It’s not a BetOnline scam when you see the field list for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, which probably has a better field than the PGA Tour’s Farmer Insurance Open, and any time Tiger Woods tees it up, chances are your tournament will receive a ton of attention. However, he’ll be hard-pressed to break a German’s hold on this tournament. Here are your five to bet on this weekend.
Rory McIlroy (+650): The 2011 U.S. Open champion won in Hong Kong in December and he loves this event, finishing in the top five three straight years, including last year’s solo second. A BetOnline.com review of McIlroy’s 2011 campaign would show a lot of success, but it could have been even better if not for a late collapse at the Masters. The sky is the limit for this 22-year-old, who will be paired with Woods (+800) and Luke Donald for the first two rounds.
Martin Kaymer (+700): Kaymer has completely dominated this tournament with three wins in the last four years, and he finished a stroke before Paul Casey in 2009. He won last in November at a World Golf Championship event in Shanghai, and Kaymer is still ranked fourth in the world, one spot behind McIlroy. Those that work with price per head software know that Kaymer is one of the most consistent players in the world, and he would be a smart bet this weekend.
Luke Donald (+1200): The world No.1 is coming off a spectacular 2011 season in which he snagged the title of the best golfer on the planet….or did he? All that is missing from Donald’s resume is a major championship, and a win against a top-tier field like this one would go a long way. Donald finished T-11 here in 2008, and it would be an excellent start to 2012 if he could win this tournament to boost his respect (much like Super Bowl betting players are seeing with Eli Manning).
Charl Schwartzel (+3000): The surprise Masters champion didn’t go away after his win at Augusta, finishing in the top 20 in all four major championships, but now he has to prove that 2011 wasn’t a fluke. Schwartzel has moved up to No.8 in the world in the rankings, but this is a huge tournament for the South African to let them know that he’ll be a factor in 2012.
Miguel Angel Jimenez (+8000): “The Mechanic” is one of the most loved characters in European golf, and at 48 years old he is still competitive. He finished T-11 here last year, he had a pair of top-five results back in 2006 and 2007, and while Jimenez isn’t the longest hitter in the world, he’s incredibly accurate with his irons. If his putter is consistent, the Spanish player can definitely post a sports betting upset in Abu Dhabi.
