Portugal Masters European Tour 2016

Hi All, 

Another week, and another hard luck story, with half the selections placing inside the top 4 of their respective tournaments! Casey, Bland and Fleetwood in firm contention throughout the duration of both events! The door being firmly knocked on now, with places coming ten a penny, the winner has to be around the corner. We lost a small number of points due to dead heat rules, which saw us end up just 1 point down for the week, and with the return of investment still over the 40% figure for the year, we are doing pretty good, and hopefully you are all enjoying following as we come into the final few months of the service being free of charge. 

On that note; there have been a couple of different sites that have contacted me regarding taking on board my service for next year onwards, and discussions are still ongoing, but as soon as I have any concrete information about the cost and location of my service I will of course let you all know. On to this week; and I have concentrated my attentions on the Portugal Masters, at a venue I know well and enjoy; the article inclusive of selections can be found below: - 

Portugal Masters, European Tour – 25 pts Outlay 

At Victoria Club, 7,146 yards, par 71 – Thursday October 20th to Sunday October 23rd 

Designed by the legendary Arnold Palmer and first opened in 2004, the Victoria Clube de Golfe Course is a championship layout that measures 7,146 yards and plays to a par of 71. One of five courses at Vilamoura, the Victoria Clube de Golfe hosted the World Cup of Golf back in 2005, when Stephen Dodd and Bradley Dredge of Wales triumphed. 

With generous fairways and gentle rough, there are plenty of birdies to be had but with several lakes and hazards framing the course, there is certainly a risk-and-reward element to many holes. Great care has been taken to ensure the preservation of the surrounding wetlands and natural vegetation, including carob, olive and almond trees. 

A field packed with Ryder Cup stars, European Tour winners and home-grown heroes will descend on the Algarve for the tenth edition of the Portugal Masters. Record-breaking rookie Thomas Pieters and defending champion Andy Sullivan will bring Ryder Cup pedigree to Victoria Clube de Golfe, together with three men who formed part of Europe’s backroom team at Hazeltine National, Thomas Bjørn, Padraig Harrington and Paul Lawrie. The duo will be joined in Vilamoura by in-form Swede Alex Noren, who has won three titles this year, including last week at the British Masters supported by Sky Sports, big-hitting Spaniard Alvaro Quiros, and his compatriot José Maria Olazábal. 

Having been side-lined for 18 months since last year’s Masters, a tournament he won on two occasions, Olazábal will continue his comeback from injury in the Algarve. Ricardo Gouveia, currently 93rd in the Race to Dubai and virtually guaranteed a place on the European Tour next term, will lead the home challenge.

NAP – THOMAS PIETERS 8/1 (Bet365 & BetVictor) 10 pts WIN 

IWAC – TOMMY FLEETWOOD 16/1 (PaddyPower) 2.5 pt EW

OTHER FANCIES – NICOLAS COLSAERTS 22/1 (PaddyPower) 1pt EW & ANTHONY WALL 35/1 

(PaddyPower) 1pt EW 

NOTE: As per usual, please do be careful and aware of who you are betting with for the golf, amazingly a lot of the higher profile companies change week by week on what place terms they offer. This week at the Portugal Masters PaddyPower are offering places on the top 7 at 1/5 odds, so we will be staying with them for our each-way terms.

Note: *NB – ALEXANDER LEVY 14/1 (PaddyPower) 3 pts EW WITHDRAWN

Replacement Bet: HIDEKI MATSUYAMA - CIMB Classic (PGA Tour), PaddyPower paying top 6 at 14/1 3 pts EW 

This Week’s Outlay – 25 pts

Hope you have a good week, and good luck to all those following, 

Stu 

@PriestleyStuart 

sjpriestley_pga@btinternet.com