The Oceanico Victoria Golf Course in Vilamoura plays host to the sixth annual Portugal Masters. The course was designed by Arnold Palmer and is a lengthy par 72 track. Long hitters who play well in the Middle East have traditionally done well here as the course plays much like a desert one, with greens well bunkered and water in areas.
Fresh from Ryder Cup victory, Francesco Molinari (14/1) and Martin Kaymer (18/1) head the market for the Portugal Masters.
A solid season for Molinari sees him currently 5th in the Race To Dubai rankings and previous form in this tournament will be a big factor in his billing as favourite. The pint-sized Italian finished 2nd in this tournament in both 2009 and 2010. Molinari showed real class and steel to earn a point against Tiger Woods in Sunday’s Ryder Cup singles and the 14/1 available about him represents value as he will most certainly be in the mix on Sunday in Portugal.
Despite earning a vital point for Team Europe at the Ryder Cup, Kaymer has had a poor season by his standards. The German hasn’t recorded a win on tour in 2012, with a T5 at the BMW Italian Open his best finish to date. The 2010 US PGA Champion compounded this poor form by missing the cut at two majors along the way. The class of the field here and two Top 10 finishes at this tournament in 2007 and 2011 explain Kaymer’s relatively short price.
If we are to look at current form then there are a couple of names which stands out. South Africa’s George Coetzee (20/1) shot 62 last Sunday at St. Andrews to claim T5 in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.Coetzee’s strong performances on desert tracks indicate that the course could suit him and witnessing his good friend Branden Grace win in Scotland last week could push him to his first European Tour win, much like Shwartzel and Oosthuizen or McIlroy and McDowell have done previously.
The other name in form is Thorbjorn Olesen (20/1). The Dane collected a cool €411,520 last week with his second place finish in the Alfred Dunhill, finishing with a card that read 63, 69, 68, 68. Olesen has already won on the European Tour this season, recording victory in the Sicilian Open in April. However, missing the cut at his only previous Portugal Masters appearance still makes him a risky bet.
Some other notable contenders this weekend include Ryder Cup winning captain Jose Maria Olazabal (300/1) who makes his return to competitive action two weeks after a famous European win at Medinah and Tom Lewis (125/1), the young Englishman bidding to become the first man to retain the Portugal Masters in the tournament’s short history.
This post was written by:
Eamonn Murphy - who has written 426 posts on Premier League Odds | Tips | Champions League Odds | Boylesports.
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