The Desert Swing on the European Tour came to a halt last week in Dubai and now moves to Malaysia for the Maybank Championship. The inaugural event was a hit last year as we see more star players make the trip to Asia this year.
This year’s field is hands down far better than last year’s. Major champions Charl Schwartzel +900 and Danny Willett +2500 headline the field that also features Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger +950, England’s Tommy Fleetwood +2250 and Lee Westwood +1250, Spain’s Rafa Cabrera-Bello +850 and Nacho Elvira +4500 and defending champion Marcus Fraser +3500.
Adding to the list are Asian stars Anirban Lahiri +1750, Kiradech Aphibarnrat +2200 and Thongchai Jaidee +2000. Reigning U.S. Amateur champion Curtis Luck +7000 gets a sponsor’s exemption.
The tournament gets a new venue this year when Saujana Golf and Country Club is host. The course has hosted six previous Malaysian Opens, but all six were when the tournament was not sanctioned by the European Tour. The layout is tight measuring 7,186 yards and plays to a par 72.
Maybank Championship Golf Odds courtesy of BookMaker.eu:
Rafa Cabrera- Bello +850
Charl Schwartzel +900
Bernd Wiesberger +950
Lee Westwood +1250
Jeunghun Wang +1500
Anirban Lahiri +1750
Thongchai Jaidee +2000
Kiradech Aphibarnrat +2200
Thomas Aiken +2300
Tommy Fleetwood +2250
Danny Willett +2500
Joakim Lagergren +2550
Peter Uihlein +2500
Pablo Larrazabal +2750
Ross Fisher +3000
Victor Dubuisson +3250
Marcus Fraser +3500
George Coetzee +3550
K.T. Kim +3750
Hao Tong Li +4000
Jorge Campillo +4250
Nacho Elvira +4500
Scott Hend +4750
Graeme Storm +5000
Nicolas Colsaerts +5250
Paul Dunne +5500
David Lipsky +6000
Prom Meesawat +6250
Alexander Levy +6500
Curtis Luck +7000
Jbe Kruger +7250
Gregory Bourdy +7500
Lucas Bjerregaard +8000
Maximilian Kieffer +8100
Chris Paisley +9000
Mikko Ilonen +9500
Benjamin Hebert +10000
Jamie Donaldson +10000
FIELD - Any other Player +375
TV Coverage: The Golf Channel
ODDS ANALYSIS
Peter Uihlein +2500 is showing that he has fully recovered from his injury that sidelined him for part of last year. The American finished T7 last week at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and that followed a T9 at the BMW SA Open. He also has a good taste in his mouth when playing in Malaysia with a T16 in the 2015 Malaysian Open and a T9 in this event 12 months ago.
VALUE: Thongchai Jaidee +2000 won on this course twice in 2004 and 2005. The Thai star loves playing in Asia and closed last week with a season low 65 in the final round to finish T15. In 29 starts in Malaysia, he’s missed the cut just four times, won twice and added multiple top 10’s. Jaidee offers gamers the best value on the board and is a must play in all formats.
FADE: Week after week I harp on the fact that Danny Willett +2500 is playing like garbage and week after week he makes me look good. The reigning Masters champion is the most over valued player on the European Tour and can’t be counted on for four rounds. He has only two top 10’s since last May.
BookMaker.eu offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. The Maybank Championship is scheduled for February 9-12, 2017. The Golf Channel will televise it live.
