Void of some of the top talent on the European Tour, the Maybank Championship will still have plenty of intriguing matchups when the field tees it up at the Sajuana Golf and Country Club in Kuala Lumpur this week. Defending champion Shubhankar Sharma is hoping a return to Malaysia can jump start his game, which has flatlined lately. He has had success in this part of the world, however, and can’t be overlooked. Thomas Pieters is the betting favorite at BookMaker.eu and is included on several matchups with all the odds for those pairings listed below.
Maybank Championship Matchup Odds at BookMaker.eu
Nicolas Colsaerts -125 vs. Prom Meesawat +105
Louis De Jager +100 vs. Matthias Schwab -120
Fabrizio Zanotti -125 vs. Thomas Detry +105
Thomas Detry -120 vs. Alexander Bjork +100
Thomas Pieters -160 vs. Ryan Fox +140
Thomas Pieters -135 vs. Jorge Campillo +115
Marcus Fraser +105 vs. Marcus Kinhult -135
Wade Ormsby +100 vs. Andrea Pavan -120
Jorge Campillo -125 vs. Ryan Fox +105
Ernie Els -105 vs. Bernd Wiesberger -115
Adrian Otaegui -110 vs. Maximilian Kieffer -110
Shubhankar Sharma +115 vs. Mikko Korhonen -135
Paul Peterson -110 vs. Ryo Ishikawa -120
Oliver Fisher -110 vs. Panuphol Pittayarat -120
Jordan Smith -145 vs. Jazz Janewattananond +125
Christiaan Bezuidenhout -110 vs. Gaganjeet Bhullar -110
Adri Arnaus -130 vs. Jazz Janewattananond +110
Sihwan Kim -110 vs. Thongchai Jaidee -120
Jason Scrivener -130 vs. David Lipsky +110
Pablo Larrazabal -110 vs. George Coetzee -110
Chris Wood -110 vs. Nacho Elvira -110
Brandon Stone -135 vs. Dean Burmester +105
Aaron Rai +105 vs. Julian Suri -125
Zach Murray +100 vs. Benjamin Hebert -130
Ashley Chesters -110 vs. Hideto Tanihara -120
Soren Kjeldsen -130 vs. Matthew Southgate +110
Kurt Kitayama -110 vs. Ross Fisher -110
Miguel Angel Jimenez -110 vs. Padraig Harrington -120
Jordan Smith -115 vs. Adri Arnaus -105
Lucas Herbert -140 vs. Gavin Green +120
Fabrizio Zanotti -125 vs. Alexander Bjork +105
Scott Hend -120 vs. Scott Vincent -110
Andy Sullivan -125 vs. Chris Paisley +105
Jake McLeod -125 vs. Miguel Tabuena -105
Erik Van Rooyen -110 vs. Min Woo Lee -110
Need To Know
The Saujana Golf and Country Club layout isn’t a menace for the pros and there’s a strong chance we see scores similar to past events here. Sharma carded a -21 en route to victory last year. The 7,135-yard, par-72 layout will also yield plenty of birdie and eagle opportunities with five par 4 holes ranging in distance between 370 and 395 yards. There are a few hazards sprinkled around, but nothing that will scare the field from being overly aggressive. The fairways are lined with trees, however, they are forgiving and we will see a number of players pull out the big sticks to aid their score. The biggest obstacle might be the weather with high temperatures and humidity, along with an occasional thunderstorm in the forecast.
Maybank Championship Matchup Picks
Adri Arnaus -105 vs. Jordan Smith
Arnaus is trending in the right direction and that puts him in a good spot in this matchup. Coming off a runner-up finish last week in Kenya, the Spaniard has gained momentum following a T14 in Qatar the previous event. Those endings are the back half of a MC at the Saudi International and T45 at the Oman Open. Smith has been consistent, but not good enough to crack the top-10 in any of his six starts this year.
Kurt Kitayama -110 vs. Ross Fisher
Kitayama looks to be back in form after a rough stretch that saw three straight missed cuts. Of course, everything wasn’t going to come easy for the American, who won his initial Euro Tour title in just his third start. Following his MC in Perth, Kitayama triumphed at the Oman Open by setting the pace with a R1 66. He was consistent at the Qatar Masters scoring at or below par in all four rounds to grab a share of 20th.
Shubhankar Sharma +115 vs. Mikko Korhonen
Oddsmakers aren’t keen on Sharma, but a look at his results in Malaysia say he’s ready to break out of the slump that’s seen him miss three cuts in six starts this year. Sharma blistered Saujana with a 21-under last year and grabbed a T9 in his debut here the previous year. Competing in Kuala Lumpur at the PGA Tour CIMB Classic in October, Sharma held the 54-hole lead before settling for a T10. A trip to this part of the world is just what Sharma needs, and I expect him to compete for the title while besting matchup partner Korhonen.
Thomas Pieters -160 vs. Ryan Fox +140
We’ll count the MC at Qatar a few weeks ago as just one bad outing for Pieters, who enters this event as the betting favorite. Outside of that, the Belgian has been the model of consistency, though he hasn’t added to his Euro Tour victory total since 2016. Pieters is one of the best in the field with five straight top 30 finishes, three of those being T16 or better, prior to Qatar. Look for a strong response from Pieters this week.
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Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu. The Maybank Championship is scheduled for March 21-24 and can be seen on Golf Channel.
