Find Me a 100 Winner: Lawrence looks value to emulate Grace

This week's DP World Tour event, the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, is a pro-am that sees the field play three different links tracks over the first three days - St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns - before the final round is contested over St Andrews and if the weather's iffy, as it's predicted to be this year, on which day you play certain courses is often vital.

As highlighted in the preview, last year's winner, Danny Willett, began the tournament at Carnoustie on Thursday and so too did the four winners between 2013 and 2016.

The benefits in ordinary or benign conditions of that particular draw are twofold. You get the toughest track out of the way on day one and you get to play St Andrews on concurrent days on Saturday and Sunday.

That draw only works if Thursday isn't the worst day weather-wise and so far, if the forecasts are to be believed, Friday looks far and away the worst day, so I've concentrated my efforts on players drawn to play Carnoustie on Thursday.

Lawrence looks value to emulate Grace

My first pick is drawn to play Carnoustie on Thursday, the recent European Masters winner, Thriston Lawrence.

South Africa's Branden Grace won this event ten years ago as a 24-year-old and I can definitely see similarities between the two players.

Earlier in the season in 2012, Grace had got off the mark on the DP World Tour in his homeland at the Joburg Open before winning twice more, so he was winning his fourth event of the year when he held off Thorbjorn Olesen to win here and Lawrence's profile is certainly comparable.

Lawrence also won the Joburg Open to get off the mark on the DP World Tour and he's also followed that win up with another success at the European Masters. At 25, he's starting to fulfil his potential and given he won the Lytham Trophy as an 18 year-old amateur two years after Grace racked up his four wins, so we know he has the ability to handle links conditions - as most South Africans do.

With the benefit of what could be the prize draw, at odds of 140.0139/1 he looks a very fair price to complete a hattrick of DP World Tour wins.

Back 2u Thriston Lawrence @ 140.0139/1
Place order to lay 10u @ 10.09/1 & 10u @ 2.35/4

Pod an obvious pick

The veteran two-time Open Champion, Padraig Harrington, who won this event in both 2002 and 2006, is in fine form on the Champions Tour in the states and he'll relish the tough conditions predicted this week.

Also drawn to play Carnoustie on Thursday, he's drifted to a backable price today and I'm happy to take a chance at on him at 170.0169/1.

He'll keep plugging on when others have cried enough, and experience could be key this week if the weather is as bad as forecasted.

Back 2u Padraig Harrington @ 170.0169/1
Place order to lay 10u @ 10.09/1 & 10u @ 2.35/4

Former winner Wilson primed to contend again

In addition to Lawrence and Pod, both of my pre-event picks, Tyrrell Hatton and Tommy Fleetwood, have been assigned the seemingly advantageous Carnoustie - Kingsbarns - St Andrews draw but forecasts aren't always correct and even if it is this week, Friday looks so bad that we may even get a suspension in play and if that happens, what looks like the best draw on paper could transpire to be anything but so I don't want to put all my eggs in one basket.

Prior to last year, the previous three event winners had all begun their tournaments at St Andrews so I'm happy to take a chance on the 2014 winner, Oliver Wilson, who's been in cracking form lately.

Wilson, who was also second in this event in 2009, finally won his second DP World Tour event in extraordinary fashion in Denmark at the start of the month, holing some monster putts late on to collar Scotland's Ewen Ferguson.

The 42-year-old Englishman followed his Made in HimmerLand victory with a respectable 27th in the BMW PGA Championship the following week and it would be no surprise to see him contend again here if the draw doesn't complete derail him.

Back 1u Oliver Wilson @ 240.0239/1
Place order to lay 10u @ 10.09/1 & 10u @ 2.35/4

Local ties point to Buckley

Given we haven't seen a triple-figure priced winner on the PGA Tour since May, I could have concentrated all my efforts on the Alfred Dunhill but as highlighted in the preview, we've witnessed plenty of first-time winners and outsiders take the prize at this week's PGA Tour event - the Sanderson Farms Championship.

It's also an event in which players from the south tend to thrive so I'm more than happy to take a chance of 140.0139/1 chance, Hayden Buckley, who looks to have a big future.

Born in neighbouring state, Tennessee, the 26-year-old went to High School in Mississippi and he's already shown a liking for this week's venue, having finished fourth last year.

That was his best result last season but there were certainly sign she's capable of much more. He sat third at the halfway stage of the US Open before finishing 14th and he was in seventh place with a round to go at the ST Jude Championship last month before a poor final round saw him slip to 61st.

Back 2u Hayden Buckley @ 150.0149/1
Place order to lay 10u @ 10.09/1 & 10u @ 2.35/4

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