Written by Matt Cee for @Hollywoodbets. Follow them both on Twitter and Facebook now!
The Thailand Golf Championship | 10 December – 13 December | Amata Spring Country Club
This week a surprisingly competitive looking field will be heading to Thailand for the Thailand Golf Championship, and after Leishman’s surprise victory in the Nedbank last week, I’m hoping that this event offers a chance to make some money back. For the fifth year in a row the event will be hosted by the Amata Spring Country Club and as much as the ability to stay on the fairway will stand players in good stead, the ability to stay away from the bright lights of Pattaya may be even more useful.
Jokes aside, the course does place a premium on accuracy and key to winning here will be the ability to keep it on the fairway and out of the water, which comes into play on more holes than not. There are also a lot of bunkers waiting to trap wayward approaches too though so a high GIR% is important, as is putting ability as these greens are remarkably quick. A number of players competing this week have participated here before so course experience will also be a factor to keep a close eye on. Overall this looks like it may play into the hands of the favourites, let’s see if that really is the case.
To Win Outright
Bubba Watson: 5/1
Sergio Garcia: 11/2
Byeong-Hun An: 15/1
Victor Dubuisson: 17/1
Kiradech Aphibarnrat: 20/1
VALUE BETS
Matthew Fitzpatrick (20/1 a win, 44/10 a place)
Matthew Fitzpatrick got off to a flying start last week and looked like he was going to give himself a real chance in the Nedbank but something went wrong on the second day and all that hard work went to waste after he posted a terrible +5. Fitzpatrick did manage to overcome that and eventually finish on -2 and I’m hoping that this week he can avoid blowing up and give himself a chance. He hits the ball relatively long off the tee so distance wont be a problem and he is accurate enough to avoid the hazards. For those reasons I’ll be backing Fitzpatrick each way this week.
Scott Hend (50/1 a win, 11/1 a place)
A lack of experience in the humid Asian conditions could be the undoing of a number of players competing this week but one player who has always fared well on the Asian Tour is Scott Hend and at this price he cannot be ignored. Granted, this field is stronger than he will be used to playing against but the stats don’t lie and overall, Hend’s game looks to be in good shape. He may struggle to win but he certainly looks to be worth a place bet, I’ll be backing Hend to finish inside the top 5.
Nicolas Colsaerts (70/1 a win, 15/1 a place)
This course plays long and if there’s one man who can overpower it this week, it’s Nicolas Colsaerts. Much like Hend he has a lot of experience in Asia and he won’t be put off by the humidity and although he hasn’t been in the greatest form lately, he will be looking to close the year off with a bang. There are a number of great golfers in this field but once you look past them there’s really not much depth and Colsaerts could just be the hidden gem of the tournament. I’ll be backing him each way and hoping he makes a return to form, you should too.
TOP BET
Kiradech Aphibarnrat (20/1 a win, 44/10 a place)
Kiradech Aphibarnrat has been featuring more often than not on my shortlist and I have the feeling that this week he could step up to the plate and finally get that win I’ve been desperately waiting for. After a slow start to the Nedbank last week he came out firing in round two but a poor third round ended his, and my, dreams. Nevertheless, he will be comfortable back on a course he will know well and should have no problem going low here this week. At this price I cant ignore the barn rat, each way is the bet for me.
