Padraig Harrrington
The Dubliner shrugged off his poor form to claim the Irish PGA Championship at the weekend - by seven strokes no less - but before we rush to back him for this week, it's worth remembering that this was a local affair with no other main-tour players in the field. Prior to that, his form was nothing short of abysmal - five missed cuts in succession / failed to break par in his last eight rounds. So, unless Pod is perpetuating one of the cleverest con tricks of all time, he cannot be seriously considered even at the standout 33/1 with Coral.
Advice: Lay him in Betfair's 'Top 10 Finish' market.
Sergio Garcia
There's no doubt that the Spaniard has the game to lift the Claret Jug - he's made the top-10 in six of the last eight Opens - but not on his form in 2009. Since finishing fourth in the Volvo Masters nine months ago, he hasn't got into serious contention anywhere and the putting gremlins, which once threatened to destroy a potentially brilliant career, have returned. Even if he does somehow manage to get into contention, you have to think he'll find a way of throwing away the title, as he did at Carnoustie two years ago.
Advice: Back Rory McIlroy to beat him over 72 holes @ 11/10 (Victor Chandler).
Geoff Ogilvy
The former US Open champion is undoubtedly a class act and has a habit of rising to the big occasion, as he did when winning the WGC Matchplay title back in February, but is unproven in tough, links conditions. As links courses go, Turnberry is one of the toughest and, if the rough is anywhere near as long as seen in previous Opens, severe penalties await those straying from the fairway. The Aussie has missed his last two Open cuts and a hat-trick is very much on the cards.
Advice: Back Ernie Els to beat him over 72 holes @ 10/11 (Betfred)
The Aussie has missed his last two Open cuts and a hat-trick is very much on the cards.
Vijay Singh
The Fijian has a had a long admirable career winning three major championships (The Masters in 2000 and the PGA Championship in 1998 and 2004), but this is by far his weakest major. The only time he's seriously challenged was at Sandwich in 2003 and his last three attempts have been a bit of a struggle. Nor does does his 2009 form offer any encouragement - he's having his worst season since the mid-19990's - so it's hard to see him improving his links record this week.
Advice: Oppose in match and group bets.
Tiger Woods
Has Ross gone mad? - I hear you say. Quite possibly, but there's a strong case for opposing the world No.1 pre-tournament in the hope he will be a bigger price in-play. Certainly, that would have been the case in two of his three wins in 2009. In the Memorial Tournament, he came from five back to win by one stroke, while he came from even further back at Bay Hill (five strokes) to again win by one stroke from Sean O'Hair. Factor in the draw - the wind is the main defence of any links course and often players are disadvantaged before they even hit a ball - and I'd be surprised if his current starting price of 9/4 isn't beaten at some stage.
Advice: Lay on Betfair at the current 3.8 (back at bigger odds in-play to ensure a profit).