, but with five top ten finishes this year he is a threat when he enters tournament, and has made thirteen out of thirteen cuts this year. He is standing in second place in the FedExCup standings this year because of his wins and consistency, and is sixth on the PGA Tour money list. Not one of the longer drivers, but a very accurate one, and when you add to that a good eye for putting, he’s should be a contender here to push for a top three finish. While he is out in the betting he could be a good sleeper bet to watch out for.

Luke Donald: 33/1 at Bwin
The Englishman is finding some good form at the moment, and is perhaps flying under the radar a bit. While the pressure will all be on the big three of Woods, Mickelson and Westwood, Donald is one of those understated players who could sneak in the back door. Has five top ten finishes this year, with one second placed finished and two thirds. His all-round game is looking pretty sharp at the moment, and a good couple of early rounds could be him in good standing. Scoring a good average of 70.43 at the moment, and his third place finish at the RBC Canadian Open recently could be a good stepping stone to produce a good tournament here.

Sports betting week 2 - 8 August

Date	Sport	Org.	Venue	Event
3-4 Aug		UEFA	Europe	CL - 3.Qualificationround - 2nd leg
5 Aug		UEFA	Europe	EL - 3.Qualificationround - 2nd leg
7 Aug		DFB	Augsburg	German Super Cup
8 Aug		FA	Wembley	Community Shield
7 Aug		FFF	France	Ligue 1
2-8 Aug		WTA	San Diego	Southern Carlifornia Open
31 Jul-8 Aug		WTA	Cincinnati, OH	Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open
2-8 Aug		WTA	Copenhagen	e Bok's Danish Open
1-8 Aug		ATP	Washington, DC	Legg Mason Tennis Classic
1 Aug-1 Sep		UCI	Germany	Germany-Tour
5-8 Aug		PGA	Akron, Ohio	World Golf Championship

Strong Irish presence to dominate leader-board?

The Irish Open is the golf focus for the week on the European Tour this Bank Holiday weekend, as Europe’s best go toe to toe. There is actually a good strong Irish contingent going for glory at the Killarney Golf and Fishing Club. There is a fair chance that there will be another Irish Winner here when you look down the list of front runners. The sheer presence of Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Padraig Harrington will ensure that there is a great atmosphere at the tournament. Last year’s Irish Open was a thriller which went down to the wire in a sudden death play off. Four exciting days of golf are expected and here we cast an eye over the front runners in the golf betting for the big event.

Rory McIlroy: 6/1 at Bet365
He is favourite to win here, and that tag as tournament favourite won’t bother the young lad one iota. A genuine world talent, and should have been in with a chance of winning The Open recently at St Andrews until a horrible second round in the wind and rain destroyed the whole event for him. McIlroy is the top ranked player at the event, and with two Irish winners in the last three years there will plenty of backers for him. Has yet to pick up a title this year on the European Tour, but he has been getting better and better in form over the last month or so. Has bags of talent, and he will have learnt a big lesson about controlling his emotions and focusing on the game at St Andrews. No reason he can’t walk out of this one a winner.

Justin Rose: 14/1 at SkyBet
The Englishman is enjoying something of a great season. He went into The Open with a strong backing from a lot of golf experts thinking that his form would really put him into contention. It didn’t as it happened and he missed the cut, but after Rose had won back to back tournaments in America, he elevated his status once again. He has four European Tour Wins to his name in his career, and doesn’t put in an appearance in Britain too much on the Tour, so he must fancy his chances here. It’s the first time since 2002 he has played at the Irish Open, but with a bundle of World Ranking Points on offer at the tournament, Rose could back up his two US PGA Tour wins by securing an automatic place in this year’s Ryder Cup team with a good tournament here.

Graeme McDowell: 14/1 at SportingBet
Was mightily impressed with the way he handled himself at The Open at St Andrews, after going into the tournament with a lot of unexpected hype surrounding him. The Irishman won the US Open quite unexpectedly and naturally that put a lot of new pressure upon him. Held everything together for a steady -3 under par at the end of the tournament, and like many others, had one sticky round which hampered him. He has six European Tour titles to his name, and with wins at the US Open and the Celtic Manor Wales Open, he has fired up to 11th in the Official World Of Golf Rankings. In good form and should be in the hunt for yet some more accolades. European Player of the Month, and hard to argue with that. Believes that the record round of 59 for a European Tour event could go here. Be something if it was him, but more likely it would come from McIlroy.

