Away from the usual markets, Niall Lyons thinks there are three bets worth backing at Augusta this week.
JOVAN REBULA will have a lot of support from his uncle Ernie Els this week at Augusta and he should be raring to go at his second major appearance. The South African has flirted with the European Tour so far with a missed cut in the Dubai Desert earlier this year and a solid top 25 finish in the South African Open last year.
He qualifies for this courtesy of his win at the British Amateur Championship last year and there is evidence to suggest the difference in price between him and the favourite in the Top Amateur is too much. Recently the two Amateur Champions battled it out in the Georgia Cup. This is a match play game between the winner of the British and US Amateur Championships.
Rebula raced from the blocks to a 4up lead but had to settle for a smaller margin victory of 1up after 18. Hovland has impressed in what we've seen so far most notably a 40th placed finish at the Arnold Palmer. Amateur rankings and results suggest the Norwegian has a brighter future but that recent match play result may just give Rebula the upper hand here. With his connections, he may just be a shade more comfortable than the others he is up against here. The 11/2 looks worth a punt.
JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL hasn't been doing anything spectacular but recent finishes on the Champions Tour suggest he may be worth chancing in the Top Senior market. His last three finishes on the Champions Tour of 25-33-32 have accumulated a total of 11 under par. This is an improvement for the Spaniard who tees it up at Augusta this week on the 20th and 25th anniversary of his two victories. This could get his juices flowing and you'd think there may be a performance in Olazabal yet at the ripe age of 53. He is up against it with Langer and Singh still producing some great golf but I don't think there should be such a huge gap in their prices. The 40/1 out there is worth chancing.
JORDAN SPIETH's current form reads 30-MC-54-51-45-35-MC-MC-55-55. He remains a huge talking point as to what his chances are but in my opinion, they are very slim. This form reads somewhat of a player outside the worlds top 100. He has fallen to world no 33 and if he doesn't improve quickly he may find himself in danger of falling out of the top 50.
Everyone knows how much of a fan I am and there's no doubt he will be back to win more majors but this week looks a very tall order that I think even the great genius will struggle with. This is, of course, the easiest event of the year to make the cut with the limited field and past champions/amateurs taking their spots. However, big scores can be run up here and Spieth's game is so much of a rollercoaster nowadays that I find it hard not to see him racking up a huge number at some stage.
If that occurs on day 1 or 2 he may give up the ghost and return to the task of trying to fix his game. The course looks like it will be soft too that won't play into his hands with his lack of power compared to many others. Overall 11/2 looks a decent price and although it is highly unlikely given the nature of the event I think it has to be backed.
