Golf Tips: Our experts' best bets for this week's Mauritius Open

• Steve backs defending champ Rozner in Mauritius

• 319/1320.00 Van Tonder backed to shock the field

• First round leader tips up to 100/1101.00

Mauritius Open: Defending champ the one to beat

Steve Rawlings: "It was a case of 13^th time lucky for Louis Oosthuizen on Monday when he finally won a tournament he'd always dreamed of winning - the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek.

"Flushed with success and around a course he co-designed, that should suit his game perfectly, he's the understandable favourite in a fairly weak renewal, but both those factors may turn out to be bigger negatives than positives.

"I suspect he will have celebrated Monday's victory and it may not be that easy to lift himself to go again so soon...

"I was more than happy to take the 18/1 originally offered up by the Betfair Sportsbook.

"He's been backed into 12/1 there but the 17.0 available on the Exchange is still more than acceptable. Having finished seventh, second and first at three different venues in this event previously, it's extremely difficult to see him not contending again.

"He clearly loves Mauritius, the new course should suit him, and he arrives in decent form so he's the man to beat for me."

Mauritius Open Each-Way Tips: 16/1 Pavon can sail in the Indian Ocean

Matt Cooper: "In the last two months, the Frenchman has played six times, finishing sixth in the Dunhill Links Championship, first in the Open de Espana, ninth in the Andalucia Masters, T47th in the Qatar Masters, T15th in the Nedbank Challenge (when the halfway leader) and fifth in the DP World Tour Championship (when the first round leader).

"The only player in the field who can better than form is the course designer Louis Oosthuizen based on his win last week, but going back-to-back with the added faff of being constantly asked about the course could be tricky. Pavon also likes this sort of course (modern, blustery, by the sea).

"He was eighth at St Francis Links this year and in the past has been second at Dom Pedro, T12th at The Renaissance, eighth at Meloneras, T11th at Royal Greens, tenth at Ballyliffin, third at Dundonald Links, third at Morgado and third at Al Mouj."

Mauritius Open First-Round Leader Tips: Selections from 40/1 to 100/1

Dave Tindall: "Enjoying links settings is one part of Joakim Lagergren's appeal here; the other is his recent penchant for fast starts. His outright form is solid enough - he's made his last four cuts and placed 31st and 39th in his latest two outings - but his Thursday numbers are striking.

"The Swede was a first-round leader in the South African Open thanks to a 65, he sat 10th after 18 holes of last week's Alfred Dunhill Championship and, widening the lens, his last five openers read: 68, 65, 68, 69, 66.

"The latter came at the Open de France, that strong start putting him fifth after day one. There's plenty there to make him an enticing bet at a three-figure price."

Find Me a 100 Winner: Back 209/1 and 339/1 outsiders in Mauritius

Steve Rawlings: "Although he hasn't contended since losing his card he's played quite nicely in spells, and he could be close.

"He started round three slowly on Saturday at Leopard Creek, but he played his last eight holes in six-under-par, so he's not in utterly hopeless form and this venue might just suit him.

"Van Tonder, who's won eight times previously on the Sunshine Tour, was a contender at the Open Championship on his only appearance in the event in 2021 (finished 40^th but sat seventh at halfway) so we know he likes a links test. If last week's event had stopped after 54 holes, a lot more punters would have spotted the 32-year-old's finish to round three.

"This week odds in excess of 300.0 are just too big for someone as prolific as Van Tonder."

Mauritius Open: Course and current form stats

Andy Swales: "Apart from Pavon, three other Europeans with reasonable current form are Antoine Rozner 18/1, Sebastian Soderberg 28/1 and Jeff Winther 33/1.

"Soderberg was another pro to enjoy October's visit to St Andrews, where he finished fifth, while Winther has had four top-10s in eight events.

"As for in-form home grown players at this co-sanctioned event, you may wish to consider Casey Jarvis 40/1, Jayden Schaper 20/1 or Jaco Van Zyl 125/1. Jarvis tied-seventh at Leopard Creek, as did 22-year-old Schaper whose most recent three starts read 9th-5th-7th."

Read Steve Rawlings' in-play blog across the weekend for the latest updates from this week's tournament