Niall Lyons picks out his best bets on Day 1 of the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black.
Ryder Cup Day 1
Scheffler/Henley to beat Aberg/Fitzpatrick
There was little in the way of surprises with Bradley's announcements yesterday evening but a couple of Donald's pairings certainly raise some eyebrows.
Aberg and Hovland indeed don't go with each other in foursomes and Fitzpatrick can consider himself lucky to get such a powerhouse partner in the Swede.
Fitzpatrick's dismal record in this event in the States could be set to continue though as he's up against Scheffler and Henley in game two and it'll take some effort from the Europeans here to get anything.
Fitzpatrick will be looking to make a brand new start of it, in old New York. Neither him or Aberg are at the peak of their powers and arguably their two opponents certainly are. This seems like the banker of the day.
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McIlroy/Fleetwood to beat Morikawa and English
The best chance Europe have of bagging a point in the opening foursomes is McIlroy and Fleetwood who pair up against Morikawa and English.
Morikawa has plenty of short game issues of late and is nowhere near his best. He may not be priced as so in the top USA markets but you'd have to think he's one of the weaker members.
English may be better suited to this course than folk think with a great record in US Majors and a win this year at the lengthy South Course at Torrey Pines.
Nevertheless, he'll need Morikawa to be at his best which I just can't envisage, and even if he is it's a tall order against these two.
I'd have made the Europeans closer to 8/15 in this game and anything bigger than 4/7 looks a rare ounce of value in these games.
Dechambeau/Thomas to beat Rahm/Hatton
My belief is this will go the way of the home team this week and I think it could be by a wide margin once again. Bradley has made a bold move in sending out the two cheerleaders first and a lot could rest on their shoulders.
Red on the board early will be the order of the day and in these two they have a pair who won't let anyone pass.
It could indeed be a masterstroke by Bradley to send these two out and in Jon Rahm I firmly believe he has been priced up in most markets this week based on reputation rather than recent form.
I'd make the Americans slightly stronger favs than what they currently are and they'll make up my day 1 treble.
Day 1 Foursomes - Draw
With McIlroy and Scheffler strong favs to win their games and with no real opinion on game 4 in the foursomes, I'm keen to get the 2-2 draw on side in the first session.
I think the 2 marquee matches will go as planned with the jollies and it leaves just two other matches where we're looking the score to come out 1-1.
I can see a scenario where this trades much shorter than 11/4 in running and it's the one bet I'm quite keen on for the first session.
2pts Day 1 Foursomes session to finish a draw 11/4 Skybet, BetVictor
