Who to back at the WGC-HSBC Champions
WGC-HSBC Champions betting: Steve’s top tips
If not for some extraordinary golf from Tyrrell Hatton, Ross Fisher (28/1) would be going for a trio of successive titles in China.
The Englishman played some spectacular golf at the Dunhill Links and the Italian Open. He came away with a much enhanced bank balance but no trophies.
But while Hatton has yet to really prove himself outside of Europe, Fisher has proven very handy at the HSBC Champions.
In a field that only sees half of the top ten lining up for a World Golf Championships event, there may be some value in his price.
Fisher has recorded back-to-back top 10s in Shanghai, finishing sixth last year and third in 2015.
That combination of recent and course form is always a nice match. It will be hard to resist going in again.
Justin Rose (20/1) has had a month off since posting four top 10s in a row in the FedEx Cup playoffs.
That was a nice end to a year that had floundered after he lost the Masters in a play-off to Sergio Garcia and, if he comes back fighting fit, he might feature strongly in the Far East.
Like Fisher, Rose has enjoyed his long flights to China in the past. His appearances have been more sporadic – he hasn’t teed up since 2014 – but has two top 10 finishes in the last six years upon which to look back.
Brooks Koepka (20/1) made his first appearance in this event just 12 months ago when finishing 40th.
A lot has changed since then. The American has the US Open trophy on his mantelpiece and seems a perennial fixture at the top of leaderboards.
He can’t boast the wins of fellow young gun Justin Thomas. But seven top 10s in 24 starts last year on the PGA Tour is not to be sniffed at. He’s definitely in the big leagues now.
I can find holes in Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm – surely he’s just played too much golf now? – and Jason Day so, at larger odds, I’ll take a look at Koepka to finish his year in style.
WGC-HSBC Champions betting: Steve’s each-way tips
Finding true each way value is difficult this week with the bookies bunching the leaderboard.
The top 21 in the market are covered by odds of 40/1 so we’ll have to go quite deep to find some suitable contenders.
Bill Haas (70/1) finished fourth last year and showed some glimpses of good form in his top 20 at the Safeway Open – notably a second round 65.
Chez Reavie (80/1), meanwhile, has been a fixture of the top 20 during the PGA Tour wrap-around season.
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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.
