Event Info
Starts: 21st April 2022
Course: Lakes Course, Infinitum Golf
Par: 70
Length: 6,963 yards
2021 Champion: New Event
Preview
Course Info
Course Designer: Greg Norman
Fairways: Average/Wide
Rough: Average/High
Water Hazards: Featured throughout
Par 5's: 16th & 18th
Hosted Since: 2022
Premium on: Approach
Significant Info To Be Aware Of
- This is a new event on the DP World Tour. However, Infinitum Golf was previously known as Lumine Golf and the Lakes Course was used for European Tour qualifying events in past years.
- Continue to exercise caution in relation to Covid-19 related withdrawals.
Trends
With no previous events to analyse, we make no stats comparisons.
Stats Analysis
With no previous events to analyse, we make no stats comparisons.
In Play
Tough Holes
The 9th and 12th play as stroke index 1 and 2 on the scorecard.
Birdie Holes
As ever, the par 5s will offer plenty of birdie opportunities but the 10th and 3rd play as the easiest holes on the scorecard.
Fast or Slow Start
We don't have any previous tournaments to draw upon.
Closing stretch
The 16th isa par 5, the 17th is a par 3 and the 18th is a 539 yard par 5. We should see plenty of drama.
Player Quotes
Available later in the week.
In-play
2022 ISPS Handa Championship in Spain
23 April 2022, 9:55pm (UK time)
Player | Total |
---|---|
Jamieson (thru 5) | -11 |
Cockerill | -9 |
Wilson (thru 15) | -8 |
Larrazabal (thru 9) | -8 |
Senior (thru 8) | -8 |
Du Plessis (thru 8) | -8 |
Law (thru 6) | -8 |
Veerman (thru 6) | -8 |
Pulkkanen (thru 5) | -8 |
Otaegui (thru 5) | -8 |
If the story of day one and two was the leaderboard scoring errors, day three was dominated by the weather.
Play was stopped for almost five hours due to the threat of lightning and the final group were only able to complete five holes.
Scott Jamieson was level par for his five holes and his lead has been trimmed to a solitary shot. He obviously has the advantage of more holes to play tomorrow and his price has remained static at 3/1.
Jamieson's sole European Tour win came at the 2012 Nelson Mandela Championship. That event was shortened to 36 holes and a shortened tournament would be the only way we'd be considering backing Jamieson. However, it looks like they'll complete all four rounds and as such, we aren't interested in the 3/1 on offer.
Aaron Cockerill is Jamieson's nearest challenger but unlike the leader, he has completed all 18 holes of his 3rd round. The Canadian referenced his good memories here from the 2019 Qualifying School and he'll be desperately hoping to remain within touching distance of the lead once the third round is completed.
Our pre-event 66/1 pick, Johannes Veerman, is in the pack at 8 under par. He only played six holes of his third round and is nicely placed should Jamieson falter tomorrow. He's third favourite in the betting at 17/2 and it's a price worth considering if you aren't already on him.
Second favourite in the betting is Adrian Otaegui (15/2). The Spaniard is also in the group at eight under par. Otaegui is no stranger to comebacks on a Sunday, he overturned a four shot deficit to beat Matt Wallace at the 2020 Scottish Championship. We consider him a threat but his price is short enough given the number of players in the group at eight under.
We're in for another interesting final round weather wise, winds of 17mph are forecast. Hopefully we don't see any further delays in play.
Round 4 Bet
- 0.5pts Each Way Andrew Wilson 100/1 @ Livescore Bet (1/4 1-4)
Wilson has three holes left to play of his 3rd round and is on eight under par. Should he reach ten under par he'll be on the same score as Aaron Cockerill and Cockerill is currently rated as a 16/1 shot. It's obviously a huge IF but considering he has two par 5s to play, there's every chance he gets to ten under par. Odds of 100/1 are more than fair and with conditions set to be tough tomorrow, he could have a realistic chance of winning if scoring is slow in the morning. If you don't have an account with Livescore Bet, the 90/1 with Boylesports is also worth taking.
22 April 2022, 9:35pm (UK time)
Player | Total |
---|---|
Jamieson | -11 |
Pulkkanen | -9 |
Otaegui | -8 |
Veerman | -7 |
Mansell | -7 |
Law | -7 |
Nemecz | -7 |
R Hojgaard | -7 |
Confusion over the accuracy of the leaderboard has been a theme over the first two days but there is no doubting the score posted by Scott Jamieson over the opening two rounds in Spain.
Jamieson posted a bet of the day 63 to open up a two shot lead over Tapio Pulkkanen. The Scot is making a habit of playing well after an enforced break, having led for the first three rounds at the first event of the 2022 season in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.
Jamieson was unable to cross the finishing line in the Middle East and that's been a problem throughout his career. Odds of 3/1 make little appeal, even if he is likely to take inspiration from th win of compatriot, Ewen Ferguson, a few weeks ago.
Given the scoreboard errors it's hard to place any great emphasis on the stats collected in the first two rounds. Tapio Pulkkanen comfortably leads the SG: Tee to Green stats if you do wish to rely on the numbers.
