The European Tour continues its long haul around the globe with the Michael Hill New Zealand Open, played at The Hills Golf Club in Queenstown. This is the third time this tournament has been included on the European Tour schedule, but the first time it has been staged at the course, which poses a problem a problem for punters.
With no course form to go on, it’s tempting to play safe and back the one ‘big’ name in the field, former US Open winner Michael Campbell, especially as he’s playing on home soil. However, hopes of a strong showing are tempered by his second round 84 in last week’s Mastercard Masters, which was just typical of the Kiwi’s inconsistent year. Even at 16/1 (VCbet), he is no value and we can afford to look elsewhere for the winner.
Daniel Chopra (7/1 Stan James), runner-up at Huntingdale last week, should be up there, but I much prefer the chances of Peter O’Malley, who was third for greens in regulation when finishing fourth in the same event. “There's a lot of accuracy needed and a lot of precision needed into the green which suits my game," says O'Malley about this week’s course.
Certainly, his accurate iron play and consistent scoring (finished 67-67 last week) should see him near the top of the leaderboard come Sunday, and I reckon he’s a cracking each way bet at 14/1 with Paddy Power.
Marcus Fraser must also come into the reckoning on his current form - three top-10 finishes in his last four starts. It’s true, he hasn’t visited the winner’s enclosure since 2004, but he was second in this event last year and 13th the previous season, so he clearly enjoys the New Zealand air. In such a weak field, he’ll never get a better chance of winning a second Tour title and at 16/1 (bet365) he’s worth an each way nibble.
There’s room for one more pick and that goes to Aussie Scott Strange, who has been playing well in much better events than this. He finished 10th in the Dunhill Links and most recently took 12th in the Hong Kong Open and 15th in the MasterCard Masters. His excellent iron play (top for GIR in Hong Kong) will stand him in good stead here and he can go well at 33/1 (William Hill).
Recommended Bets:
Peter O’Malley 1pt each way @ 14/1 Paddy Power
Marcus Fraser 1pt each way @ 16/1 bet365
Scott Strange 1pt each way @ 33/1 William Hill