Padraig Harrington: 18/1 at Coral
Won the event in 2007 and will be another strong Irish challenger for the honours. One of the favourites to step out onto the golf course wherever he goes, he will be looking to pick up his first win of the year here. His best finish this year on the European Tour was a third place at the WGC – CA Championship, and he is ranked 32 on the Tour. He is probably a bit better than that, and a fan favourite. Probably hasn’t quite got his driving accuracy where he wants it at the moment, but his averages are down a little bit. When it comes to Harrington, you can throw the form book out of the window, as he is a star who can walk his way to titles. Well worth a serious punt here at the Irish Open. He is on a bit of a drought at the moment, not having lifted a title since winning the US PGA Championship in 2008, but he has been hitting the top ten finishes. This is just the type of big event in the right place at the right time which could see him tick all the right boxes.

Ross Fisher: 20/1 at Paddy Power
A little bit up and down in his form, but finished at -1 under at The Open. Has every chance at the Irish Open, but he will just need to find a little more consistency in his top form. His stroke average is a little high, suggesting that he won’t be close to the finish, but is a steady player once he gets into his groove. An outside punt, but worth considering if he has a couple of decent opening rounds. He’ll be reliant on a confidence game.

Francesco Molinari: 20/1 at Stan James
The Italian had a big blip at The Open where he failed to make the cut after a bad second round. That was a little unexpected as going into the tournament, he had secured himself a second place and then a fourth place finish in his previous two tournaments. Has only one European Tour win to his name, but ranked 14th on the Tour. Playing some good averages at the moment, but looking to recreate the kind of driving accuracy which he had last year. Like Fisher, needs some solid rounds to build upon, but capable of threatening the top of the leader board if he gets going.

Shane Lowry: 45/1 at BetFred
The defending champion of the Irish Open, winning the tournament as an amateur and didn’t win any Tour money for it. Never really threatened to back up that win with anything on his first full season of the European Tour, but is finding his feet a little more in 2010. His average stroke play really hasn’t changed much and at 71.02 it suggests that he’ll need something special again to retain his crown.

Thursday, July 29th through Sunday, August 1st: The PGA Golf Tour of golf continues this week, and it is off to West Virginia for the Greenbrier Classic. The Old White Course is a par 70 at just a touch over 7,000 yards with some challenging bunkers and greens. With it being one of the classic tighter courses, some finesse in the short game is needed by the players, and the tournament could be decided by putting prowess. These are some tough greens to navigate, as they sweep and fall quite drastically, so accurate approach work is vital. There is a good mix of veteran presence, along with a strong crop of solid players who are just itching at the seams to get a win under their belt. This field is pretty wide open, so there is some careful golf betting strategy to consider. You will be looking for a consistent player who excels in accuracy. That sounds pretty obvious in picking a winner, but approach to the greens and putting powers really will make a difference here.

Jim Furyk: 16/1 at BetFred
He is going to be favourite in betting because of his veteran status, and with this being a new course on the PGA Tour, it makes some kind of sense that such an experienced player will be able to offer a steady hand and a cool head. The course looks well set out for him, simply because it is a course, which in ways, heralds the old style short courses. Has won twice on the tour this year, and that makes extra good betting sense for this tournament. Having another good solid season, and standing fifth in the FedExCup points standings and therefore represents a safe bet.

Matt Kuchar: 18/1 at Bet365
Kuchar is probably the bet of the tournament and well worth getting behind. One of those understated players, who barely puts a foot wrong, and is usually in the top ten. In fact he is a very solid top ten finisher, and finished T4 in Canada last week. Won his first Tour title last year, and his best finish in 2010 has been a second place at The Bob Hope Classic. A very sound average of 69.68 (better than Furyk’s) really should see him in the hunt for the honours here. He is in good form, and fully deserving of a victory and standing seventh in the FedExCup points for the season.

Jeff Overton: 25/1 at Totesport
Surprising that he is quite as far out in the golf betting as this, because just like Kuchar, he is an incredibly consistent, metronomic performer. He has a higher average than Kuchar, but has two second place finishes and two third place finishes, as well as four other top tens out of his 19 tournaments this year. Missed more cuts than Kuchar has though, but don’t count him out in this one. No reason why he cannot aim for the top five, and if he gets off to a strong start, then will be a major threat. Has been dubbed the best tour player without a win this year.

