Fantasy Golf: BMW Masters
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The European Tour’s Final Series kicks off in China this week. Lake Malaren Golf Club in Shanghai offers the chance to steal a march in the four-part season-ender with the WGC HSBC Champions, Turkish Airlines Open and DP World Tour Championship to follow.
The big hitters will be right at home on the 7,607-yard, Jack Nicklaus-designed Masters Course. In true Nicklaus style, this exposed par 72 challenges the players all the way round with large bunkers and water hazards waiting and success coming to those who are bold enough to take more on.
The stellar all-round test of one’s game is completed by the large, undulating putting surfaces which require good touch and invention. Sunday afternoon drama is guaranteed with the long par three 17th the hardest hole on the course and plenty of danger lurking at the closing 471-yard par four.
This is the third staging of the event with the previous two illustrating how big an impact the weather can have here. Peter Hanson took advantage of calm conditions in 2012 to shoot 21-under-par but it was a different story last year as Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano battled against the wind to win on 11-under.
As well as sponsors’ invitations, a change to the Final Series format sees the first 60 available players in the standings compete, with players no longer required to play two of the first three events to qualify for the DP World Tour Championship. Therefore the top three in the standings – Rory McIlroy, Sergio Garcia and Henrik Stenson – are not in Shanghai.
Here’s the Team TG line-up this week…
Justin Rose, £4.5m
The Ryder Cup talisman is back in action and he eased himself back into the swing of things with victory in last weekend’s celebrity pro-am event at Mission Hills. He finished t-6 in his sole appearance here two years ago when he broke 70 every day.
Victor Dubuisson, £1.7m
After that impressive Ryder Cup debut, he was runner-up in Perth last week and going well at the Match Play before that when he ran into eventual champion Mikko Ilonen in the quarters. The Frenchman is seventh in driving distance this season and, while he struggled in the wind here early on last year, a closing 67 showed promise.
Nicolas Colsaerts, £1.6m
A horror 79 prematurely halted his Hong Kong Open bid last time out but he was second in the curtailed Portugal Masters – when he narrowly missed out on a 59 – and fourth in Wales before that. There’s no doubting his length of the tee and t-14 in 2012 is his best effort here.
Brooks Koepka, £1.4m
Was ninth at the Alfred Dunhill Links where he finished 64-68, before a fruitful trip back to the States saw him t-8 at the Frys.com and t-4 in the Shriners. He’s the longest driver on the European Tour and makes his first appearance here.
Thongchai Jaidee, £1.4m
He just missed out in a tight Match Play group, but had two top-20s in Portugal and Wales before that. He’s not the longest hitter but t-16 and t-2 is an impressive record here.
Shane Lowry, £1.2m
Has clocked up six top-20s in his last nine starts and finishes of fifth and t-24 here, the latter of which started with a 78 when most of the field struggled in the blustery conditions.
