Betting.Betfair

The last piece of the Ryder Cup jigsaw was completed yesterday, as US captain Davis Love named his four wildcard picks, with Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk, Dustin Johnson and Brandt Snedeker joining the eight automatic qualifiers. The last two surprised many pundits, who had expected Love to opt for the next best placed quartet in the qualifying race. Whatever the merits of that unenviable decision though, it is hard to remember a Ryder Cup with such strength in depth amongst the 24 combatants. There is always at least one big name that misses out, but thanks to a deeper pool of American talent than we've seen for many a year, this time around there were at least half a dozen perfectly plausible alternatives. Most notably Hunter Mahan, the reigning WGC Matchplay champion and a star of previous...

[b]Paul Krishnamurty advises four outright winner wagers ahead of today's second round at the US PGA Championship at Kiawah Island...[/b] On the first day's evidence, Pete Dye has done it again. The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island offered nothing to justify the tag of 'toughest in America', but does seem certain to provide a dramatic, exciting PGA Championship. All of the dynamics required for optimum In-Play trading conditions are in place - a tightly bunched leaderboard with a market disproportionately dominated by a few big names, changeable weather and a course that offers birdie and bogey potential on every hole, including a finishing stretch made for drama. There are clear similarities with Dye's last PGA venue, Whistling Straits, which played host in 2004 and 2010. Both ...

[b]Romilly Evans tries to pick another first-round leader from the opening exchanges at Firestone and fancies the big-priced Kevin Na to do the business at nearly three figures on Betfair.[/b] Picking the first-round leader of a golf tournament isn't really rocket science. It's closer to brain surgery. So after a fair few failed attempts at the majors, I was mightily relieved to have finally uncovered the right neurology the other week, with Adam Scott paving the 18-hole way at the Open Championship, rewarding his backers at around 60.0 on Betfair. A nice win in anyone's book. With this week's WGC at Firestone coming hot on the heels of Lytham - and next week's USPGA already champing at the bit - I'll try not to blithely reiterate the basic tenets of my selection system. But the...

[u]Tournament History[/u] The Bridgestone Invitational is the third of four World Golf Championship events staged throughout the year. First staged in 1976, the tournament was originally called the World Series of Golf. It became a WGC event in 1999. The qualifying criteria are quite extensive but it's basically an event for the top-50 in the world rankings plus this year's tournament winners and a few others. In short, it's a 78 strong top-class field with only US Open champ, Webb Simpson, a notable absentee. [u]Venue[/u] Firestone Country Club (South Course), Akron, Ohio [u]Course Details[/u] Par 70 - 7,400 yards Stroke Index in 2011 - 69.56 Originally designed by Bert Wray in 1928, Robert Trent Jones completely remodelled the course in 1960 before Jack Nicklaus did some...

[u]Tournament History[/u] Originally known as the Tournament Players Championship, this will be the 39th staging of The Players Championship. The event used to be staged in March but was moved to May in 2007. It's universally known as the games 'fifth major' and a top-class field always lines up at Sawgrass. [u]Venue[/u] TPC Sawgrass, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida [u]Course Details[/u] Par 72 -7,215 yards Stroke Index in 2011 - 72.00 Tournament venue since 1982, the Stadium Course at Sawgrass is yet another Bermuda-grass Pete Dye design that requires an accurate game. Eight of the last 12 winners ranked in the top ten for Greens In Regulation and Sergio Garcia is the only winner in the last seven years to rank outside the top-ten for Scrambling. The odd big-hitter has obliged...

[u]Tournament History[/u] The event was conceived by Bobby Jones, who had originally wanted to stage the US Open at Augusta. The oppressive Georgia summers meant a tournament in June was always going to be out of the question though and when the USGA refused to move the US Open to April, Jones decided to hold his own tournament and the Masters was born. It started life as the Augusta National Invitation Tournament - a name that was to be changed five years after the first event in 1934. This will be the 76th staging of the US Masters and if it's anything like the last three we're in for a treat. Eight different players held the lead on the final day last year, before Charl Schwartzel became the only man in history to birdie the last four holes to win. In 2010, Phil Mickelson secured...

With Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson and most recently Luke Donald laying out impressive claims over the past few weeks, time is running out for Tiger Woods to avoid heading to the season's first major with the billing of an also-ran. When he limped out of the final round at Doral ten days ago with an achilles injury, Tiger's bid for a fifth Green Jacket looked a pipe-dream, yet the greatest player ever to pick up a golf club is surprisingly back in action already, heading the market for this week's Arnold Palmer Invitational. We punters have to put sentiment aside, coldly assessing the merit of each player's odds and with Tiger, that task requires constant reconsideration. For most of the time since scandal and injury derailed his career, all the betting value has been on the lay side....

[b]There's just one event to concentrate on this week but it's a cracker. Read Steve's thoughts on the Honda Classic here...[/b] [b]Tournament[/b] First played as the Jackie Gleason Inverrary Classic in 1972, this will be the 40th staging of the Honda Classic. [b]Venue[/b] PGA National Champion Course, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida [b]Course Details[/b] [i]Par 70, 7158 yards, stroke average in 2011 - 72.54[/i] This will be the sixth staging in-a-row at the Tom and George Fazio designed PGA National - a tough course and very much a story of two halves. The first four holes are four of the five easiest on the course, with the par five 18th, ranked at 15, the other one of the five. In stark contrast to the start, the finish is brutal and following Jack Nicklaus' redesign...

[b]There are twelve months in a year and each one represents a good chance to make some money on Betfair in 2012. Eliot Pollak talks us through them.[/b] [b]January[/b] - James Wade to be crowned at the Palace Wade, a former world number 2, is in the easier half of the draw, and should cruise through until at least the ¼ Finals, where he may face Adrian 'Jackpot' Lewis. Despite this daunting tie, we still fancy Helen Chamberlain's ex (which obviously is more than can be said for Helen Chamberlain.) Having averaged over 95 in the 2nd round, Wade at [10] is the value of the 2012 PDC. [b]February[/b] - Green Bay Packers to lift the Superbowl Smash some shekels on the Packers at [3], and enjoy watching your account bulge on February 5th. Make sure you turn off at half-time though,...