RBC Heritage 2023 - Hilton Head

 The RBC Heritage sees it's strongest field ever this week as the PGA has decided to make this one of it's 13 non-Major Designated events and the newly crowned Masters Champion, Jon Rahm heads the field.

I was really annoyed last week when the weather put paid to JT for the 2nd time in three years and due to the Easter weekend thought my interest would wane. Russell Henley though provided a place return @150/1 whilst Jon Rahm deservedly captured his first green jacket. It was great to see a strong effort from Brooks Koepka though however it was a major shock to see Mickelson do so well. As JT missed the cut, he could be just as annoyed as myself and may want to get a W sooner rather than later and Hilton Head may present an opportunity if the market leaders are feeling the effects of a busy weekend last at Augusta. History tells us that Masters contenders d not fare well here but this however is a designated event with a much stronger field in assembly. JT's odds continue to push out and as a result I cannot ignore them and he's chanced yet again @ 25/1 - 8 places

From my shortlist below I was quite keen on Matt Kuchar but so too are the bookies. However J.T. Poston is holding his price for value as well as Sam's Ryder & Stevens who are in solid form and could pounce any given week. Taylor Montgomery may not have course knowledge this week like most other weeks but he is playing nicely and his price certainly tempts me in.  Sam Ryder tees it up having posted 6no. T-20s from his 16 starts this season despite having missed the cut here 3 times from his 4 visits. Stevens arrives on the back f 2nd in Texas, 3rd in Puntacana and here's hoping he follows the trend on his debut at Hilton Head. Poston has course form;3-mc-8-6 to date and he too is in form this season with a T-10 at the Valspar last month.

My Shortlist	Bet365 odds (less places)	Best Odds	Best Exchange	My Odds
Justin Thomas	26	26	31	21
Tommy Fleetwood	61	56	86	51
Brian Harman	101	101	144	67
Keith Mitchell	111	111	176	101
J.T. Poston	61	81	74	67
Matt Kuchar	51	51	54	46
Kevin Kisner	301	501	627	151
Taylor Montgomery	101	101	167	81
Davis Riley	151	201	304	141
Sam Ryder	141	201	308	151
Taylor Pendrith	251	301	559	201
Sam Stevens	151	201	353	176

Selections 

2 pts e/w J. Thomas @ 25/1 - 8 places
1 pt e/w J.T. Poston @ 70/1 - 8 places
1 pt e/w T. Montgomery @ 100/1 - 8places
1 pt e/w S. Stevens @ 175/1 - 8 places
1 pt e/w D. Ryder  @ 175/1 - 8 places

The Masters 2023 - Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Georgia

 As always, the first major of the year sees us heading up Magnolia Lane in Augusta, Georgia. This will be the 87th Masters where the World Number 1, Scottie Scheffler will try and defend having won his first major here twelve months ago.He arrives in solid form too, just like he did in '22,having won The Players Championship last month. This years edition though does feel a little open and should any of the World's Top-20 players go on to win, we wouldn't be surprised. Augusta & The Masters does tend to throw up the same trends each year though where course experience has been crucial although of late Sungjae Im & Will Zalatoris have shown they can go well on debuts. Not since 1979 though have we seen a debutant win and its highly unlikely we will see that change here this week.

I do think this could be Rory's week (career) ! He is playing quite well the past few months and win inclement weather forecast this week it may be to his advantage and as always at a Major and especially here, a solid opening round is key to setting up the weekend. Twelve years since he blew up on the back-9 here would suggest those memories are well banished and the focus will be to seize an opportunity come Sunday should it present himself. The journos though will go overboard on the Rory v LIV stuff though, but it somehow may be an on-course achievement that may unite the tours. It's been refreshing to see players meet & greet each other at Augusta already this week rather than reading the snide remarks about the tours, so here's hoping its a great week of golf as always at The Masters. From a betting perspective, backing Rory @8/1 isn't appealing and I don't need to back Rory this week: if he completes the Grand Slam I'll be cheering him on and that will bring a lot of happiness itself regardless of the P&L.

