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My Betting Tips For The Open 2014

The excitement is building as the third major of the season approaches, and in most peoples opinion, the biggest of them all (I might be a little biased.)

You great thing about The Open Championship is that you never quite know what to expect in terms of conditions as they can change so quickly within a matter of minutes, which makes it so hard to prepare for if you aren’t used to playing links golf.

Player’s like Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy have grown up playing links golf, but will only probably benefit if the wind gets up, then they could come into their own.

The conditions look pretty good for the next few days though and it could get hard and bouncy, and with the narrow fairways could prove to be a test, I think we will be seeing a lot of irons off the tee come the weekend.

So after all said and done, here are my betting tips:

Rickie Fowler 40/1

Tiger Woods 22/1

Sergio Garcia 25/1

Miguel Angel Jimenez 80/1

Get all of the latest odds from Paddy Power 

You can also look through my other betting tips to see my track record before you decide to bet.

Good luck if you have a bet, should be a great spectacle once again.

James

 

Not Bad For A Wie Girl

Well just a week after Martin Kaymer lifted the US Open trophy at Pinehurst No.2, Michelle Wie did exactly the same thing on Sunday and claimed her first major title at the age of 24.

Wie rolled in a long birdie putt on the 17th hole like a true champion after a disastrous double bogey on the 16th and ended up taking the title by two shots from Stacy Lewis.

The young American has been in the spotlight since the age of thirteen, and has had a pretty successful career up to now, but in golf everyone is chasing the majors these days and this will ease the pressure for her and she will now feel that she is capable of winning many more, which I’m sure she will.

Next up on the LPGA Tour is Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G.

Mickelson Aiming For Career Grand Slam At US Open

The desperation for Phil Mickelson to win the US Open and to claim a career Grand Slam will make it even tougher for him as he heads to Pinehurst this week.

Mickleson has never won a US Open before but has been runner-up an amazing six times in his home Open, he will be looking to put things straight come Thursday.

Only a handful of players have ever managed to claim a career Grand Slam before, they are Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus , Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen and if Phil can win this week he will truly go down as one of the all-time greats in the game of golf.

Mickelson will be putting great expectations on himself this week like he always does, but there’s no reason why the big American can’t triumph at this tough golf course which is also hosting the Women’s US Open soon after.

If like me you are looking forward to watching the golf tomorrow night, don’t forget to tune into Sky Sports 4 from 2pm.

Enjoy!

Michelson Disqualified For Scoring Error In US Open Qualifier

Landon Michelson a 22-year-old amateur was trying to qualify for the US Open in a second qualifier at Quail Valley. The youngster had shot a pair of 71’s and was set to at least be in a play-off when it dawned on him that he had accidentally signed for a 70 in his second round.

Michelson then had to decide whether to admit the mistake or keep quiet about it and live with knowing what he had done.

He ended up doing the right thing and admitting his mistake and was subsequently disqualified which left him with no chance of chasing his dream any more.

It may seem a bit harsh on Michelson, but the rules are the rules, so next time you’re playing in a competition at your club or anywhere else, make sure that you’re signing for the correct score, otherwise you could be disqualified too!!

Westwood Desperate For Automatic Ryder Cup Spot

Next months US Open is going to an important tournament for Lee Westwood as he aims to get an automatic place in the Ryder Cup team to face the USA in September.

The big Englishman from Worksop is currently 14th in the points list and know that a really good week at Pinehurst could see him guarantee a place in the side for the showdown at Gleneagles.

You would like to think that even if he didn’t make the side automatically, he would get a captain’s pick from Paul McGinley as Westwood’s experience and record in the Ryder Cup is one of the best ever.

Westwood will fancy his chances in the second major of the year after his seventh place finish at Augusta back in April, and since leaving his coach Sean Foley, he seems to have a better grasp on his swing and feels more comfortable with what he’s trying to do.

The US Open starts two weeks tomorrow and will be live on Sky Sports. Make sure you tune in. I think we could see another European winner! 

Is 2014 going to be Sergio Garcia’s Year?

Well it’s fair to say that Sergio Garcia has had an up and down career, and especially over the past 5 years has been the hardest of all for him.

He has gone from being one of the best players in the game to totally falling out of love with the game, but it looks like he’s right back to his best and seems to be enjoying life on and on the golf course more than ever.

Since finding love, Garcia seems to in a much better place and is much more comfortable with himself and with his golf as his recent performances would indicate .

Since bursting onto the scene when he was just 19 years old when he finished second to Tiger Woods in the PGA Championship at Medinah in 1999 after an enthralling contest, and if you remember he hit a remarkable shot from behind tree to get himself and the crowed really pumped up.

