There's a decent field assembled for this week's French Open at Le Golf National in Paris, headed by world No.4 and 2009 winner Martin Kaymer.
Kaymer has not been in the best form of late but is the stand-out name for an event which carries a first prize of €500,000 and dates back to 1906, making it the oldest of the Continental opens. With Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Rory McIlroy all giving the event a swerve, this represents a good opportunity for the German to haul himself back in to the Race to Dubai, which he won last year. He's currently a 10/1 shot with Boylesports for back-to-back money crowns and the same price to win this week.
The massively in-form Peter Hanson is next in the betting at 14/1 (Paddy Power) and he too can count on some good form here with fourth and sixth place efforts on his last two visits to the Paris track. Other big names on show include the Molinari brothers, their teenage compatriot Matteo Manassero and Spanish ace Alvaro Quiros, while big-hitting Bubba Watson (a best-priced 26/1 Skybet) is the surprise name in the field, with the American making his regular European Tour event debut.
His power will not be so much of an advantage here, though, as accuracy is the key to success and even more so this week, with recent rain allowing the rough to grow and making hitting the fairways even more important than normal. Water is a feature on six holes, including the the 470 yard, par-4 18th, which is the toughest on course. The three par-5s are the 3rd, 9th and 14th and all are reachable in two, providing birdie-eagle chances.
My Three Against The Field:
Richard Green @ 45/1 bet365
Kaymer could easily justify favouritism this week but has not been at his very best for a while and his price of 10/1 is too short for me, as is the 14/1 on offer for Hanson (I wanted at least 16/1), although the Swede looks sure to be in contention at the weekend. Watson is a class act but was all over the place when finishing 38th at River Highlands on Sunday and he's odds-on in my book to find the water over the closing holes at some stage.
Green, on the other hand, can normally be relied upon to find the fairways and greens and it should come as no surprise that he has course form at Le Golf National, with his tied-2nd in 2004 being followed by three further top-seven finishes. Granted, the Aussie has made a slow start to the season but his tied-12th place finish in Munich last week hinted at a return to form and that appears to have gone relatively un-noticed by bookmakers with 45/1 still on offer.
Graeme Storm @ 66/1 bet365
The Englishman is another to have shown a liking for this track, for it was here that he bagged his sole tour title to date in 2007. He's since finished 11th, 13th and 21st and his current form isn't bad either with recent finishes of 16th at Celtic Manor, fifth in Mallorca and 24th in Munich, which would have been much better but for a horrible 75 on Sunday. I'm prepared to forgive him one bad round and the 66/1 on offer, again with bet365, looks a shade too big.
Richie Ramsay @ 125/1 Stan James
The Scot has no real record here but he really should be thereabouts with stats like these: ranked 1st on Tour for driving accuracy and 9th for greens in regulation this season. Why the big price? Well, he hasn't really contended so far this season, although it's not been a complete disaster with four top-15s, including on his penultimate start in the Italian Open. Furthermore, he's a proven winner with three wins coming in his relatively short four year professional career. Enough said.
Recommended Bets:
Richard Green 1pt each-way @ 45/1 bet365
Graeme Storm 1pt each-way @ 66/1 bet365
Richie Ramsay 0.5pt each-way @ 125/1 Stan James
