Golf Events / Tareq Quiroz / 30 April 2008 / Leave a Comment

Tareq Quiroz on a genuinely top-class tour event in America this week

Barely a week goes by at this stage of the season without another amazing tournament in store for all golf enthusiasts and this week we have a cracker. The Wachovia Championship is in just its sixth year on the PGA Tour but already has the reputation of being an event that the top players desperately want to win.

Of the top players on tour, only Tiger will not be on show in North Carolina this week. Whilst the great man recovers from knee surgery the rest are aiming to get a win under their belt before the upcoming Players Championship. The fabulous Quail Hollow CC is the setting for what promises to be a top class four days of action.

At 7,442 yards, this is a pretty long track but there is no real evidence to suggest that this event cannot be won by the shorter hitters. The golf course is set up fairly but is very tricky and only players on top of their game will go under par this week. I am a fan of horses for courses and although this event has only been going for five previous years already one man stands out. Vijay Singh has recorded four top-ten finishes in his five attempts here, including a victory in 2005. Vijay is in great form this year with four top-five finishes without yet registering a win. I am confident this will be the big Fijian's week and at current odds of [16.5] he must be supported.

There are plenty of players who stand out in what is a multi-talented field but for a bit of three figure value my saver bet this week has to be Tim Clark. Clark is not exactly a prolific winner but often saves his best for the bigger events. After a miserable start to the year the South African is starting to find the kind of form that took him to six top-tens last season. At hefty odds of [120.0] now is the time to get on as he's playing a course he likes and one that should suit his game.

Ryan Moore showed what quality there is on tour now with his showing in last week's Byron Nelson event. Moore is a talented golfer who no doubt will record a victory at some point over the next year or two. Another US player who comes into that category is Anthony Kim. He is a huge talent and I can see him being a multiple winner on tour, maybe even this season. He has a second and a third already this year and showed a liking for this course with an excellent fifth in 2007. At [50.0] in the Winner market he is worth a small saver but my stand out bet for him would be to back him to beat Ryan Moore in their Tournament Match Bet. Moore surely will be feeling the effects of last week and expect Kim to beat him easily. Anything over [1.7] is a tremendous bet for Kim to prevail in this head-to-head.

There has been a lot of talk recently about this year's Ryder Cup and who may or may not make the teams. For Europe some are suggesting Ross Fisher may be a surprise runner and last week's win for Darren Clarke throws him right back into the mix. Whilst in the US talk is of whether Moore or Kim can make the side, captain Paul Azinger is likely to be dealing with the one and only Boo Weekley come the big one at Valhalla. The man is rumoured to wrestle alligators and once sparred with an orangutan at a country fair. Weekley was knocked clean out by the surprisingly useful ape but if Boo does make that US Ryder Cup team do not be surprised to see him delivering his own knockout blows to the European team in September.

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