Charlie Wi: 35/1 at SkyBet
Back in the betting a little bit, but is having something of a sparkling season and is hard to ignore in your golf betting for this week. Still looking for his first ever Tour title, but with two top five finishes in his last three outings, he is in great nick at the moment and therefore worth looking at. The Korean is not one of the longer drivers in the game, and at this course that will not be a problem. This is a shorter course where accuracy in hitting the fairways is more important than booming long drives. Decent price and a decent outside bet.

Ben Crane: 35/1 at Bet365
Crane is another one who is having an excellent season, and standing at 8th in the FedExCup points list. He has won one tournament this year, the Farmers Insurance Open, as well as having a third and fourth place finish on the Tour this year. Only he, Furyk and Pettersson out of the genuine title contenders here have won on the Tour in 2010, and for a player standing as the 12th highest earner on the PGA Tour this year, he can’t be overlooked. You can put him, Kuchar, Overton and Wi in a hat and pull out a name. Expect to see him up there challenging. Good price, good punt.

Sergio Garcia: 40/1 at Stan James
Is it possible that the Spaniard could win his first title since 2008? Actually has a higher average than last year so it suggests not. However, he was one of the more enjoyable players to watch at The Open at St Andrews recently, and still pulls out some wonderfully smooth and sublime shots from his repertoire. Only had the one top ten finish this year, but has made 11 out of 12 cuts. Way off the pace when it comes to challenging for major titles, but the accuracy he has could work well at the Greenbrier Classic.

Carl Pettersson: 40/1 at Bet365
Last week’s winner of the RBC Canadian Open, will be looking to win back to back tournaments by putting in another impressive display. It is not often that you will see a player win back to back tournaments, so it could work against him. But clearly what he does have is form, and he was solid and consistent around St George in Toronto last week. Not spectacular, or a stand out player, but a solid bet.

Trevor Immelman 40/1 at Stan James
Just needs one little extra push and he should be challenging for titles wherever he goes. A former Masters champion really has the ability to pull it together, but just needs to find a little more consistency. Finished T13 in his last outing at the RBC Canadian Open, but the South African is still looking for his first top ten finish of the year.

Kenny Perry: 45/1 at BetFred
If charitable causes were to win PGA Tour titles, then Perry would cake walk this one. For every birdie that he hits, he will donate $2,000 to the families who were affected by the West Virginia mining disaster in April. Is he going to score a plethora of birdies and win? Probably not, but will be worth watching and tallying up his generous birdie count. Maybe the extra incentive will push him higher than expected.

Swede Pettersson breaks record in remarkable PGA round of 10 Under

The RBC Canadian Open enters the final day on Sunday, with strong front runners after the first round Brent Delahoussaye and Vance Veazey having subsequent nightmares in the third round, a lot of the early runners have fallen away. So too have gone some big names such as Retief Goosen, Paul Casey and Sean O’Hair. In a largely American field at the Canadian course in Toronto, Ontario, the headliner on day three was a European, while there are two South African in the hunt for success. Here we take a scan over the top of the leader board as we go into the final day of action on the tight, par 70 course.

Dean Wilson – 10/11 at BetFred
- 15 Under
American Dean Wilson was the epitome of consistency at the RBC Canadian Open on Saturday, as he hit his third round of 65 to lead the way at the end of day three. He hasn’t actually been that busy on the Tour this year, with this one being only his ninth outing, and having only made three cuts out of his last 8 outings. His scoring average of 70 should normally mean that he would be hovering around even par at St George, but has three solid round under his belt where others have fallen away. With stronger candidates like England’s Paul Casey, Sean O’Hair and Scott Verplank missing the cut, the tournament is actually wide open. Can Wilson handle the pressure now going into the last day? The big thing is that he holds a four shot lead, and if you bank on him hitting another round of -5 under, that is nine shots someone needs to make up on him. His tournament to lose now.

Carl Pettersson – 14/1 at Ladbrokes
-11 Under
Pettersson had the round of the day to move himself up into second place, hitting a wonderful, and course record breaking -10 Under par for the third round. That gave him a massive jump up the leader board of 66 places. Naturally now from a betting point of view, is determining whether that was just a super freaky round, or if the Swede has one more decent round in him. This is how quickly golf can turn. Remember Rory McIlroy’s terrible second round at The Open recently, it completely destroyed his chance of winning. This reverse of events, could put Pettersson well in with a chance of winning. He hit a 71 in the first round and then a 68, so he has been getting better each round. He hit two eagles and seven birdies in his round of 60. He has hit just three top ten finishes out of 20 events this year, so still a shot in the dark.

