Australian Open

FINAL RESULT: 3-2-0; -3.23pts

Allan/Estes LOST by 11
Chalmers/Sheehan WON by 4
Conran/Fowler WON by 7
Leaney/Rumford LOST by 5
Green/Rumford WON by 7

Won more matches than lost, but it doesn't help when those two losses were on the most-fancied matches! Allan played very poorly and Lonard played very much against expectations, though Leaney was still ahead of him with nine holes to play.

Matchup plays (1.5pts unless stated):

Steve Allan to beat Bob Estes -105 @ Centrebet [4.5pts]
Estes has certainly dominated this matchup on the PGA Tour, though they have split their last four meetings and on an Australian course it is totally different affair. While Allan is a former winner of this event and has finished in the top-11 in each of his last five starts in his homeland, Estes finished 27th in his only previous entry into this event (1997) and in his only two starts in this country in the last five years, he finished 31st in the Greg Norman International in 2000 and lost in the first round of the WGC Match Play in 2001. Home advantage is very large in this match.

Greg Chalmers to beat Paul Sheehan +100 @ Five Dimes
Sheehan has showed some good form in Japan in October, but he does not warrant favouritism here. He has missed hte cut in five of his last seven starts in Australia and has just one top-50 finish in the Australian Open since 1997; Chalmers has finished in the top-25 every year since 1997 and won this event in 1998. Having shown good form in October, though it was not enough to save his PGA Tour Card, he could easily continue his run of top-25 finishes this year.

Steve Conran to beat Peter Fowler -114 @ Expekt
Conran has been in great form on the Japan Tour, winning once and finishing in the top-25 in each of his last eight starts. He did finish 6th in this event last year and even though that meant that he was still one shot behind Fowler, the senior player is clearly in much poorer form than twelve months ago and another top-10 finish looks very unlikely.
(also available at SkyBet)

Stephen Leaney to beat Peter Lonard +140 @ Pinnacle [4.5pts]
"One swallow doesn't make a summer" and all that. Lonard did win last week on what is effectively the Australasian Challenge Tour, but he had admitted that the previous wekend "he felt like he couldn't hit it to save his life" and "honestly, I was worried about coming out here and making an idiot of myself." This has been a difficult season for Lonard in which he has struggled with injury and though he is defending champion, he only finished one shot of Leaney last year. In their 20 common events in 2004, Lonard has finished ahead of Leaney only six times and only once in the last three months. He may have won last week against minor opposition, but this will be a true test of the confidence in his game.

Richard Green to beat Brett Rumford -125 @ Centrebet [3pts]
Green has dominated this matchup on the European Tour with a h2h record of 9-1-1 in the last six months and with a record of five top-15 finishes in the last eight years in this event, Green should certainly continue to dominate this match in Australia.