Tipster: Stanley

The Masters

Outright plays (1.5pts):

Vijay Singh to win 14/1 e.w. @ Stan James
With odds on this event being available for several months, there are very few ricks at the moment particularly on the leading players. This price is rather out of line and enough to warrant a play. After all the pressure of his run of top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour (12 including WGC events), his form has certainly dipped in the last six weeks, nbut it had to from such a peak. His finish in the Players Championship was his best since his last top-10 finish when he won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and this event will have been his primary focus since his run came to an end. This was the scene of his last major win and with the course playing dry again, the big hitters should have a sizeable advantage again.

Padraig Harrington to win 24/1 e.w. @ Olympic [0.75pts to win; 0.75pts to 'show']
Harrington is no slouch off the tee either. He averaged a fraction under 300 yards last week and is famous for his recovery skills around the green. He has put them to good use in the last two weeks or rather he has used them too much in the last two weeks, but he has still finished 2nd and 4th. He is the ultimate grinder and can produce high finishes week after week; when he finished 5th in this event two years ago, he had finished 8th in the BellSouth Classic the previous week. At lower odds, I would have passed over Harrington in favour of Verplank (66/1), but this is somewhat of an outlier and Verplank would have been a definite selection had the conditions been wet. They are not and the more powerful hitters should prosper this week.

Retief Goosen to win 33/1 e.w. @ Paddy Power
Despite his U.S. Open win in 2001, Goosen is far from a short, but straight player. He has missed his last two cuts, but as with Singh, it matters little for the first major of the year. His form had been good with four top-10 in his previous five PGA Tour starts of the season and he is already a major winner. He very nearly held off Tiger Woods to win this title in 2002 and two years on, he would certainly fancy his chances if he were to be in the same situation again. The price is too large for a player of his calibre.

Final update: 0-3; -4.50pts

Singh 6th
Harrington 13th
Goosen 13th

Close, but no cigar. They all finished some way out of the duel between Mickelson and Els, but Singh was only one shot short of a place playoff and the other two were just two further back. Still a very profitable as well as enjoyable Masters.