PREVIEW: 2024 DP World Tour – D+D Real Czech Masters

The DP World Tour makes its long-awaited return after a post-Open hiatus. The tour finds itself in the Czech Republic for the 10th staging of the Czech Masters.

D&D Real Czech Masters

One of this year’s Open Championship protagonists will be in action this week: Daniel Brown. Brown defied expectations for 54 holes at Royal Troon, ultimately stuttering when it really mattered on Sunday.

Still, he will have gained a huge amount of confidence from brushing shoulders with the best in the world. Curiously, he also came into last year’s Czech Masters in excellent form, winning the ISPS Hanada World Invitational the week before.

This event was first staged in 2014 and was hosted at Albatross Golf Resort for every single edition (though it was cancelled due to Covid in 2020). This week, however, marks a departure, as the event moves from Albatross to the Kyle Phillips-designed PGA National Oaks Course in Prague.

PGA National OAKS Prague

There is always going to be a little guesswork when it comes to a brand-new layout. The first nine holes of this course opened back in 2019 and it was only fully completed in 2020.

The Albatross measured around 7,500 yards and this design can apparently trump that from the tips. But this week’s yardage could vary tremendously according to where organizers move the tee box.

It is described as a parkland course with bentgrass greens. Designer Kyle Phillips has become something of a modern-day links specialist (Kingsbarns is considered by many to be his masterpiece). Even his non-links tests are said to have a linksy feel.

This course looks more like a traditional parkland layout but it does feature plenty of bunkers. The wispy fescue will gobble up any errant drives while the multi-tier bentgrass putting complexes do have a classical links feel to them.

Which is to say, I really don’t have much info to go on. Conditions are said to be glorious this week and I expect to see really low scoring.

The Contenders

Tom McKibben currently sits 14th in the Race to Dubai standings and he makes a logical favourite in this field. He lost to Marcel Siem in an Italian Open playoff and he has a further six top-12 finishes this season.

Ewen Ferguson has been slightly more erratic this season but he did manage to win his third DP World Tour title at the BMW International Open. He also produced a highly creditable T22 finish at Royal Troon and should be respected in this field.

Ryo Hisatsune only finished three shots back of Aaron Rai in last week’s Wyndham Championship and he could be a fair shout to add to his 2023 Open de France title.

Elsewhere, the likes of Bernd Wiesberger and Richard Mansell jump off the page in a fairly standard DP World Tour field.

Past Winners (all at Albatross Golf Resort)

2023: Todd Clements (-22)
2022: Max Kiefer (-16) *54 holes
2021: Johannes Veerman (-15)
2020: event cancelled
2019: Thomas Pieters (-19)
2018: Andrea Pavon (-20)

To Win Outright:

Tom McKibben 18/1 | Ewen McKibben 22/1 | Richard Mansell 22/1 | Bernd Wiesberger 22/1 | Matthew Jordan 22/1

Value Bets

Andy Sullivan – To Win 50/1 | To Place 11/1

I like the look of multiple DP World Tour winner Andy Sullivan. He never finished better than T41 at Albatross and he should welcome the venue change.

He has some decent history on Kyle Phillips designs, finishing 3rd at Verdura in 2018 and 9th at Dundonald Links back in 2017. Sullivan’s last DP World Tour victory came at Hanbury Manor in 2020. This course has a bit of a Hanbury Manor feel to it and should suit Sullivan’s eye.

Sullivan has three 4th place finishes on this year’s DP World Tour and he was bang-in contention at the ISCO Championship towards the start of last month. Sullivan is one of those mercurial talents who could pop up with a win this week.

Joe Dean – To Win 60/1 | To Place 13/1

Let’s hope this Cinderella story continues. Joe Dean earned his 2024 card through Q-School but could not initially compete due to the extreme travel costs associated with being a DP World Tour professional.

He continued working as a delivery driver but then managed to finish runner-up in his 2nd DP World Tour event: the Magical Kenya Open. He once again finished runner-up at the KLM Open.

He finished T25 amongst elite company at Royal Troon and he could represent outstanding value at 60/1. He also produced brilliant putting performances in both of those runner-up finishes (both of which were played on bentgrass greens).

The Man to Beat – Matthew Jordan – To Win 22/1 | To Place 48/10

This could be Matthew Jordan’s week to shine. He is fresh off a sparkling 10th-place finish at the Open Championship (his 2nd consecutive top-10 Open finish) and his game is certainly trending in the right direction.

He isn’t just a links specialist: he has top-five finishes around tree-lined tests in Kenya and Belgium this season. He has improved dramatically with his irons this year, up 90 spots to 18th in the current approach standings.