Instead, I'll be swearing at the screen when JT misses a chip or a putt. He hasn't won this season yet which is a slight concern and more so that he hasn't challenged for a win but he has shown at Augusta previously that the course suits and all those practice rounds with Tiger is paying off. Add in the experience of  Bones Mackay who caddies for him now and the knowledge is immeasurable- now is the week for the execution. We have a much mature JT these days and with two Majors under his belt, he can approach each one now with a little more confidence as he tries to reign in his buddy Jordan Spieth's tally of 3 Majors. There's a been a lot of top golf played this year already on the PGA Tour and I do wonder if some players come in a bit overplayed whereas JT arrives having played no more than 3 tournaments in a row. I could make the same and better argument for Rory who has played a lot less than his PGA Tour peers too. Then I could say the same re: LIV Tour players who I do think are way undercooked and may not have a competitive edge this week, barring Smith, Koepka & DJ (noted all Major winners too). Justin Thomas will tee it up at The Masters for the eighth time this week having posted recent returns of 8-21-4-12-17-22-39. Finishing 4th to Matsuyama about the closest he's challenged when rain interrupted the Saturday and Hideki seized his moment. His price draws me in here though @ 20/1 - 8 places

I was keen on Tony Finau this week, as I'm sure a lot of others are but I made him 28/1 and can't now take him at 25s, especially pre-Tee Times. With the weather forecast in place, it may be prudent to revisit the market when those tee-times are announced and see if there is any reaction but I highly doubt as money is already pouring into Betfair (€2.6M+ already traded). 

I do find this a right conundrum this week and therefore won't be going in with a full stable as I normally do at the Majors and instead I'll take a punt on a couple of players that I think could play well and grab some enhanced place money in the shapes of Russell Henley & Chris Kirk @  150s & 100s respectively with 10 places on offer. The latter hasn't been here since 2016 but was raised in Georgia and played college golf for the University of Georgia. Kirk is revitalised this season and returns to Augusta bringing a vital "trend" in that he has won on tour this season (Honda Classic). He may have missed the cut here in '16 but in his other two appearances he finished 33rd and 20th on debut in 2014.  Four T-10s from his 13 starts this season sees Kirk in fine form and he should relish his Masters this week. Henley too is a native of Georgia hailing from just two hours away but what has drawn me to his chances this week is that he has the putting skills to master the Augusta greens. This will be his 7th Masters having posted 30-15-11-21-31 & mc on debut.He too has a win this season but form hasn't held up from a solid 2022 although he finished T-20 at Sawgrass last month.

I'll sit back and enjoy the Masters this year, whether I'm glued to the TV or its brilliant app on my phone I'm not sure yet and I'll be looking out for Gordon Sargent the NCAA Champion who apparently could be the next best thing....but we are saying this alot nearly every year now such is the quality these days but it's all very exciting nonetheless ! Sargent added to my shortlist below just so I can mark him a favourite on the app

My Shortlist	OWGR	Bet365 odds (less places)	Best Odds	Best Exchange	My Odds
Scottie Scheffler	1	8	8	9.04	11
Rory McIlroy	2	8	8	8.84	11
Jon Rahm	3	10	10	11.1	11
Jordan Spieth	16	17	17	21	17
Patrick Cantlay	4	21	21	24	17
Justin Thomas	10	21	21	19	23
Collin Morikawa	12	26	26	30	26
Tony Finau	13	26	26	29	29
Jason Day	35	26	26	30	34
Dustin Johnson	69	26	29	33	36
Cameron Young	14	29	29	34	34
Max Homa	5	31	31	40	36
Sam Burns	11	41	36	48	36
Justin Rose	36	61	67	78	81
Tommy Fleetwood	27	56	67	74	81
Corey Conners	28	46	41	53	81
Russell Henley	38	151	151	245	126
Chris Kirk	32	151	151	274	151
Gordon Sargent	-	751	1001	960	501

