Major championship golf continues this week, with the best players in the women’s game headed to France for The Amundi Evian Championship, while regular programming resumes on the PGA and European Tours. Here are our weekly tips.
Brendan James – Golf Australia Editor
Despite being a major championship, there are plenty of players in the field at Evian who already have one eye on the upcoming Olympics. One such player not affected by the pre-Games distraction is American JENNIFER KUPCHO.
The 24-year-old is coming off her third Top-10 finish of the season and is returning to a course she enjoyed playing when the event was last contested in 2019. Then, she bookended rounds of 70-69 with a pair of five under 66s and finished only two strokes shy of a play-off with winner Jin Young Ko.
Sportsbet odds: $71
JIMMY EMANUEL – Golf Australia Deputy Editor
With a number of top players, including our own Hannah Green, skipping this week it feels a bit more wide open than other majors. And I think MORIYA JUTANUGARN will take advantage of that and win her first major.
Moriya was part of the winning team last week in the US with sister Ariya, and that will have filled her with confidence as she heads to Europe. The elder Jutanugarn has a good record here, including two-10s in the last three years, and she is hitting fairways and greens with great regularity this year, all boding for well for her joining Ariya in the major winners club.
Sportsbet odds: $46
RELATED: Evian Championship preview
Michael Jones – Golf Australia writer
Defending champ and former World No.1 JIN YOUNG KO has only finished outside the top-16 on one occasion at the majors since the beginning of 2019. That’s pretty damn impressive …
Eight top-15s from nine starts on the game’s biggest stages is no mean feat, especially when you throw in her two victories and four additional top-10s.
She will be too good once again this week and become the first back-to-back champion since the event received major status in 2013.
Sportsbet odds: $12
Rod Morri – Golf Australia magazine contributor and The Thing About Golf podcast host
With a win and five top 10’s for the year Thailand's ATTHAYA THITIKUL has been a dominant force on the Ladies European Tour and while the fields in Europe aren’t as strong as the US the 18-year-old is a player of special talent.
She will have little in the way of attention and expectation but has the game to mix it with the best in the game at any event.
Sportsbet odds: $34
Brendan James – Golf Australia Editor
The recent good form of SU OH suggests she is moving, slowly but surely, towards her first LPGA victory.
She's had two top-15 starts in her last three appearances and what better place is there to breakthrough for a maiden Tour victory than at a major?
TAB odds: $6
JIMMY EMANUEL – Golf Australia Deputy Editor
Australian golfers are on fire of late and it stands to reason that one will be in the mix this week, and for mine it will be MINJEE LEE.
Not only is she our top ranked player in professional golf, but Lee arrives after a top-10 last week with Yuka Saso at the Dow Great Lakes and will be hoping to earn familial bragging rights back from brother Min Woo after his recent win.
This isn’t Minjee’s happiest hunting ground, with a best finish of T11 back in 2015, but winning majors is the next natural step for the World No.15 and I think that starts this week.
TAB odds: $2.10
Michael Jones – Golf Australia writer
If it weren’t for Jin Young Ko, my money would be on MINJEE LEE to win her first major title, so it stands to reason that she will be my top Aussie in France this week.
As a side note, I firmly believe that gold beckons for Lee in Tokyo.
TAB odds: $2.10
Rod Morri – Golf Australia magazine contributor and The Thing About Golf podcast host
The Evian hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for Australians over the years. Karrie Webb, Wendy Doolan and Rachel Teske are the only Australians to hoist the trophy with Webb also adding runner up results in 2012 and 2014.
Of the five Australians in the field this year Katherine Kirk is the only player with a top 10 result, her T3 finish in 2017 coming when the tournament was reduced to 54 holes. With Hannah Green not playing Minjee Lee is our highest ranked player but on form it is debutante STEPH KYRIACOU who offers the best value in France.
TAB odds: $3.75
Brendan James – Golf Australia Editor
There is a significant number of players, and serous golfing superstars, backing up after the Open Championship in England to play the 3M Open field.
There are none better than new World No.2 DUSTIN JOHNSON, who finished T8 at Royal St George's but found some confidence in his game on the back of his second round 65.
Sportsbet odds: $7.50
JIMMY EMANUEL – Golf Australia Deputy Editor
It is always tough to assess how a player will back up from a good finish at a major, but I don’t foresee that being an issue for ROBERT MACINTYRE this week at TPC Twin Cities.
Sharing eighth last week at The Open, the Scot heads to the US to try and shore up full playing rights on the world’s biggest stage and a win would more than take care of that.
MacIntyre has a game that works on almost any layout and he has had recent success playing in the US based majors, while also playing well on the old world circuit in between and looks a top-10 player of the future.
Sportsbet odds: $29
Michael Jones – Golf Australia writer
Nobody will be able to beat LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN at Twin Cities this week if his putter keeps performing.
The South African is putting the absolute dots off it lately and must surely be close to breaking his near three-year winless drought.
Sportsbet odds: $15
Rod Morri – Golf Australia magazine contributor and The Thing About Golf podcast host
He flew under the radar last week despite some solid play and when you combine that with a third place result at this event last year CAMERON TRINGALE looks a good bet at the 3M Open.
Six sub 70 rounds in eight tours of the TPC Twin Cities layout bode well for a good tournament assuming fatigue from the week in England – and the trip back to the US – don’t prove too much to overcome.
Sportsbet odds: $29
Brendan James – Golf Australia Editor
ELVIS SMYLIE makes his second European Tour start this week and I’m tipping he’ll do much better than his first showing a few weeks back when he missed the cut.
Celtic Manor will suit his game and while he may not win, he will push for a top-10 spot.
Sportsbet odds: $101
JIMMY EMANUEL – Golf Australia Deputy Editor
Although, like my fellow tipsters, Aaron Rai presents as a strong option here, I am instead going to make a patriotic and somewhat left field pick.
BRYDEN MACPHERSON makes a first start since winning the NSW Open way back in March and although lightly run in horse racing terms, the Victorian has proven himself to be in career best form in 2021.
A former amateur star, Macpherson put together a magnificent run of golf over the second half of the truncated Aussie summer and will be keen to take that play to a bigger stage. Macpherson belongs on a big Tour and this is a magnificent opportunity to make inroads towards that outcome.
Sportsbet odds: $51
Michael Jones – Golf Australia writer
Englishman AARON RAI has enjoyed an impressive three weeks of golf at the Irish Open, Scottish Open and Open Championship, finishing T12th, T35th and T19th respectively.
I expect him to peak this week in Wales and claim his third European Tour title.
Sportsbet odds: $17
Rod Morri – Golf Australia magazine contributor and The Thing About Golf podcast host
He has no history at Celtic Manor but AARON RAI played some solid golf at Royal St George’s last week and will like his chances when play gets underway Thursday.
On a run of four straight cuts with some good scoring in recent weeks, the 26-year-old is in with a good chance to claim his third European Tour title.
Sportsbet odds: $17
2021 RESULTS
So far our so-called experts have combined to tip 18 winners in 2021, with 95 of their picks recording top-10 finishes that week and a best return of $61 for Max Homa to win the Genesis Invitational (tipped by Rod Morri).
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So-called expert golf tips for this week
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