2013 WGC HSBC Champions Betting Preview Tips and Predictions
WGC - HSBC Champions, Sheshan International GC, 31 Oct 2013 - 03 Nov 2013
Francesco Molinari 35/1
Having top 20’d in Italy and Portugal things finally clicked for Francesco at the BMW Masters when he found his putting touch and tied for second. With the WGC HSBC Champions event returning to Sheshan after a year at Mission Hills, the Italian will be delighted it’s coming back to the venue where he won in 2010 and has two other top 10’s besides. Third in “putts per round†last week, make sure he’s on your betting slip.
Ryan Moore 40/1
Ryan Moore drilled home his birdie on the first playoff hole at the CIMB for his third win on the PGA TOUR. All his wins have come between August and year end. Moore brings that good form back to Sheshan for the first time since 2009 when he finished solo third as part of a five tournament top-10 run. His CIMB win also secured perks at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, Masters and the PGA Championship in 2014.
Paul Casey 30/1
![paul casey funny pic[5]](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-SCwzkpU996Y/Um5WP1t7qVI/AAAAAAAAcbI/FPTRErkq6_M/s1600-h/paul%252520casey%252520funny%252520pic%25255B5%25255D%25255B3%25255D.jpg "paul casey funny pic[5]")
I know Paul Casey will have a lot of punters watching this week after his return to form with a tied eighth at the BMW Masters, but I have to be a bit more circumspect. Yes Paul hit more greens in regulation than anyone in the field last week put his putting was average at best and with the winning scores at Sheshan 20 and 19 under in its last two stagings (2011, 2010), Paul is going to have to convert more chances. In his favour is his excellent track record at the venue with four top 10’s since 2007 including tying fourth in 2011.
Peter Uihlein 45/1
It’s still all very new for Peter Uihlein who tees it up for the first time in a WGC event in this his 36th Tour start. But you certainly would not think that to look at him. Though protracted, Uihlein has three top five finishes in his last four starts after solo seconds in Wales and Scotland and a tied fifth last week in Shanghai. If he brings his enormous driving with the same accuracy displayed last week Uihlein could be right up there again.
Martin Kaymer 25/1
The German’s tilt was over after a first round of 75 in the windy conditions in Shanghai last week but he improved his scores over the next three days to tie 13th. That’s Kaymer’s third top 15 in a row but again his performance on the greens has only been a shadow of his long game accuracy. His last win came here in 2011, the one before that was also a HSBC sponsored event. Let’s hope they are a good omen!
Best Of The Rest
Peter Hanson 65/1. Any man who can card an opening round of 79 and still finish in a tie for eighth deserves respect. I notice Peter Hanson (like Thomas Bjorn) is quoted at 65/1 this week and has to be worth keeping an eye on. In his first tournament since the Wyndham in August the Swede was in the top 20 in the GIR stats and more impressively third in both key putting stats. Has a recent best of tied sixth on the course in 2010 when he also started rather poorly!
Thomas Bjorn 65/1 looked remarkably focussed in tying fifth at Lake Malaren last week and is the type of player who can sustain top form over a number of weeks. The bookies have the Dane on offer at a very generous 65/1 given that he has no form to speak of in the event.
Ian Poulter 25/1 won this event when it was staged at Mission Hills last year and though he can boast no better than a pair of tied 13th finishes in recent years at Sheshan was statistically the hottest putter last week. I though myself he was unlucky to finish T15 and there could be a backlash this week.
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