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WGC HSBC Champions preview, picks and analysis

By: Golf Shake | Mon 02 Nov 2015


Post by Sports Writer, Derek Clements


AND so, bizarrely, we move on to the second tournament in the Final Series. Bizarre? Well, it's the WGC-HSBC Champions, to be played in Shanghai. In other words, the second event in the run-in to the Race to Dubai is a World Golf Championship tournament, and that means the top 50 players in the world are entitled to take part, most of whom are not members of the European Tour.

The defending champion is Bubba Watson, an American. Also in the field will be Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson, not to mention Hideki Matsuyama, Adam Scott, Harris English, Justin Thomas and a host a of other members of the PGA Tour. Ian Poulter also makes it into the field, even though he fell out of the top 50 in the world rankings - this caused him to fly halfway across the world to play in the Hong Kong Open in order to maintain his membership of the European Tour. It turned out that he didn't need to do so after all.

The Englishman was sixth alternate and got in when Brandt Snedeker withdrew. For the purposes of this preview, we will focus on European Tour members, so that means we will be ignoring the claims of the likes of Spieth and Fowler.


Bubba Watson defends this week in China


Shane Lowry will arrive in China in good spirits. The Irishman has had a stellar year, winning a WGC event of his own - the Bridgestone Invitational - and proving to himself and the rest of the world that he has become one of the best golfers on the planet. He has a wondrous short game and will surely fancy his chances of making it WGC title number two. If he does win, he will add more than $1m to an already-bulging bank account, but it will still leave him well adrift of Race to Dubai leader Rory McIlroy, who is looking increasingly unlikely to be caught.

McIlroy will not look back at 2015 with any degree of fondness, but he will at least feel that he has achieved something if he finishes the season as Europe's top dog again. If he does so, it will surely take him above Jason Day and possibly Spieth in the rankings. The Northern Irishman played quite beautifully in Turkey apart from the same old problem - he continues to miss too many putts that he should hole.

Eventually he will sort it out and when he does everybody else had better watch out. There is no better ball striker in the world than McIlroy and now that he is fully fit he will be focused only on winning.

The field in Shanghai is restricted to 78 players for the second week in succession. It's surely about time that the European Tour learnt from their American counterparts and reduced the size of the field each week, leading to the Dubai World Championship. You may not have noticed that a couple of Turkish golfers were invited to compete in the Turkish Airlines Open - in truth 'compete' is not the correct word, as they ended up propping up the field. There is more of the same in China this week in a supposed World Golf Championship event. What's the point?

Victor Dubuisson won in Turkey in terrific fashion and, with his confidence now sky high, he will sweep into China believing that he can add another victory to his CV, but the Golfshake tip for victory is Kiradech Aphibarnrat, who finished third in Turkey. Had the chip at the last hole that hit the pin actually dropped, he would have been involved in a playoff with Dubuisson. Instead, he missed the 12-inch putt that was left.

There are times when Aphibarnrat looks like he doesn't care, but don't believe for a minute that is how he feels. Like Dubuisson, he plays the game in a carefree manner, and wastes no time playing the game. He is in form and he enjoys playing in China.

WGC HSBC Champions Betting Picks

Each way - Kiradech Aphibarnrat 66/1 Playing superb golf

Each way - Shane Lowry 33/1 Confidence at an all-time high

Each way - Rory McIlroy 6/1 Determined to get back to No1

WGC HSBC CHampions Fantasy Picks 

Kiradech Aphibarnrat. Good enough to beat world-class field

Shane Lowry. Ready to win a second WGC

Rory McIlroy. Would love to get that putter going again

Victor Dubuisson. Walking on air

Chris Wood. Can do nothing wrong right now

Danny Willett. Going from strength to strength

Bernd Weisberger. Still has outside chance of winning Race to Dubai

Anirban Lahiri. Becoming a global star

Thorbjorn Olesen. Has got the lot

Branden Grace. Has moved to the next level
 


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Tags: PGA Tour european tour



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