IT'S good to see Bubba Watson getting his game back together and progressing to the knockout stages of the Dell Tech Match Play.
His group comprised Marc Leishman, Branden Grace and Julian Suri so it was no mean feat to make it through with two wins and a draw.
He bulldozed past Grace in Austin, Texas on day one with six birdies on the front nine then defeated Aussie ace Leish 3&2 before a halve against Suri was enough to book his last-16 slot.
Bubba bagged 18 birdies in his three rounds and is looking like his old self. However, he now faces his toughest test against brilliant left-hander Brian Harman who blew away Rory McIlroy 5&3 yesterday.
Harman halved with Jonny Vegas then beat Peter Uihlein 3&2 in what was a really tough section.
He doesn't hit a long ball but faced three of the biggest hitters in the game and matched up to them brilliantly.
Bubba's another huge hitter but I'm backing Harman to take him down in the first game out.
My 30-1 outright tip Patrick Reed is now second favourite at 11-1 behind Justin Thomas. He faces Alex Noren in what could be the tie of the round while other top matches are Matt Kuchar v Kevin Kisner and Tyrell Hatton v Cameron Smith. Thomas meets Si Woo Kim.
Kiradech Aphribarnrat is one of my favourite players and he faces Charles Howell who won all his group games.
Recommended Bets
- Harman to bt Watson (12.30pm)
- (11-10, Betway)
