Golf: The Open at Hoylake

This is the Big One in golf! Some may argue differently but the history of the event, the roll call of winners over the years, and the uniqueness of links golf with its seaside winds, changeable weather and rolling fairways, gives it the edge.

That said, the last few years have not been vintage. The classic battles of the 60's, 70's and 80's that gave us several wins by the true greats like Gary Player, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Seve Ballesteros, Greg Norman and Nick Faldo haven't often arisen of late. Tiger Woods is the only recent "great" player to have won two Opens; and he has lost his temper with the links rough in others which is a small weakness of his over here. Yet, we have also had one-off wins from relative journeymen like Todd Hamilton, Ben Curtis and Paul Lawrie. The latter occurred after the comical and very Gallic last hole implosion by Jean Van Der Velde in 1999 at the excessively severe Carnoustie course which made an inauspicious return to the Open circuit for that Scottish course.

Hoylake, at Royal Liverpool Golf Club, is another making a return after a 39 year absence. The last winner there in 1967 was the 44 year old Argentine veteran Roberto De Vincenzo, a first and only major for him.

Colin Montgomerie is in a similar age bracket and has been on a never-ending quest for a major. So often he finds 72 holes a fraction too much as evidenced at Winged Foot last month, throwing away a golden chance to secure that elusive major yet again. Montgomerie is classic each way material from a betting viewpoint. He is knocking on the door of every tournament he is playing in just now and can be had for 33/1 to win with Mansion Sportsbook.. An each way bet is decent value.

Another player known to falter on the run in of the Open is Thomas Bjorn, the Danish professional. He has just put in a fine performance at the Barclays Scottish Open but once again misjudged his shots in the crucial closing holes. He is available at a general 40/1. If you feel he will be suited to Hoylake, an each way bet is again worth considering.

Other players who should have the game to win the Open but are available at long odds are:

Jim Furyk 33/1
Sergio Garcia 40/1
Michael Campbell 50/1
Jose Maria Olazabal 50/1
Tim Clark 66/1

Looking further up the table, we immediately see why some big names are long odds. Tiger Woods, available at a best 5/1 (6.0) dominates the betting. Woods seems to come into his own when the weather is shining and the forecast for England suggests benign conditions will prevail. We hope some winds come in from the sea to offer a test and encourage players to improvise a little. Having said that, Tiger is not in the best of form.

Three of the other giants of the game come next, Ernie Els can be had at 18/1, Vijay Singh at 16/1 and Phil Mickelson is tucked in as clear second favourite at a general 10/1, with 12/1 available in odd places.

Els performed well at Loch Lomond but needs to sink some putts at Hoylake. Mickleson has a horrid record in the Open. He seems to be a homespun player who performs in the comfort of his own backyard. I would steer clear at these odds. Singh is always capable and cannot be discounted. Like Els, he has consistently performed well, outside of the US majors.

In the next band of favourites are Retief Goosen at 22/1 and Luke Donald at 25/1. Goosen has pedigree and the game for a major, while Donald is a genuine chance having just completed the Scottish Open in joint second place behind Johan Edfors of Sweden. Edfors is a three time winner on the tour this year and is available at 100/1 currently. If form counts for anything, we should keep an eye on those odds.

From home shores, Darren Clarke has the game and is putting in some decent performances. He can be had at 30/1 with Pinnacle Sports. Padraig Harrington is in form (Bet365 has him at a best 20/1) as is David Howell who looks good value at 33/1.

On Betfair, there is a top ten market which in my view is the one to go for with golf tournaments. The reason is that one or two shots can make a difference of many places so one poor shot or bad bounce can wreck your each way bets.

Montgomerie gave us a top ten result at 5/2 in the Scottish Open and a similar price can be had for small stakes in The Open. The same goes for many of the top choices such as Goosen, Donald, Howell and Clarke. I'd be tempted with two or three of those.

We'll take a closer look at the markets as Day 1 approaches.

Ed note: Open Mansion Sportsbook for worldwide betting choices

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