Our regular US golf watcher Dan Geraghty picks his trio to trust at the Masters “I’d be genuinely surprised if McIlroy’s not in the top half dozen here and would advise backing him in the top GB & Ireland market as well as outright.” I would likely follow Phil Mickelson over a cliff and I’m not going to stop now.
Tiger Woods used yesterday’s press conference to signal his intention to improve his conduct not only in his private life but also on the golf course. But will this make him a better or worse player? Ralph Ellis reports. “Tiger is 5.8 favourite to make good his hopes of coming back with a win, while Ernie Els is 17.5 after opening the season with two tournament wins. So that’s that, then. Tiger says he’s going to turn into a kitten. All fluffy and cuddly and soft for little children to play with.
This week the ATP Tour moves to the dirt of Houston where Sean Calvert thinks American Wayne Odesnik has a real chance at a big price in a tournament where he’s shone in the past. Plus another outsider who can “go deep” this week… “Korolev has a 2-0 head-to-head record against Querrey with both matches taking place on hard courts, which is the American’s best surface, so you would have to like Korolev’s chances of making the semi finals.” Last week’s advice to avoid the big four and back a bigger-priced player, such as Andy Roddick, paid off in the end in Miami as the American took the title. The glamour of Key Biscayne is now over and we head west to Houston for the next event. The US Men’s Clay Court Championship has been around since 1910, but moved location plenty of times before sticking in Texas, where it’s been held for the last 10 years. This is no ordinary clay court tournament though as a look at previous winners of the event shows plenty of big hitters, such as Ivo Karlovic and Andy Roddick ; even Pete Sampras made the final here once.
The Punter suffers yet more frustration as Graham DeLaet, backed at a humongous 600.0 , misses out on a place in the play-off in Texas by just a solitary shot…. “DeLaet became my fifth triple-figure priced player to finish in the top three in as many weeks! Surely I’ll bag a biggy soon.” Anthony Kim moves on to Augusta with the fillip of his first title in a couple of years, after he edged out Vaughan Taylor in a play-off to win the Shell Houston Open, thanks in part to a pathetic par putt attempt, criminally left short by Taylor, on the first play-off hole. My bets It’s now fair to say I’m on a poor run. After a decent enough start to 2010 Lady Luck seems to have well and truly deserted me. Graham DeLaet, backed at 600.0 , was by far the best of my best original picks this week but in finishing just one shot shy of the play-off, in a tie for third alongside Charl Schwartzel; he became yet another frustrating huge priced near miss . Although he lost by the narrowest margin possible, he never really looked to have a chance of winning, and as a result he never traded below 18.0 , so although he came mighty close, I didn’t get anything out of the bet. I’ve now had a pre-event pick at 50.0 or bigger finish in the top 3, in each and every week stretching right back in to February! In fact DeLaet became my fifth triple-figure priced player to finish in the top three in as many weeks! Surely I’ll bag a biggy soon….
The 2010 baseball season starts on Sunday April 4 .Below is a preview of the National League with each team’s current World Series odds. “Manny Ramirez and the Dodgers are in position for another crack at making the post season. This is a team that can score plenty of runs and has quality pitching. Manager Joe Torre has done a wonderful job with this team and another good season is on the cards. They could be the value bet at these odds.” Philadelphia Phillies ( 8.0 ) This team is bidding to make the World Series for the third straight year after coming up short against the Yankees in six games in 2009. The Phillies are one of the elite teams in baseball and have an abundance of talent. They added pitcher Roy Halladay to the rotation this winter but traded Cliff Lee to Seattle. There is no doubt in my mind that they will be in contention once again this year.
