The second Rolex Series event of the European Tour season takes place this week as one of the most historic events on the circuit gets another outing in the form of the Open de France. With the prize money doubled this event immediately increased in value but with the Ryder Cup being held here next year Europe’s elite get a chance to impress their captain on the track they will aim to reclaim the cup on.
It was a brilliant European Tour event in Germany last week and with the field assembled here on a really good golf course this should be another good one.
Recent Winners
2016 – Thongchai Jaidee
2015 – Bernd Wiesberger
2014 – Graeme McDowell
2013 – Graeme McDowell
2012 – Marcel Siem
2011 – Thomas Levet
2010 – Miguel Angel Jimenez
2009 – Martin Kaymer
2008 – Pablo Larrazabal
2007 – Graeme Storm
The Course
The Albatros course at le Golf National is the venue for this tournament once again. The course underwent a few changes a few years ago to create a stadium like finish and tighten it up for the Ryder Cup and it is now a really testing track. Four of the last seven winning scores were in single digits under par.
The course is now a ball strikers course with greens in regulation being a key requirement around here. At times scrambling will be tested too as will putting so this is suddenly a course that will test every department of a game. The course is a par 71 which measures 7,249 but the firmer conditions won’t make it play that long.
The Field
As with the first Rolex Series event the field for this tournament is really good. With four fantastic tournaments in a row in Europe a lot of the global superstars are basing themselves over this side of the pond and the field here reflects that.
Jon Rahm makes his first European Tour appearance while seasoned campaigners like Francesco Molinari, Alex Noren, Tommy Fleetwood, Martin Kaymer and Thomas Pieters are all here while former champions Bernd Wiesberger, Graeme McDowell, Graeme Storm, Marcel Siem and the defending champion Thongchai Jaidee all tee it up.
Market Leaders
Jon Rahm and Francesco Molinari go into this tournament as the 14/1 favourites for this tournament. Rahm is making his debut in it which is very much a negative while Molinari has a very strong record in the event without having won it before. He has gone on record as saying this is his favourite course.
Bernd Wiesberger is a former winner and along with Alex Noren they are the 20/1 joint third favourites to win the tournament. Wiesberger won here two years ago and is playing well while Noren has won five times on tour since the last time this tournament was held.
US Open starlet Tommy Fleetwood comes next in the betting at 22/1 and if he has the form he had in Wisconsin with him here then he could be a tough nut to crack. It is 28/1 bar the five men already named.
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Main Bet
I thought about taking a couple more main bets but in truth there is only one man I’m comfortable backing at the head of the market. Others are either too short or have based too much of the season in America.
The man I can’t avoid at the front of the betting is Alex Noren. The Swede was eighth in this tournament last year and has gone win crazy since then. He is one of the best hitters of greens on the European Tour and holes putts for fun. The tougher the test the better Noren seems to perform and having won the BMW PGA four weeks ago we know he is in good nick. At 20/1 he looks a great bet.
Outsiders
I’m going to fill the rest of my bets with outsiders this week as there is some great value down the market with the top heavy nature of it.
Andrew Johnston was 30th on debut in this tournament two years ago and since then he has shot into the golfing galaxy winning the Open de Espana on arguably the toughest track in Europe in Valderrama before then going on to contend at The Open and the European Masters. Beef is one of the best hitters of greens in regulation on Tour and so if the putter catches fire he is a huge price.
Graeme Storm is a former winner around here who should not be a three figure price. He has also finished third on this track recently so he knows how to score around here. Storm is a relentless greens hitter and sits in the top 20 for that statistic this season. He won in South Africa and has good form in the BMW PGA and in Austria recently. At 100/1 he’s a massive price.
South Africans have a history of going ok in this tournament and my final two bets come from there. Hennie Otto ran well in Germany last week and he has a good record here as you would expect for someone who hits the ball so well when he is on it. Otto has two top 10s here and another top 15 and arriving here from a week where his tee to green game was spot on I’m expecting a good show.
I took Jbe Kruger in Austria a few weeks ago and he probably should have won the tournament. His long game was bang on there until a shambles of a swing on the 72nd hole cost him dearly but that long game tempts me in here again. Kruger was in the top 10 in fairways hit and second in GIRs in the Lyoness Open and is renowned as a GIR hitter. If his putter stays in good order he’s a quite frankly ridiculous price here.
Tips
Back A.Noren to win Open de France (e/w) for a 1.5/10 stake at 21.00 with Coral (1/5 1-7)
Back G.Storm to win Open de France (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 101.00 with Coral (1/5 1-7)
Back H.Otto to win Open de France (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 151.00 with Coral (1/5 1-7)
Back them here:
Back A.Johnston to win Open de France (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 81.00 with Betfred (1/4 1-6)
Back him here:
Back J.Kruger to win Open de France (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 201.00 with Skybet (1/4 1-6)
Back him here:
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