Hassan Trophy

Well we finally got one to fall over the line in the shape of Aphibarnrat @ 50/1 in Malaysia so starting with the Hassan II Trophy lets see if we can add another. This is the fourth rendition of the event and the third at the immaculate Royal Palais course - there will be no gripes about the state of the course this week! Looking at the results basically we are looking for players who like links golf, breezy coastal courses (Hilversumche, East london etc) which are quite short but where trees are definitely in play and quite probably a liking for golf in Morocco as Hoey had won here on the Challenge tour previously at the El Jadida course.
Mikko Ilonen looks like a strong contender to me this week as the course plays to his strengths as he seems at home on linksy type courses. He is a former British amateur champion and twice has finished in the top ten at the Open. His form here reads 7th and 17th and he was 3rd at the course used in 2010. With a top ten already under his belt in Qatar and a nice warmup in Malaysia last week when 17th I really think he will be challenging come Sunday 0.4 ew 80/1
Robert Coles seems to love his golf in Morocco having won on the European Challenge tour at El Jadida back in 2008 and he had his best result of the year here last year when 3rd. Don't get me wrong but at the sharp end on Sunday he will be more nervous than most if he is up there so be prepared to lay back and lock in a profit! Since returning to the main tour in 2010 he has tried his best to lock up his card early - in 2010 he was 4th in March in Andalucia, 2011 saw him collapse on the 72nd in the Avantha Masters but he still finished 2nd and last year his 3rd here basically protected his playing rights. Despite his big price because of his poor form he is still worth a play 0.15 ew 200/1
Julien Quesne caught my eye this week because of his Challenge tour form in Morocco where he was 2nd and 3rd at El Jadida in 2008/9. His 37th here last year wasn't a bad effort especially when you consider it came the week after his maiden win on the European tour. His form wasn't great the rest of the year but he had a couple of nice finishes in 2013 with 5th in the Volvo Golf Champions in January and then was 9th in India a couple of weeks ago 0.25 ew 80/1