LIV Golf Invitational Bangkok Tips: Go east with Westwood

Main Bet: Lee Westwood 1pt each-way @ 40/1

And so LIV Golf moves east, to Asia and specifically Bangkok for the sixth event of its inaugural season.

There is high excitement in Asian golf about the injection of funds from the Saudi-backed venture and it reveals an awkward truth for the traditional tours, one which Greg Norman has used as leverage in his fight with them.

Namely, the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour have always been half-hearted or self-serving when heading to Asia.

It's another fascinating/depressing element of this sorry saga.

Golf was always capitalism's favourite sport and now it appears that the game, like capitalism itself, is eating itself.

A cheery thought with which to approach a test that is, well, enormous.

The card at Stonehill Golf Club was originally announced as a par-71 at 7,591 yards on the official website.

The problem was that the 18 pars and yardages came to bigger numbers.

After chasing I have been assured it is a par-72 set at 7,816 yards.

Yes, you did read that right.

Three of the four par-5s are over 600 yards and six of the par-4s stretch beyond 484-yards.

The column has had plenty of success in the first five LIV events. To be specific, four winners and a profit made in all of them.

For the first two, we avoided the favourites on purpose (the theory being there would be extra attention and pressure on them).

In the most recent tournaments, we landed winners with golfers at or near the top of the market.

This week, there are a few extra variables because, even cocooned in the extravagant LIV bubble, there is a long journey and a different part of the world to encounter (on and off the course).

The length of the track makes me wary of Dustin Johnson in particular, but it's time to look beyond the favourites again.

I'm not sure that Englishman Lee Westwood should be the price he is this week and he is the first pick.

His first two starts on the rebel circuit were stymied by poor first rounds which might have something to do with all the hullabaloo, but he's found his stride since then.

He was sixth at Bedminster, 12th last time out in Chicago and in-between fourth in Boston when flying home on a wet sail with a round of 62.

Moreover, he really looked like he was enjoying himself in the heat of battle.

He also closed his Wentworth account with a 65 for a finish of 13th which may have been better had he not started the week feeling the effects of jet lag.

Beyond the form, I also really like his record in the region.

His first win in Asia came in Macau 23 years ago and he's added another in South Korea, three in Indonesia and two in Thailand.

The last five of those read well for this week's challenge and a strong challenge is well within his grasp.

Next Best: Matthew Wolff 1pt each-way @ 28/1

The American Matthew Wolff got off to a strong start in his LIV career landing eighth on debut in Portland and second in Bedminster.

At first glance, he's slipped back in the next two starts but, in actual fact, he did get involved in the mix.

He was tied for the first round lead in Boston and still fifth heading into the final round before a final round 70 slipped him back to 13th.

Then in Chicago, he was third after 18 holes and seventh after 36 before another final day moved in the wrong direction to 16th.

I also like that in the last two seasons on the PGA Tour he has featured high up the rankings for approaches from 200 yards and more: he ranked fifth in 2021 and third in 2022.

Add that to his considerable length from the tee and this might be a test that will suit him.

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