Selections

3 pts e/w Justin Thomas @ 20/1 - 8 places

1 pt e/w R.Henley @ 150/1 - 10 places

1 pt e/w C. Kirk @ 100/1 - 10 places

Jonsson Workwear Open 2023 - Steyn City, Joburg South Africa

 A new tournament, being played at The Club @ Steyn City where the "Steyn Championship" was played last March that saw Shaun Norris victorious with a winning -25 score. We can expect the same birdie-fest again this week and we should be keeping an eye on the bombers at the Jack Nicklaus design as the course was built as a resort venue for tourists.

From my 15-man shortlist below I opted for 4 players to make my staking plan here and in doing so have ignored the WGC Matchplay in Texas (another course I can't take to) as well as the Corales Puntacana Championship.I'll keep the faith with Ferguson as he did place last week after a slow Thursday, retry Del Rey and go back in for a look at Jaco Prinsloo and add Alexander Knappe who I feel should go very well here on the basis that he's fairly decent off the tee & tee-to-green, ranks as high as 16th on Data-Golf's Baseline Index trend despite missing the cut on his last two outings. He has however posted two T-10s from his twelve starts, which came in the preceding events to the missed cuts. The concern though is he has indeed missed 7 cuts from those 12 events but the 110/1 - 8 places more than entices me in ( I made him best price 100/1 although would have considered down to 80s here)

 I may get onboard on a player or two on the LPGA where Leona Maguires defends for the first time on the tour.

My Shortlist	BET365 Odds	Best Odds	Best Exchange	My Odds
Adri Arnaus	19	19	21	21
Matthieu Pavon	34	36	43	36
Ewen Ferguson	36	46	59	41
Romain Langasque	36	41	45	46
Sami Valimaki	41	46	54	46
Tom McKibbin	34	36	39	46
Hennie du Plessis	46	51	54	46
Calum Hill	61	61	59	81
Jaco Prinsloo	61	81	108	67
Brandon Stone	56	67	108	67
Ross Fisher	61	67	74	71
Jeong Weon Ko	81	81	88	91
Alejandro Del Rey	111	101	93	101
Alexander Knappe	126	126	147	101
Martin Vorster	226	301	510	201

Selections

1.25 pt e/w A. Knappe @ 110/1 - 8 places (Bet365)
1.0 pt e/w  E. Ferguson @ 35/1 - 8 places (Bet365)
0.75 pt e/w A. Del Rey @110/1 - 8 places (Bet365)
0.75 pt e/w J. Prinsloo @ 80/1 - 8 places (Boylesports)

SDC Championship 2023 - St Francis Links, St Francis, Eastern Cape

 Just two selections from my final 15-man shortlist below. Cautious approach on DPT for the next 4-6 weeks as field strength is somewhat poor, and value is not easy to see at the moment as the level of tour golf being played on this tour at the moment is a concern for the future of its tour it has to be said.

My Shortlist	BET365 Odds	Best Odds	Best Exchange	My Odds
George COETZEE	31	31	26	21
Rafael Cabrera Bello	41	51	44	36
Matthieu PAVON	46	56	48	56
Dale WHITNELL	46	36	30	46
Johannes VEERMAN	46	51	42	51
Matthew JORDAN	51	46	44	56
Ewen FERGUSON	61	61	54	51
Calum HILL	61	71	58	61
Tom MCKIBBIN	61	56	47	67
Richie RAMSAY	67	67	58	67
Ross FISHER	76	81	73	71
Matthew SOUTHGATE	76	61	73	71
Shaun NORRIS	81	91	93	71
Andy SULLIVAN	81	71	76	71
Alexander KNAPPE	111	126	106	91

Selections:

1.5 pts e/w G. Coetzee @ 30/1 - 7 places
1 pt e/w E. Ferguson @ 55/1 - 7 places