It’s the final event before The Masters and Dan Geraghty is asking, who really wants to win this week? The following trio fit the bill “Phil Mickelson won the week before his last Masters victory. He shot a 58 in practice last week so his game can’t be in too bad shape, he’s a mercurial talent and I think he will go close at a decent price here.” No-one is tipping him, he has no course form, his recent tournament form isn’t up to his usual standards but this week something is drawing me towards Phil Mickelson . Last week Lefty said he needs to feel the pressure of being in contention before the Masters, he was in contention for about half an hour at the start his third round last week before a series of bogeys saw him plummet down the leaderboard. Phil won the week before his last Masters victory. He shot a 58 in practice last week so his game can’t be in too bad shape, he’s a mercurial talent and I think he will go close at a decent price here. With the Masters coming up next week a lot of minds will be focused on preparing for Augusta and before backing anyone you need to ask, does this man really want to win this tournament? Adam Scott is a player that will certainly be looking to win this week, Scott had a big fall from grace last year and his golf was embarrassing at times.
After a catastrophic week’s punting in Spain and Florida, Steve looks to bounce back in Texas with some juicy outsiders…. “Bubba Watson ranks 4th for DD and 18th for GIR, was second here in 2007 and has threatened to win his first tournament twice already this year” With yet another blank week on the European Tour, there’s just the one event to concentrate on, the Shell Houston Open from Redstone Golf Club, Texas, where a very strong field assembles for what is the last event before the Masters, the first major of 2010. With so many players having one eye on Augusta I felt it wasn’t an event to go mad on, especially after last week’s catastrophe, when I suffered my heaviest losing week in a very long time. Ernie Els , who comes here seeking a hat-trick of US PGA wins, is the deserved favourite and if he plays like he did in Florida who’s to say he can’t achieve the feat, but it’s a huge ask. As is defending the title and that’s what second favourite Paul Casey will be attempting.
They boast the best point-guard in the NBA and could well finish the season as the second best in the West. Nick Shiambouros explains why the good times are rolling for the Utah Jazz. “Utah faces stiff competition from Dallas, Phoenix and Denver for the number two spot in the West. Only two games separate these four teams.” The Utah Jazz beat a determined New York Knicks team 103-98 on Thursday night with another impressive home display. The Jazz have climbed to third place in the West and have a real chance of ending the year as the second seed. A second place finish would guarantee they would not meet the Los Angeles Lakers until the Conference finals. They would also enjoy home-court advantage in the first round of the play-offs. In the second half of the season the Jazz have played as well as any other team in the West .
Big-hitting Day has the goods to deliver a three-figure win at the Shell Houston Open “Day has been mentioned as a top prospect, but at this early stage of his career, only tends to be a factor when conditions are ideal. That could well include Redstone, where Day finished an impressive eighth on last year’s course debut. “ Overseas players have thrived since the Houston Open moved to Redstone in 2006; particularly Australians. Of the 13 players to make the top-3 here, five were Aussies, including two winners. An even bigger clue to picking this week’s winner could lie in the driving distance stats , as Redstone is very much a long-hitters’ course. One rank outsider who ticks both of those boxes is 150.0 chance Jason Day, even if his recent form figures are ordinary at best. Day has been mentioned as a top prospect, but at this early stage of his career, only tends to be a factor when conditions are ideal. That could well include Redstone, where Day finished an impressive eighth on last year’s course debut.
All the betting moves from tonight’s racing at Wolverhampton 5.30 Misaro 3.85 into 3.35 Monte Major 2.84 out to 3.25 Klynch 7.6 into 6.6 6.30 Cheviot 3.0 into 1.8 Dubai Dynamo 5.1 out to 10.0 Ishiadancer 5.5 out to 8.0 7.00 Cobo Bay 3.35 into 2.44 Lord Fidelio 6.2 out to 9.0 7.30 Houston Dynimo 5.8 into 4.9 Jeer 15.0 into 10.5 8.00 Kings Icon 3.0 out to 4.0 Ermine Grey 7.0 into 5.9 Dajen 9.8 into 8.0 8.30 Sworn Tigress 1.74 into 1.59 9.00 By Command 3.85 into 3.25 Bob stock 13.0 into 8.8
