Betting tips special: Who rules the roost in 2017?
Race to Dubai winner: Each-way on Matthew Fitzpatrick
Predicting this is tricky, because you can almost win the Race to Dubai without really playing much in Europe.
The weighting of the Majors and the WGC events, along with the end of season finals series, helped propel Rory McIlroy to glory in 2015.
But given you know the Northern Irishman’s focus, outside of the early season in Dubai and the end of the year, will be in America isn’t it a bit daft to take a price as short as 6/4?
I want a bit of bang for my buck and the DP World Tour Championship winner, at a healthy 25/1, is more my kind of price.
Is it me or is he seriously under-rated? Only on tour since 2014, he already has 3 wins in the locker. They weren’t sanctioned Sunshine Tour events in South Africa either.
The British Masters and the Nordea Masters are both pretty big deals on the calendar and, should he fail to get his PGA Tour card, we know he’ll be playing plenty on this side of the pond.
He racked up 29 appearances last season. All players go through spells of indifferent form and the Yorkshireman had that in the middle of the year.
Class will rise, though, and his Dubai win in November should give him a platform for a very successful 2017. Should he find form in the Majors, he could make this price look very big indeed.
PGA Tour Money List: Each-way on Russell Knox
Don’t confuse this with the FedEx Cup winner – they can be different. Dustin Johnson took the honours last year and, not unsurprisingly, he heads the market with McIlroy for a repeat in 2017.
Russell Knox, at 100/1, is worth a small investment. The Scot won twice on the PGA Tour last year and finished 7th in the standings.
With his consistency and each-way betting available, would it be a big shock if he cracks the top 5? At the price, I’ll have a small investment that he can.
The Masters: Dustin Johnson
It’s dangerous trying to pick a tournament winner 8 months in advance so I’m only going to stick my toe in the water with the year’s first Major.
Take a look at DJ on the basis that his current price, 12/1, may well be halved by the time we get to Georgia.
If the US Open winner – top 10 the last two years at Augusta – gets 2017 off to a hot start he could be the favourite.
Jason Day is usually fancied for this – and currently leads the way with Rory and Jordan Spieth at 8/1 – on the basis that he likes Augusta.
But his last 3 years are T20, T28, T10. On Major form, he’d be a better shout for the US Open or the PGA.
Steve Carroll
A journalist for 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long. A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A's prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.
Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men's Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.
A part of NCG's Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He currently floats at around 11.
Steve plays at Close House, in Newcastle, and York GC, where he is a member of the club's matches and competitions committee and referees the annual 36-hole scratch York Rose Bowl.
Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NTCJ exams at Darlington College of Technology.
What's in Steve's bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; TaylorMade Stealth 2 irons; TaylorMade Hi-Toe, Ping ChipR, Sik Putter.