Bob Estes – 18/1 at Stan James
-11 Under
Climbed up seven places with another round of 66 to take third place after the third round. That makes a 66-67-66 for him, so, like Wilson very consistent. Like the guys above him though, hasn’t made any waves on Tour this year, and rarely threatens the top ten at events. Had a bogey free third round, which means he has only hit three over his 54 holes. Pretty good going, and right up there, but one of the outside bets of the front runners at the moment.

Tim Clark – 9/2 at Stan James
-11 Under
Good tip right from the off, and well in contention. If you expect one experienced guy to come through this to hold his nerve and win, it will be South African Clark. He is ranked 6th in the FedExCup rankings, and that is indicative of how consistently and metronomic the guy is. Picked up two bogey’s on day three, which was the first of the tournament for him. His best scoring has been going out on the front nine, and if he gets off to a flyer, then could well bring it home. Strongest player in the top ten by a long shot. Worth backing.

Bryce Molder – 22/1 at Boylesports
-10 Under
Another one who has had on sparkling round. He his a 63 on day three to move him up nearly forty places from day two. After hitting a bogey on the fourth, had a wonderfully strong round. Looking like one of the best drivers for accuracy in the leading pack, and that is playing to his advantage at the tight course. Not a lot of room for error, so accuracy helps at St George. Didn’t have a great first round with a spattering of bogey’s, but has gotten steadily better of the course of the tournament. One of those average tour players, whose best ever Tour finish was a second place back in 2009, but has had 5 top ten finishes out of 18 tournaments this year.

Trevor Immelman – 18/1 at Paddy Power
-10 Under
Should rightly be in the mix and moved up to fifth, five shots off the lead after day three at the RBC Canadian Open. The biggest bug bear of Immelman’s tournament was the 18th on day two where he over fired a fired on a sloping green which got away from him. Had a very good third round of four bogeys and one eagle. Looks as if he can make it, but needs a little more confidence in his all round game. If he gets his driving and approach into high gear from the off, his putting could take him close. Still a very good outside bet.

Kevin Sutherland – 25/1 at BetFred
-10 Under
Had a strong run of four birdies half way around his third round to finish the day -5 under. Again, not a player which will stand out in the field, but in the hunt to some degree here. One top ten finish out of 17 events in 2010 is the record he is taking in. An outside shot, but his second round of 62 looks to be propping his score up.

Brock McKenzie – 40/1 at Ladbrokes
-10 Under
The American hasn’t matched his first round of 64, shooting two 68’s to follow that up. Didn’t have one of the higher scoring rounds of the players at the top, after reaching the clubhouse on day three. Giving a good account of himself, but unlikely to challenge from here out.

South African strong crop of bets in a dominant field of Americans

After all the thrills and gusty spills of The Open last weekend, which actually petered out into a bit of a disappointing finish in terms of excitement, most of the week’s golfing attention will turn towards the Great White North, where the RBC Canadian Open should be a closely ran thing. First of all, we may as well look at the Canadians on their home turf at the St George’s Golf and Country Club, who have not traditionally done very well at this tournament. It’s been a very long 56 years since Canada had a home grown champion to cheer about at the tournament. They aren’t exactly producing players who are standing high up on the rankings again this year either with Stephen Ames the pick of the bunch, but who is listed at 67th on the FedExCup standings. He played a decent round of -3 Under in the first round, to finish the day T22 along with England’s Paul Casey and South African Retief Goosen. Ames is unlikely to go all of the way in quite a strong field though, and with their neighbouring Americans dominating proceedings on Thursday, the Canadians will probably again be left to dream of better things to come. But Ames did not hit a bogey in his round of 67 (3 under par) and at 28/1 at SkyBet is worth keeping an eye on during Friday to see if he consolidates or makes a move.

