THAT'S the PGA Tour over for this season and I should have finished on a high with a Tour Championship winner in Paul Casey.
But the Englishman blew a two-shot lead in the final round and a chance of a £7.5million FedEx Cup bonus.
The top players from America are taking on an International Team in the Presidents Cup so I’ll be concentrating on the British Masters at Close House GC near Newcastle.
The Close House estate grounds has two lovingly restored courses, the Championship Colt Course and the Folly Course. The tournament takes place over the Colt which is tricky and will suit shot makers who can shape the ball.
You have to stay on the fairway so driving accuracy could be paramount. There are birdies to be had here and I think GIR and Putts per GIR will also be important.
My first thoughts on this event was Sergio Garcia was an ideal pick but although all his stats point towards selecting him, since his historic win at Augusta he hasn’t maintained that form so I decided to give him a miss.
One player who certainly came back with a bang last month was Matthew Fitzpatrick after a superb play-off victory over Scott Hend in the European Masters. He hadn’t finished higher than 35th since a T2 at the Nordea Masters in June but it all came together at Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland.
In fact he has only had two top-10 finishes this season which for a guy with his game is not what you would expect. He won this tournament two years ago at Woburn and with a return in confidence I expect him to be competing at the top of the leaderboard on Sunday. Driving Accuracy: 64.9% (34th) GIR: 68.6% (84th) Putts per GIR: 1.762 (52nd).
A T2 and T8 at the Irish Open and Porsche European Open are Richie Ramsay’s two best results this season. The 35-year-old Scot is good player and should be contesting a lot more than he does.
Three weeks ago at the European Masters he hit three sub 70 rounds but a 75 in the third round put paid to any chance he had of being contention on the Sunday. He also played some steady golf in the KLM two weeks ago when finishing T25. In those two tournaments he hit 80% of greens and if he can continue that form he will be in contention. All he needs is some putts to drop. Driving Accuracy: 65% (33rd) GIR: 73.2% (10th) PPGIR: 1.798 (161st).
Alex Noren enjoys playing in Britain as four of his nine wins on the European Tour have come here. He is the defending champion and although he has not equalled his four wins of last year (which would be some feat) he has won in the UK already this year at the BMW PGA Championship in May.
He also finished T6 at The Open and looked to have regained some form with a T6 at the Omega European Masters earlier this month. Although his stats aren’t the greatest I still think he is worth taking a chance on. Driving Accuracy: 58.2% (119th) GIR: 67.2% (119th) PPGIR: 1.795 (150th).
Recommended Bets
- 1.5pts ew Matthew Fitzpatrick (Betfair, 20-1)
- 1.5pts ew Richie Ramsay (Betfred, 66-1)
- 1.5pts ew Alex Noren (Coral, 14-1)
