The Austin Country Club in Texas is once again the venue for the WGC Dell Match Play and punters looking to get involved in pre-tournament betting should note the Wednesday start.
The Format
After numerous changes in format this tournament appears to be settling in to the current format which sees 16 groups of 4 players and each player playing at least 3 matches. The top 16 ranked players are kept apart and the top player in each group advances to the Round of 16 when sudden death play commences.
As to be expected from a WGC event we have a quality field and Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm dispute favouritism at 14/1. Louis Oosthuizen is the shortest price South African in the field at 33/1 the same price as last years winner Billy Horschel. Rory McIlroy is a notable absentee this week.
Past Winners
2021 – Billy Horschel
2020 – Cancelled due to Covid
2019 – Kevin Kisner
2018 - Bubba Watson
2017 - Dustin Johnson
2016 - Jason Day
2015 - Rory McIlroy
2014 - Jason Day
Betting – click here for outright betting
Jon Rahm 14/1
Justin Thomas 14/1
Viktor Hovland 18/1
Collin Morikawa 20/1
Scottie Scheffler 20/1
Dustin Johnson 22/1
Patrick Cantlay 22/1
25 /1 and better the balance, prices correct at the time of writing but are subject to change.
Selections
Looking back at past winners of the event there have been some inconsistencies and we went through a run a few years ago where the top ranked players triumphed, but of late this Tournament seems to be wide open. I will be looking for players who are in form with a decent match play record.
Brian Harman each way at 66/1
Harman who has been showing up on the leader board in the last couple of weeks but really caught my eye is his record in this event where he has had 5 wins, 3 losses and a tie. He is in Group 15 with Ancer, Simpson and Watson and I think he has every chance of progressing to the last 16.
Jordan Spieth each way at 33/1
Spieth is in Group 11 with Adam Scott, Justin Rose and Keegan Bradley. He always ups his game when he plays in Texas and has a decent record in this event since 2016 winning 9, losing 5 and tying 3 matches. Spieth has been playing some decent golf of late and he is threatening to get back to be a big factor in the major golf events.
Erik van Rooyen each way at 125/1
Van Rooyen comes in here as the 55th seed and he certainly has it all to do in a group that includes Koepka, Lowry and Varner 111. He has progressed to the last 16 in his only previous appearance here and is another player who has looked in decent form of late. I always like to have a South African in the staking plan as well.
Kevin Kisner at 60/1
Kisner has a superb record in this event and is a past winner. Since 2016 he has won 16 matches, lost 6 and tied 1 for an impressive win percentage of 69.5 %. Kisner will have to see off Justin Thomas, Marc Leishman and Luke List in Group 6. With Thomas not having the best record in this event I am prepared to take him on.
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