Golf fans have tournament action from either side of the Atlantic to look forward to this week, with the tee off of the eagerly anticipated Cyprus Showdown at Aphrodite Hills and the PGA Tour’s Houston Open in Texas.
We’ve got betting tips and predictions for both competitions below, and remember – bet365 recently launched a brand-new feature to revolutionise in-play golf betting.
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The Cyprus Showdown betting tips, start time and where to watch
Course and location: Aphrodite Hills Resort, Paphos, Cyprus
Start time: 9:30am Thursday, November 5th
Where to watch: Sky Sports Golf
Cyprus Showdown winner prediction: Thorbjorn Olesen 50/1 at & Thomas Detry at 25/1
The Cyprus Showdown has a 28-1 favourite and is the most wide-open event of the European Tour season, with a new format being introduced for the 105-runner Aphrodite Hills gathering.
Punters must approach the tournament with caution, as only the top 32 (plus ties) make the halfway cut, then the scores are reset, the third round is played, the field is cut to just the top 16 (plus ties), then the scores are reset again before a final-round shootout.
Landing on somebody who qualifies for Sunday before firing a closing round in the low-60s is the task for the betting community – and Thorbjorn Olesen is a lively candidate at juicy odds. The Dane appears to be slowly but surely getting back to his best after a long lay-off and this unique event may appeal to him.
Olesen, who has been in a winning World Cup pairing as well as a triumphant Ryder Cup side, has five European Tour titles under his belt. Some personal problems meant he had to leave the circuit for the best part of a year, but he has been getting his act together again and 28th place in the Cyprus Open last week was a decent Showdown warm-up.
Thomas Detry may also enjoy the format and the gifted Belgian is also worth supporting. Detry has buckled in tight finishes and remains a Tour maiden, but the 18-hole Sunday sprint this week demands the attacking golf he favours and leaderboards will be essentially irrelevant until the absolute last knockings.
Houston Open betting tips, start time and where to watch
Course and location: Memorial Park Golf Course, Houston, Texas
Start time: 12:50pm Thursday, November 5th
Where to watch: Sky Sports Golf (red button)
Houston Open winner prediction: Jordan Spieth at 60/1 at & Lanto Griffin at 40/1
Dustin Johnson returns to action this week for the first time since he suffered a positive Covid-19 test at the CJ Cup – and the world number one is a short-price favourite for the Houston Open.
Johnson withdrew from the CJ Cup, then his agent said he had not sufficiently recovered to take his place in the Zozo Championship field the following week. The illness clearly sapped the Floridian of energy.
The FedEx Cup champion seems bound to be rusty, even if he has managed to get back to full fitness, so bigger odds about players deeper in the market are preferred.
Memorial Park takes over from the Golf Club of Houston this week – and Brooks Koepka has knowledge of the new track having had a role in its redesign – but Koepka has spent this year struggling for fitness and form. This seems an event where the market principals represent no value, with chances taken instead on Jordan Spieth and Lanto Griffin.
Spieth, a former world number one with three Major titles on his CV, has been enduring a lean spell since winning the 2017 Open, but his home state of Texas often brings out the best in him. Memorial Park will give him plenty of room to breathe off the tee – and his short-game class stands him in great stead around tricky greens and run-off areas.
Griffin, the defending champion, has found form at the perfect time to possibly retain his title, finishing seventh in the CJ Cup and 11th in the Zozo.
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