Turespana Mallorca Classic

FINAL RESULT: 1-3; -2.25pts

Davis 36th
Olazabal 10th
Siem 54th
Rodiles 3rd

Rodiles got as close as one shot from the lead in the final round, but never reached the top of the leaderboard. Olazabal might have got there, but left himself too much to do after a poor 1st round.

Further outright play (1pt):

Carlos Rodiles to win 10/1 e.w. @ BlueSq and Tote
Rodiles has hit more greens in regulation than Sergio Garcia and holed more putts from greens hit in regulation than Garcia; it is only Garcia’s scrambling abilities that have kept him in close contention. So does Rodiles have the weekend temperament to catch Khan and hold off Garcia? In short, yes. In the last five occasions that he has been in the top-5 heading into the weekend of a European Tour event and not leading, he has finished 2^nd, 8^th, 8^th, 5^th and 2^nd. So he has certainly not collapsed under pressure and the last occasion was the 2003 Volvo Masters, also held in Spain and it took four holes of a playoff for Fredrik Jacobson to deny Rodiles the title. Garcia may warrant favouritism with the bookies, but the man from Malaga looks the better value bet at the halfway stage.

Outright plays (1pt):

Brian Davis to win 20/1 e.w. @ Stan James, Bet365 and GolfingGods
Just a great record in Spain. Since he won the 2000 Open de Espana, he has finished in the top-5 a further four times in this country. He seemed to lose his form in the run-up to the final qualifying events for the Ryder Cup team, but has played increasingly well since that event and recorded his highest finish for six months in the Dunhill Links Championship last week. With the last three events of the season held in Spain, it is a good time for him to find his confidence again.

Jose Maria Olazabal to win 25/1 e.w. @ GolfingGods
Olazabal has been quietly playing rather well over the past couple of months. He has finished in the top-15 in three of his last six PGA Tour events and did the same in the German Masters last month. Now he returns to a course on which he finished 2nd last year. If he is going to win again, this looks a particularly good opportunity.

Marcel Siem to win 33/1 e.w. @ GolfingGods
It's hit or miss with Siem and there were good signs last week when he recovered well from a poor 1st round to finish in the top-10. He did the same on this course last year and with course form at a premium, this could just be another week when Siem does not misfire. Generous enough odds for a rare proven winner in this field.

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