Pulkkanen stated in his post round interview that he's comfortable at the course having played over 50 rounds here due to the fact the Finnish amateur team came to Infinitum to train. We suggested his odds yesterday (18/1) were not unreasonable and they remain more than fair at 8/1.
Our 66/1 pick, Johannes Veerman, remains handily placed at 7 under par. For the second day in a row he played his opening three holes in two over par and he'll need to get off to a better start over the final two rounds. He remains capable of winning this at 12/1.
The wind will keep the players on their toes the next two days, with winds forecast to be around 16mph tomorrow afternoon and 17mph for the final round on Sunday. There is also the possibility of rain showers tomorrow.
Round 3 Bets
- 0.5pts Each Way Bernd Wiesberger 70/1 @ Boylesports (1/4 1-4)
Bernd started the week with a double bogey and was one over par through his opening 11 holes. He's played his remaining 25 holes in -4 and whilst that's not spectacular, he's missed plenty of putts over those holes. He's currently eight shots off the lead but with doubts over Jamieson's ability to close this tournament out and wind forecast over the closing two rounds, it's worth backing several outsiders. Bernd has a history of finishing fast, (all three of his top 4 finishes last year came via a final round of 65 or better) and we're happy to chance him with an earlier tee time tomorrow.
- 0.5pts Each Way Adri Arnaus 80/1 @ Boylesports (1/4 1-4)
Adri has struggled when in contention and if he's to win for the first time on the European Tour, it could well come from off the pace. He too is at three under par as it stands and has a bit of work to do over the weekend. His play has been exceptional so far this year, with four top 10 finishes from his seven starts. We weren't keen on his price at the start of the week but we're inclined to back him at his current price given he started slowly in round one and made progress in round 2. Like Wiesberger, he has the firepower to make up ground and should the leader falter, he could find himself in with a chance come Sunday afternoon.
21 April 2022, 9:35pm (UK time)
Player | Total |
---|---|
Veerman | -6 |
Pulkkanen | -6 |
Du Plessis (thru 16) | -6 |
Chawrasia (thru 16) | -6 |
Law | -5 |
Senior | -5 |
Migliozzi (thru 17) | -5 |
R Hojgaard (thru 16) | -5 |
A 2.5 hour rain delay meant the first round was unable to be completed on the opening day of the ISPS Handa Championship in Spain.
The later starters got the better of the draw as seven of the top eight on the leaderboard played in the afternoon. The course was extremely wet first thing in the morning after heavy overnight rain and those who teed off later in the day also had less wind to contend with.
Our 66/1 pick, Johannes Veerman, leads the way in the clubhouse. The American started with two bogeys in his first round but bounced back with eight birdies and can now be backed at a best price of 12/1. We liked the fact his maiden win came after a long break and he's clearly a guy who plays well when fresh.
The only other player in the clubhouse at -6 is Tapio Pulkkanen. Pulkkanen made a mess of the final hole at last year's Czech Masters to hand Veerman his first title and the Finn will no doubt be looking to avenge that defeat. Odds of 18/1 are available for him and they're not unreasonable.
At the time of writing there appears to be some confusion over Hennie Du Plessis. When play was suspended the South African was on a score of -9 but that has subsequently been changed to -6. Many bookmakers have him priced up as a 10/3 chance, a price that certainly seems skinny if he is indeed -6. The European Tour website have declared it a four way tie at the top and that would be consistent with the bookmakers who have priced Du Plessis up at 15/2.
Rasmus Hojgaard has the two par 5s to play when he returns to the course in the morning and he's priced up as 11/2 favourite to take the title. He's very much the favourite in our eyes too and whilst we like his chances, we're happy to consider others at bigger prices.
Finally, David Law is the only player in the top eight who played in the morning. The Scot mentioned in his post round interview that he's still not feeling 100% after a bout of Covid a few weeks ago.
Weather for the 2nd round will be dry with the wind set to pick up to around 10mph in the afternoon. The morning starters look like they will have the best of conditions.
Round 2 Bets
- 1pt Each Way Tom Lewis 66/1 @ Bet365 (1/5 1-5)
Tom tees off in the morning for round two and finds himself three shots back. A solitary bogey in his opening round was encouraging and this is the kind of test he's thrived on in the past. The weather forecast suggests we may get a bit of wind on Sunday and Tom is a fine wind player so should he get himself into contention, it shouldn't ruin his chances. He's a cut above most in this field and we're happy to take the 60/1 with three rounds to go.
- 1pt Each Way Jeff Winther 66/1 @ Coral/Ladbrokes (1/5 1-5)
Jeff was under consideration pre-event due to his past performances at this course. However, having withdrawn last time out in Qatar and having not played in 10 week, we were happy to leave him out and look to back him in-play. That decision appeared to be vindicated when he double bogeyed his 2nd hole. However, he bounced back and ended the day 3 under par. He has a morning tee time tomorrow and with the rust hopefully knocked off, he'll be looking to make up ground on the leaders. He's another who is comfortable if the wind blows and having enjoyed success here in the past, he'll have positive memories to draw upon.