The first day of The Masters is one of the most eagerly anticipated days of the golfing year and finally on Thursday the waiting will be over as the 90 men lining up in the tournament will play out their opening 18 holes of golf, weather permitting.
We will see the stars of the game throughout the day and everyone will be setting out looking to get off to a good start and get themselves into a favourable position on the leaderboard. When it comes to betting on the first round we have a first round leader market as well as all the three balls we can go at.
First Round Leader
One of the best markets to bet on for the opening round of the tournament is the first round leader market. I say that because often you can split the field in line with the weather forecast. That isn’t always the case but it certainly is here. The forecast for Thursday at Augusta is for the wind to increase throughout the course of the day.
We already know that the course is going to be soft and play long. While the air machines will suck the moisture out of the greens the course took so much rain on Monday and Wednesday that it isn’t possible for it to be completely dry so I think getting out early could be the time to make a score.
First man on the tee box is the last man into the field in Russell Henley and with the way he putts and the confidence he brings here with him I fancy he might get off to a decent start. He hasn’t had the big anticipation in the build-up because he only got in on Sunday so on a soft course he can attack he’s well worth a punt.
The other man who I believe is worth a go is Scott Piercy. I think you’ve got to hit it a long way this week. That’s just how it is. The course is about power now and Piercy has plenty of that. Piercy is in the third group onto the golf course and he already has opening rounds of 62 and 65 under his belt this season so he can ping the lids. He opened up with a 70 here last year and if he can shoot that again and the wind hampers the second half of the field he might not be far away.
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3 balls
The beauty of three ball betting at The Masters is that we can single out certain groups and turn them into two balls effectively. I say that because all the past champions are invited to play and some of them without being disrespectful aren’t going to be able to compete when the course is playing as long as it will play. There are two groups I like.
Hudson Swafford/Roberto Castro/Mark O’Meara
Group tees off at 16.18 BST.
The first of those groups I have turned into a two ball is this one. I like Mark O’Meara and always respected him as a player but the course is just too long with all the rain that has been around so I have this as a two ball between the PGA Tour stars and it is Hudson Swafford that I like.
Much is made of how many players drive the ball but his driving doesn’t always get the credit it should do which is a pity for him because he is a wonderful driver of the ball. He is sneaky long and generally pretty straight and he’s been in good form in recent times. Swafford will have a significant length advantage off the tee and while he is a rookie here I still think he can see off an out of form Roberto Castro and an inconvenienced O’Meara.
Matt Kuchar/Danny Willett/Curtis Luck
Group tees off at 17.24 BST
In fair conditions you could make a case for this being a genuine three ball but I think the windy element to the day and the occasion could be a little much for the amateur so I’ve got this between Matt Kuchar and the defending champion Danny Willett.
Willett will get a lift when he is announced as the defending champion but he’ll need one because his game has been awful in recent times and given that he’s defending there is still a pressure on him which isn’t ideal. Matt Kuchar has no such worries. He’s good in the wind and any shortcomings in length can be overcome with precision iron play. I think he’s the safest bet of the three in this group by a fair way.
Tips
PLACED – Back R.Henley First Round Leader (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 67.00 with William Hill (1/4 1-5)
Back him here:
Back S.Piercy First Round Leader (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 126.00 with Boylesports (1/5 1-6)
Back him here:
WON – Back H.Swafford to beat R.Castro & M.O’Meara for a 4/10 stake at 2.05 with Betfred
Back him here:
WON – Back M.Kuchar to beat D.Willett & C.Luck for a 4/10 stake at 2.30 with Coral
Back him here:
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