Golf. BA-CA OPEN, Austria. Another short course (7059 yards) that gives the short hitting accurate types a chance. The field is not exactly star studded, but it is not bad. 1 point e/w David Frost @ 66/1 with Ladbrokes, VCBet, Totesport lost 2 points Like last weeks short course in Wales, the Fontana G.C. will suit Frost. He has had three top 8 finishes in his last seven events and all of them were on shorter than average courses. The 7104 yard Blue Canyon in Thailand, the 6826 yard Santo da Serra in Madrid and the 6743 yard Roman Road in Wales. He didn’t take his chances to win last week, but if he plays that well again, he should go close, and the odds are big for a player in form. The fact that he has not won since 1999 is the reason for the big price, but he is playing better than for a very long time. 5 points Stephen Gallacher to beat Darren Clarke @ 10/11 with SportingOdds won 4.54 points Clarke has to be opposed as his game is in pieces. In his last 6 events he has missed 5 cuts and had to withdraw from the other with a hamstring injury. He failed to qualify for the US Open on Monday and says that he has basically lost control of the golf ball. He has no distance control, cannot attack the pins and is leaving himself very long putts for par/birdie. Gallacher is no more than a journeyman pro, but he has a solid enough game, hits it straight but basically can’t putt. He is in decent form making 9 cuts from 11 starts, 20th in Wales last week and a top 10 in Spain recently. If Clarke does find his form, he would walk this, but there is precious little sign of a recovery. St. Jude Classic, Memphis. Another course that rewards accuracy over power. Last year saw old timers Maggert and Cook 1st and 3rd respectively and Fred funk was 3rd in 2005, so perhaps we see another golden oldie in the payout zone. 0.5 point Olin Browne @ 200/1 with Stan James, Boylesports. lost 1 point 47 year old, 3 time winner Browne, has recently returned to golf after a long layoff after wrist ligament damage. He missed the cut in his first event at Sawgrass, but hinted that the rest had done him good with a 9th place finish at the AT&T, including a final round 66. Only a poor 3rd round 74 prevented him from challenging for the win. He only missed the cut by 1 shot last week and with his straight hitting game he has the right game of the course. The only time he played here was in 2005, when he was a decent 17th. 5 points Bob Estes to beat Camilo Villegas @ 10/11 with Stan James. lost 5 points Estes is a course expert with 5 top 10 finishes in the last the 9 years (including a win) and a worse finish of 45th. His current form is very interesting, 3 top 10’s from his last 7 starts, but also 4 missed cuts. Not very reliable then, but given his great course form he looks a reasonable bet to beat the rather over rated Villegas. The Columbian had a 3rd place finish in the AT&T recently, but out side of that his current form is not great, the AT&T being his only top 25 finish from his last 8 events. He has played the course in 2006 with a decent 16th place, but he has generally failed to live up to expectations after his impressive rookie year. |
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