The European Tour ventures to the Mediterranean island of Cyprus for the first time to kick off a two-tournament swing at Aphrodite Hills Resort starting this week with the inaugural Cyprus Open. As the betting odds suggest there is a wide open field behind favorite Andy Sullivan opening up a number of wagering opportunities when it comes to matchups. Sullivan is currently the only player listed with shorter than 20/1 odds. Another new event means another new venue creating some intriguing tournament matchups. There is a good chance we see another longshot emerge victorious like Ross McGowan did last week in Italy. Visit BookMaker.eu for a complete, updated list of matchup betting odds and to place your wager.
Cyprus Open Matchup Odds at BookMaker.eu
Andy Sullivan -120 vs. Thomas Detry +103
Shubankar Sharma +121 vs. Maverick Antcliff -142
Kalle Samooja -147 vs. Jonathan Caldwell +125
Mikko Korhonen -120 vs. Jamie Donaldson +103
Richard Bland -105 vs. Adrian Meronk -111
Richie Ramsay -108 vs. Alexander Bjork -108
Masahiro Kawamura -101 vs. Johannes Veerman -116
Sami Valimaki +109 vs. Connor Syme -127
Wil Besseling +101 vs. Benjamin Hebert -118
Matthieu Pavon -107 vs. Jason Scrivener -109
David Horsey -107 vs. Jorge Campillo -109
Gavin Green -125 vs. Matthew Jordan +107
Ben Stow +103 vs. Sebastian Soderberg -120
Matthew Southgate +106 vs. Sean Crocker -124
Robert MacIntyre -191 vs. Wilco Nienaber +162
Joost Luiten -136 vs. Sam Horsfield +116
Antoine Rozner +110 vs. Gavin Green -128
Ross Fisher +106 vs. Romain Langasque -124
Andy Sullivan -170 vs. Sam Horsfield +145
Matthias Schwab -148 vs. Laurie Canter +126
Grant Forrest -108 vs. Pablo Larrazabal -108
Andy Sullivan -129 vs. Joost Luiten +110
Chris Paisley -103 vs. Sebastian Heisele -113
Callum Hill +112 vs. Thorbjorn Olesen -131
Marcus Kinhult +109 vs. Matthias Schwab -127
Joakim Lagergren +101 vs. Paul Waring -118
Marcus Armitage -115 vs. Nicolas Colsaerts -102
Garrick Higgo -112 vs. Haotong Li -104
Antoine Rozner -104 vs. Matthew Jordan -112
Robert MacIntyre -127 vs. Jordan Smith +109
Jordan Smith -176 vs. Wilco Nienaber +150
Marcus Kinhult -122 vs. Laurie Canter +104
Thomas Detry -165 vs. Sam Horsfield +140
Joost Luiten +104 vs. Thomas Detry -122
Need to Know
While Aphrodite Hills is a new course it’s basically a resort that plays short at 6,956 yards with few obstacles along the way. Being an exposed coastal layout one of the primary defenses is wind, which there is very little of in the weekend forecast. With little to no wind, wide fairways and few hazards, we can expect to see plenty of birdie opportunities coming from the pros. It’s not as easy as it sounds, though. The par-3 seventh hole is played over a huge ravine that can gobble golf balls, and numerous bunkers will eat stray shots. Three of the four par-5s are reachable in two and the par-4s are short with only one measuring over 450 yards.
Cyprus Open Matchup Picks
Andy Sullivan -120 vs. Thomas Detry
Finding the tournament favorite decently priced in this matchup made backing Sullivan an easy choice. The short course fits his style since he’s not long off the tee, and recent form is a positive since he posted a T3 at Wentworth last time out. Sullivan also has a win at the English Championship and another top-10 at the UK Championship in the last two months. Meanwhile, Detry can bust out any time, but his recent frustrating play has me going with Sullivan.
Sami Valimaki +109 vs. Connor Syme
Grabbing Valimaki at plus-odds was too good to pass up. The young Finn topped the field in GIR at Wentworth leading to a T13 giving him four top-15s in his last five Euro Tour starts. That run included a solo second at the Wales Open and a T6 at the Celtic Classic. He missed the cut at the U.S. Open last month claiming it was a learning experience. Fairly new to the Tour, it appears as though Valimaki is a fast learner. He’s probably worth dropping a few bucks on as the outright winner in a weaker field.
Garrick Higgo -112 vs. Haotong Li
The inconsistent play of Li the last two months has me leaning toward Higgo in this matchup. The young South African tore up the Tour after the restart in a few dual-ranking events, showing off the form that had him as the top player in the Sunshine Tour. In just his seventh Euro Tour start he claimed victory at the Open de Portugal last month. He’s been consistent finishing among the top-30 in his last two starts and should find this layout and field more to his liking.
Antoine Rozner -104 vs. Matthew Jordan
Rozner is another player entering on a nice run of form. The Frenchman has five top-10 finishes this season with two of them coming in his previous four starts. He reached the podium at the Andalucia Masters last month and grabbed a share of 10th last week in Italy. More importantly, he’s played through the weekend in 14 of 16 starts this season, and as you know that’s half the battle in a matchup.
Matthias Schwab -127 vs. Marcus Kinhult
I wavered on this matchup but in the end went with Schwab based on his solid iron play and ball-striking. He’s not the longest off the tee and should excel on a course that’s designed for second shots. The key for Schwab is picking up the pace with the flat stick. He’s a legitimate title contender if he can drain a few putts. Schwab has always performed better on shorter courses and Aphrodite Hills is one that caters to his strong approach game.
BookMaker 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. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu. The Cyprus Open is scheduled for October 29-November 1 and can be seen on Golf Channel.
