Seve Trophy

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3-1; +5.56pts 

Day 1 play (2pts):

Anders Hansen & Francesco Molinari to beat Lee Westwood & Mark Foster +138 @ Coral [available generally]  WON 1 HOLE
Very different partnerships in this matchup. Foster is making his debut in this event (nor has he played in the Ryder Cup) and Westwood has skipped this event since his appearance in 2003. By contrast, Hansen and Molinari were partners in all of the first four sessions last time in 2009 and, in the fourballs, they won both their matches. They are two very consistent players and should get the better of an untested pairing with one notably weaker partner. Corals appear to be the only bookie that prices the Europeans as the underdog in this match.

Day 2 play (2pts):

Matteo Manassero & Nicolas Colsaerts to beat Ross Fisher & Scott Jamieson +130 @ SkyBet [available generally]  WON 2 HOLES
Tempted by the price to back Hansen and Molinari for a second day, but will opt for this pairing instead. Fisher and Jamieson secured the biggest winning margin of the day (6&4), but that was largely due to their opponents (Hanson and Jacquelin) playing so badly that they were over-par for the day, which is inexcusable in a fourball format. Fisher and Jamieson were 6-under-par when they won, and that is the same score as Manassero and Colsaerts when they lost by one hole to Clarke and Horsey. I'm expecting a strong comeback from the European team tomorrow and for this pairing to get a better result from playing as well as they did today.

Day 3 greensomes play (2pts):

Miguel Angel Jimenez & Pablo Larrazabal to beat Lee Westwood & Scott Jamieson +138 @ William Hill and SkyBet [available generally]
Van de Velde has kept his pairings constant throughout this event and that should again reap dividends in the greensomes and no moreso than in this matchup. Jimenez and Larrazabal have been a great pairing, shooting 7-under-par on the first day when they lost to an in-form Dyson & Donaldson and shooting 6-under-par today when they easily beat Clarke & Horsey. Of course, Westwood has looked like a World #2 over the last two days, but he has been in a virtual one-man team with Mark Foster over the first two days so it is no surprise that he gets a new partner tomorrow. However, Jamieson has looked as bad as Foster so the balance should really be with the Spaniards tomorrow who are clearly enjoying playing together.

Day 4 singles play (2pts):

Francesco Molinari to beat Jamie Donaldson +110 @ Stan James [available generally]  WON 4&3
After four matches in three days, fatigue should certainly be a factor in the final round and that is one good reason to back Molinari over Donaldson - whereas Donaldson has played in every sesson and has completed 70 holes of matchplay golf, Molinari was rested for today's greensomes and has completed only 51 holes. With the continental Europeans trailing by five points, this is a must-win match for their team and this should be one of their more winnable matches.