The other event being staged on the European Tour this week is the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open which comes from the island of Mauritius. With big events going on around the world the field here is not the best but the usual benefits for winning are on offer which should ensure a competitive week.
This is the third time this event has been co-sanctioned on the European Tour. The Sunshine Tour and the Asian Tour are also involved in the event.
Recent Winners
2016 – Jeunghun Wang
2015 – George Coetzee
The Course
We are back at the host venue for the 2015 event, the Heritage Golf Club. The course has changed slightly from two years ago and is now a par 71 which measures 6,987 yards. There are four par 5s and five par 3s on the track which I always think favours the longer hitters.
That is especially the case with a couple of the par 4s drivable too but we saw playing island golf so the wind is going to be a factor. The fairways are wide and the greens are huge so big hitters who have touch on the greens and can go well in the wind should be the way forward.
[the_ad id=”16652″]
The Field
Louis Oosthuizen makes a surprise stop for this event and he headlines the field. 2015 winner George Coetzee is back for another crack at the course while Lyoness Open champion Dylan Frittelli is in the field too.
The best of Africa and Asia tee it up here as well so there is a very competitive look to the field even if the bigger names from Europe have understandably chosen to give the event a miss.
Market Leaders
Louis Oosthuizen is a 13/2 favourite this week and in terms of his superiority on the rest of the field that looks a big price. He is fresher than many teeing it up this week and should have a standout chance. His price is not for me but I wouldn’t put off anyone who is happy at getting stuck in that the price.
The second favourite this week is Dylan Frittelli. He has been playing well recently but has been playing a lot of golf. If he has anything left in him then he has the length to tame the course and based on his recent form shouldn’t be too far away. He is 16/1 to win the event.
George Coetzee is 22/1 to win on a course he has already been victorious on. He isn’t the player he was two years ago but still rates as a leading contender in this field and if his putter gets hot early on then he could well last home. I prefer others though.
Dean Burmester, Alexander Bjork and Nicolas Colsaerts are all 25/1 this week. Colsaerts could have been considered as a leading chance given that he spends a lot of time in this part of the world but he has admitted he has never played the course before which dents my enthusiasm. Burmester and Bjork both have the games but don’t win as often as I’d like. It is 28/1 bar.
[the_ad_group id=”3624″]
Main Bets
This is the sort of course that looks right up the street of Scott Hend and as such it is no surprise he was in the top five when this track was last used for the tournament. He belts it a fair distance off the tee and when he gets the ball rolling with the short stick he often holes a lot of putts which is a decent combination. Coming from Australia we know he can handle the wind so the 40/1 on him winning looks more than acceptable.
Gavin Green is an interesting prospect here. We certainly shouldn’t rule out the Asians who have plenty of shorter tracks like this and his length will take care of a lot of the trouble and set up a number of birdies. He has been touted as a big thing for a while and if he is to fulfil that promise then these kind of events he needs to be taking advantage of. At the price I think I’ll give him a go here.
Outsiders
Ricardo Gouveia is used to resort golf coming from Portugal and he has the tools to get himself into the mix this week. He could do with a big week to ease the pressure on himself in 2018 and if he can find some putts to drop I see no reason why he won’t achieve that. He had top 10s in Denmark and Qatar a couple of years ago so he can play in the wind and he won one of his Challenge Tour titles on a resort track. At three figures I’ll play him to see if he can replica his recent Portugal Masters outcome.
Sebastien Gros could be anything this week but a player who smacks it as far as he does off the tee might have something to offer at a stupid price. He offered nothing last season but had a top 10 in Ireland the year before that in horrendous conditions so when he gets it right he can be competitive. He’ll set up plenty of birdies with his length off the tee and at 300/1 I’ll pay to see if he can convert some.
Tips
Back S.Hend to win AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 41.00 with Coral (1/5 1-7)
Back him here:
Back G.Green to win AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 56.00 with Betfred (1/4 1-5)
Back him here:
Back R.Gouveia to win AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 101.00 with Boylesports (1/5 1-6)
Back him here:
Back S.Gros to win AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 301.00 with Unibet (1/4 1-5)
Back him here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2017