Take a look at the shot here:

He has also always been a prominent force in the Ryder Cup matches, even when his form had deserted him he managed to find a way to get the job done under the upmost pressure to help guide Europe to victory on many occasion.

Last season he looked to recapture some of the form that we had previously witnessed from the young spaniard and had a steady finish to the 2013 PGA Tour season with three top 20 finishes including a tie for ninth place in the Tour Championship.  He also ended last season with a win on an Asian Tour event.

This season also started well with a win in the Qatar Masters and a handful of top 25 finishes.

Garcia has always performed pretty well in the majors throughout his career, and let’s hope that one of the three left in this season will belong to a player that undoubtedly deserves one.

Remembering Seve Ballesteros Three Years On…

Today three years ago we mourned the passing of one of the greatest golfers to ever play the great game we call golf.

It only seems like yesterday we heard the sad news that Seve’s condition has worsened and that he had then died at the age of 54 of two  two malignant brain tumours. Seve was diagnosed with the tumours back in 2008 and underwent several operations, but sadly never fully recovered.

Seve will be remembered for many great things. He won 5 major championships including The Open and The Masters. He won 6 European Tour order of merits with an incredible 50 wins on the European Tour and 96 in total world wide.

His Ryder Cup record was pretty good too with a total of 22½ points in 37 matches played, and of course, how can we forget when he captained Europe to victory in the 1997 Ryder Cup at Valderrama when Colin Montgomerie saw off Scott Hoch at the last hole in virtually pitch darkness.

We called talk about him forever with so many different stories, but the one moment that will stick in my head was the celebration when he won The Open in 1984. Catch the memories below….

He was always be known for his incredible shot making, putting and wayward driving, and will always be talked about in the history of the game. I’m just glad that I grew up when I did, so I was at least able to see some of the genius at work, even if it was for only a handful of years….

Fleetwood Hopes His ‘Singapore Swing’ Can Lead Him To Victory This Week

It was a good week last week for Tommy Fleetwood at the Volvo China Open as he finished runner-up to Frenchman Alexander Levy. The Englishman is looking to keep his momentum going having made the journey over to Singapore for the championship at Laguna National this week.

Fleetwood has now had two top five finishes in 2014, and his fantastic display in China has seen him rise up from 41st to 17th in the Race to Dubai.

His only success on the European Tour came  at the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles last year when he won in a play-off against Stephen Gallacher and Ricardo González in a thrilling tournament, and will be looking to feed off those memories this week.

It’s always difficult to keep the momentum going after coming off such a good week, but he will trying his hardest to get a couple of victories under his belt and get himself up the money list, and the Ryder Cup list.

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What’s Up Next?

Hope you all had a nice Easter break and are fully refreshed!

Now the holidays are over and the Easter camps have finished, I’m back to my normal teaching hours again. My lesson diary is busy this time of year, so if you do want to book a lesson then please get in contact with me to arrange a time and day.

The Masters has been and gone and although the final round was a bit of an anti climax it was a great tournament to watch as always in beautiful surroundings.

The next major will be the US Open which starts on 12th June and will be held this year at Pinehurst No.2. Just in Rose will be trying to defend his title around a very difficult golf course. The same golf course will also be used for the Women’s US Open this year.

Well that’s it from me for now, I hope to see you all down at the driving range over the next few days practising hard and getting your game in shape for the rest of the season.

James

 

Dukes Meadows Golf – The Home of Golf In London

If you’ve ever been to Dukes Meadows Golf in London, I’m sure you would agree that it is a hidden gem that lays on the outskirts of Central London which offers golf lessons seven days a week.

Tucked away behind tall trees next to Chiswick Bridge, Dukes Meadows Golf is an outstanding facility for golfers of all levels, with it’s 50 bay floodlit driving range, 9 hole par 3 executive golf course and modern bar with restaurant.

When you turn up at Dukes Meadows, you will have no problem parking as the car park boasts over 200 parking spaces for it’s customers and staff and also has a resident car wash facility in place.

Another fantastic feature is the fully stocked professional golf shop which has all of the latest equipment for you to browse and even try if you are looking to purchase a new set of clubs for the season ahead. You will also receive professional advice from the fully trained staff behind the counter.

If you are new to golf and don’t have your own golf clubs yet, you can hire clubs from the shop and use them on our driving range. The cost to hire a club is £2 and it’s £5.50 for a bucket of balls.

If you’ve been inspired by watching the Masters on TV recently then we have golf lessons available throughout the week from 8am til 10pm, but to avoid disappointment these should be booked in advance as it’s coming in to our busy season now and especially busy at weekends.

If you need any information on the golf lessons we provide please feel to send me an email and I will be happy to answer any questions that you may have.

James