Heineken Classic

FINAL RESULT: 1-2; +43.88pts

Appleby 18th
Parry 1st
Green 29th

Good old Nick O'Hern! Can always be counted upon to wilt under pressure! In his playoff with Parry, he played three of the four holes superbly, but missed short putts every time and eventually Parry took his opportunity. Parry had been the sole leader with eight holes to play, but in the end just making the playoff was good enough.

Outright plays (total stake per play: 1.5pts)

Stuart Appleby to win 14/1 e.w. available generally
Won the first event of the year - the Mercedes Championships in Hawaii - and has since taken time off as his daughter was born just three days later. This is his first competitive event back, but this should not be a concern and he was certainly playing well enough before to be able to contend with Ernie Els who has won all three times this event has been held at Royal Melbourne. This is a course that Appleby knows well - it was the scene of his first professional top-10 finish - and his record in Australia as a whole suggest that he should be a strong contender for at least a top-3 finish.

Craig Parry to win 50/1 e.w. @ BlueSq and BetDirect
Parry finished 10th in the Mercedes Championships behind Appleby, but that is still a strong performance, particularly in comparison to all but a few of this week's field. A top-30 in the Sony Open followed so there is nothing wrong with his form. His record around this course has not been great, but his worst finish has been 47th in seven visits and he has finished in the top-10 on two occasions. For a player with such a good record in Australasia as a whole, these odds look decent value when there is very little at the top of the market.

Richard Green to finish in the top-five 9/1 @ Expekt and BetFred
With Nick O'Hern only starting to hit balls again about a week ago following arthroscopic ankle surgery in December, the leftie with the best chance of winning this week is Green. He finished the 2004 season with a win in the MasterCard Masters and blew the cobwebs off his game with an outing in the Victoria Open last week. In terms of course form, three top-15 finishes in four visits is supportive and though he did win in December, rather like Nick O'Hern, he is certainly one to back in place-only markets.