Day One
American Vance Veazey was probably thinking that he would be top of the leader board at the end of day one, after putting in one of the best performance of the RBC Canadian Open, shooting a six under. It wasn’t to be though, as fellow American Brent Delahoussayne was still finishing, and put three birdies on the back nine to take him two shots clear of Veazey. Neither were exactly front runners when it came to golf betting on the tournament, but they have set themselves up for a nice run at making the cut after Friday. Friday will, more likely than not, see a big turn around in fortunes for the top twenty. Players who performed well in the first round may not go quite as well in the second, and that is what separates the best golfers from the rest of the field, consistency. That is why, even with a bunch of unfamiliar names at the top of the leader board, you won’t see online bookmakers falling over themselves in drastically shortening their odds. There are much stronger names to take a look at in golf betting for the RBC Canadian Open, and that is what we will do here, and scour the field for the best looking bets.

Sean O’Hair – 40/1 at Stan James
Consistency is the name of the golf game for American O’Hair and he is rightly one of the best players to back here in Canada. Has four top 12 finishes in his last four outings, and came home seventh at The Open at St Andrews on the weekend. He is being heavily backed and tipped to pick up a win here, and has a decent record at St George, even if it is as a nearly man. Out of his last four appearances at the tournament, he has finished third on two occasions. He may be a little disappointed with his round of 70 Even Par on Thursday, but there are signs that there is more to come. Got off to a terrible start, hitting a bogey on three of the first five holes. Recovered very well though to get himself one under, but bogeyed on the 18th to leave him even. Driving accuracy was a little off, but with a big day on Friday, he could seriously play his way into contention, and should. His average first round will only serve to provide better odds on him at the moment.

Paul Casey – 16/1 at Stan James
It was all so near for Casey at The Open at one point, but going into the final round with eventual winner Louis Oosthuizen, the Englishman just could not put any pressure on the South African. Casey played some wonderfully consistent golf through the terrible weather at St Andrews, and he must be commended for that, even if he did fade on the last day a bit when it counted. He realistically should be carrying a lot of momentum going into this tournament, but he could be just a little bit tired physically and mentally after his exertions. Probably worth a punt in the golf betting, and had another good round on Thursday, but his first round was all undone by a double bogey on the 18th, else he would be in much better standing. Casey should still be very hungry and that will make him strong to back, as he is still hoping for a wild card entry into the Ryder Cup team for this year. There is another six weeks or so before Colin Montgomerie actually names the squad of twelve, to compete against the USA starting on October 1. Casey, who has been bothered by injury over the last year, has still not made his way into one of the nine automatic qualification spots for the team which currently stands as Lee Westwood, Rory McIlroy, Francesco Molinari, Luke Donald, Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter, Martin Kaymer, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Ross McGowan.

Retief Goosen – 14/1 at Paddy Power
Another solid performer and can be please with his work at St Andrews, just like Casey. He has had plenty of top five finishes this year, and came oh so close to winning this one last year. It was within his grasp, but he lost in a play-off, but it could be a good week for South African golf after Louis Oosthuizen won the Open and is going well again in Sweden at the moment. Can Goosen cap a fine week or so by winning here. Well worth a bet to do so and had one of those solid, quiet rounds in the first, which saw him get into the swing of things without being spectacular. Finished the day on three under and just couldn’t quite push on from the great start he made after making birdies on the first two holes. Only one bogey in the round on the 8th, so looking in good shape. Driving very well and putting well, so will be in with a chance at the end of the day.

Tim Clark – 12/1 at Boylesports
The highest ranked player on the list of FedEx Cup points for the year, taking part in the RBC Canadian Open this year. What are FedEx Cup points? Golfers can earn points on the PGA Tour from the first tournament of the year in January, to the shut off date in mid August. The more points you get for finishing higher in PGA Tour events, the more points you will accrue. The top 125 players then go into the Play-Offs which are four tournaments, ending with the Tour Championship. Whoever has the most wins the title, and a nice bonus pay check. Ernie Els is leading that at the moment, and Clark is ranked 6th. That equates to consistency. Another South African who could rise to the top here. Finished four under on his first round, and “The Penguin” is ideally suited to St George, where it is a relatively tight and short par 70 course. Didn’t make a bogey all day in the first round, and hit his four birdies on the front nine. Held even par all the way to the clubhouse then. Good performance.

Trevor Immelman – 40/1 at Stan James
Let’s ride the South African train while it is hot. Immelman kind of let a good round get away from him on Thursday, after hitting a bogey on the 13th and 14th holes when he was three under. Those back to back bogeys spoilt his round, but showed good mettle in picking up birdies on the 15th and 17th to redress the balance a little bit. Six birdies in the day was a good result. If he can pick up his greens in regulation percentage, then he could be a fantastic sleeper bet at the tournament.