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Alfred Dunhill betting: Schawartzel can turn it on in his own backyard

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Betfair's golf man TQ fancies young South African to atone for a poor performance last week with victory at Leopard Creek...

The European Tour makes the first of three stopovers in South Africa this week. Leopard Creek is a great venue for the 13-year-old Alfred Dunhill Championships and a good field has gathered to attempt to add their name to an already impressive roll of honour.

South African icon Ernie Els is the headline act but he is certainly backed up by a decent supporting cast. The Big Easy has not finished outside the top eight in the three times the event has been held in Leopard Creek and he certainly merits his place at the top of the market. Els always performs well in his home country and you cannot argue that he is the one to beat.

But as much as I am drawn to the class of Els, he is not my pick this week. To go against the legend takes something pretty special, and that is exactly what Charl Schwartzel is. The young South African is someone who I have been following for a while now and I am convinced that he has a major in him at some point in his career. His record in this event is exemplary, with one win and two second places in the last three years. Don’t look anywhere else this week, get on Schwartzel at [13.5] and you won’t regret it.

It is going to be a very interesting season ahead, with new young players coming through and some of the old guard looking to prove they are not a fading force. One of these people is Darren Clarke, supremely talented but completely out of form. The market has gone against Clarke in recent months, as backers can no longer see an imminent return to his best form. However, at [55’] in this type of event he has to be worth a small punt as there will come a time when he contends for a title. A proven winner, once he hits form these kinds of odds will be a thing of the past. Stick with Clarkey as I am sure he will turn the corner very very soon.

The week's other big event is also in the southern hemisphere, where a quality field has gathered for the Australian PGA Championship. On Queensland’s Sunshine Coast the best Australian players are gathered with a sprinkling of overseas stars. An Australian has won this event for the last seven years and once again they dominate the market, but dismiss the others at your peril.

It is surprising to see South African Rory Sabbatini miss the Dunhill in favour of this event so he will be worth keeping an eye on. However, it is another overseas player who merits my outright recommendation. American Kevin Stadler only just kept his card on the PGA Tour last season with a decent performance in the final event of the schedule. Clearly buoyed by that weight off his mind he has since recorded an excellent fourth place in the Champions Event in China. I am confident he will go very well this week and he is a must bet at [48].

It is a strong Australian contingent and it is worth investing in a saver in one of them. I prefer to leave the really big names alone here and I have a suspicion that the less fashionable Nathan Green will put in a big performance. He had an excellent season on the PGA Tour and he is a player who I will be following next season with a view to him securing his first title stateside. Back him at around [26] this week as I am sure he will be in contention over the weekend.

PGA Tour rookie Brandt Snedeker has made the trip to Australian this week and has spoken out about the importance of playing in different places around the world. He wants to test himself against other players on their own turf. I respect Snedeker’'s sincerity and I certainly hope some more of his countrymen follow suit.

The benefits of playing all over the world are clear to see, but does it actually make you a better player? In my opinion, yes it genuinely does. What do you think?

Going deeper, is this part of the reason that the US are failing to bring through many homegrown young stars in the last few years? Potentially, are the US a fading force in world golf? I think so and if this isn’t addressed soon by their own tour then the world rankings will continue to be swamped by non-US players. Can the US arrest this slide from domination? Or indeed, do they care as long as the tour itself is thriving?