Golf Bets / Mike Norman / 01 September 2010 / Leave a Comment

With Ryder Cup qualification worries now behind them, Mike Norman expects relaxed attitudes in the beautiful surroundings of Crans Montana; and that means a good week in prospect for Simon Dyson.

With Colin Montgomerie's Ryder Cup team now assembled, the European Tour returns to normality this week when the stunningly-beautiful Crans-sur-Sierre course plays host to the Omega European Masters for an incredible 64th time.

Played high in the mountains of Crans Montana, this popular tournament is regularly won by a player firing a barrage of birdies during all four days. Not once since 1980 has a player emerged victorious with a score less than double figures under par, so perhaps the first golfer you need to consider this week is one who has been striking the ball really well in recent weeks. And in this week's field, there's arguably no-one striking the ball better than England's Simon Dyson of late.

Dyson is a player who often gets his game together at this time of year (three of his four European Tour wins have come in the months August through to October), and in recent weeks, there's been much evidence that this will be the case again. He finished 12th at the US PGA Championship at the beginning of the month before having a top-five finish at the Czech Open. At last week's Johnnie Walker Championship - under much media spotlight and the glare of Monty - he produced a fine effort to finish sixth, though ultimately that wasn't enough to qualify him for the Ryder Cup.

Now with a completely relaxed mind and body, Dyson should confirm his current wellbeing by going well at a course where he finished seventh last year. He is available to back at [30.0] in the Winner market and should give his followers and excellent run for their money.

Using a combination of current form and past course form points me in the direction of two players who should be backed this week - Welshman Bradley Dredge ([22.0]), and to a lesser extent, England's Oliver Wilson ([44.0]).

Dredge's past performances around the 6,822-yard Crans-sur-Sierre course have been nothing short of blistering. From his last seven visits here he has finished in the top 20 on six occasions. What's more, from those six top-20s, four of them were top-four finishes, including a victory in 2006 by an incredibly eight shots. In recent weeks he's had a 16th place finish (Czech Open) and a seventh place finish (Johnnie Walker Championship), which augurs well that he can get back in the winner's enclosure in Switzerland having finished runner-up here last year.

Wilson's form here might not be as impressive as the Welshman's, but his consistency is just as good. From his last four appearances in this tournament he has finished in the top 25 every time with his best a fifth in 2007. He was always on the fringe of contention last week at Gleneagles - where he would eventually finish in a tie for 14th - so I wouldn't rule out a good showing this week at all. Realistically though, given that he has never won on the Tour yet, he makes more appeal in the Top 5 Finish market, where he is available to back at [11.0].

As I'm sure you're all aware, the ball travels about 10% further in the thin air of the Swiss Alps than it does at most venues. I'm taking the view that the long hitters will just hit the ball longer, whilst the short hitters will be licking their lips at the prospect of being able to reach the green in regulation!

Long-hitter Ricardo Gonzalez ([320.0]) has made seven straight cuts here, and whilst he hasn't ever got into serious contention, a few more accurate drives could change that fact this week. Short-hitter Peter O'Malley ([830.0]) isn't the same force of old, but he's had some respectable finishes at this venue in the last five years and will no doubt be looking forward to playing here again with the knowledge that he'll have an iron in his hand for most of his second shots rather than a fairway metal.

Both are huge outsiders in the Winner market, but might just give us a bit of fun in the Top 10 Finish market, for which they are available to back at [32.0] (Gonzalez) and [80.0] (O'Malley) respectively.

Recommended Bets

Back Simon Dyson @ [30.0] in Winner market
Back Bradley Dredge @ [22.0] in Winner market
Back Oliver Wilson @ [11.0] in Top 5 Finish market
Back Ricardo Gonzalez @ [32.0] in Top 10 Finish market
Back Peter O'Malley @ [80.0] in Top 10 Finish market

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