Written by @Matt_Cee for @Hollywoodbets. Follow them both on Twitter and Facebook now!
The Cape Town Open | Thursday 27 November – Sunday 30 November | Royal Cape Golf Club
The Cape Town Open tees off at the Royal Cape Golf Club on Thursday and some of South Africa’s finest golfers will be battling it out to earn a share of the R2 million prize money on offer. Branden Grace and George Coetzee are currently joint favourites and are available at 5/1 apiece. Next in the betting is Hennie Otto at 10/1. Beyond that there’s a bit of value to be found. The course itself is over a century old and is said to be one of the most challenging in the Cape. The wind normally gets up early and makes it difficult to avoid the thick rough that lines the narrow fairways and strategically placed bunkers ensure that mishit approaches are punished. There’s also a lot of water that must be avoided if players want to compete this week. These professionals will know the course well as it’s always been a popular one on the Tour circuit, having hosted the SA Open ten times and a host of other professional and amateur events over the years. Overall this is going to be a real test of golfing ability played at an incredibly picturesque golf course, so be sure to catch some of the action over the weekend.
To Win Outright
Branden Grace: 5/1
George Coetzee 5/1
Hennie Otto 10/1
JBE Kruger 12/1
Darren Fichardt 16/1
VALUE BETS
Justin Walters (33/1 a win, 73/10 a place)
Justin Walters has been a fixture on the Sunshine Tour for a number of years now and although he’s only won on the Tour twice, in 2004 and more recently 2011, he looks like a good each way prospect this week. He was impressive in the Portugal Masters in October when he finished T21 and more recently, he posted an outstanding final round 62 in Catalunya last week. He’ll arrive at Royal Cape Town in good form and should enjoy playing a course he knows well. Each way is the bet for me.
Merrick Bremner (33/1 a win, 73/10 a place)
Merrick Bremner is always one to keep an eye on and has played some great golf this year. He came third in the Sun City Challenge in July and more recently won the BMG Classic in October. Whilst those finishes came on the Sunshine Tour against weaker competition than he’ll be facing here, he’s also played well on the European Tour. A T3 at the D+D REAL Czech Masters showed he has what it takes to mix it up against players of this calibre, so keep an eye on him this week.
Jake Roos (40/1 a win, 9/1 a place)
Jake Roos has been playing a fair amount of golf on the Challenge Tour and has just earned his European Tour card by finishing in the Top 15. Clearly, he’s been playing some good golf this season and will arrive at Royal Cape on Thursday eager play a course he knows well. In 2012 he won here after a four-way playoff and should be confident that he has a chance of repeating that performance this week. Each way is the bet for me.
TOP BET: Thomas Aiken (18/1 a win, 4/1 a place)
Thomas Aiken has been in Europe competing in the Finals Series of the European Tour for the past four weeks but has elected to fly home this week to compete in Cape Town. He’s been quoted as saying that one of the main reasons he’s made the decision to play is due to the fact that there’s a spot in the Million Dollar up for grabs and that’s an event he’s always wanted to play. Having already won this year, that victory coming early in the year at the Africa Open, he’ll be eager to get one more victory under his belt before the end of the year. An all-round golfer who is as good as anyone in this field on his day, Aiken looks a great each way bet this week.
