Top-ranked Larrazabal the man to follow in Austria

The Lyoness Open has attracted only two golfers in the world`s top 100 following the Open Championship and one of them is the best value bet in the Austrian tournament.

Pablo Larrazabal has every right to be the betting favourite for what is a weak event but bookmakers have chalked up odds of 22-1 about the Spaniard, rating him less likely to win than either Thorbjorn Olesen or Bernard Wiesberger.

Ranked 90th in the world after the third major championship of the year, Larrazabal tied for 45th at Royal Lytham & St Annes, making the cut for the 16th time in 17 European Tour appearances this season, consistency that has not been part of the 29-year-old Barcelona native`s game previously.

The European Tour Rookie of the Year in 2008, Larrazabal was pleased with performance on the English links, in particular with the way that he struck the ball throughout his four rounds of 73, 70, 71 and 72 for a six-over-par 286, which placed him alongside Lee Westwood and seven other golfers.

Never short on confidence, Larrazabal`s best performances have come on golf courses similar to the Diamond Country Club on which he will contest the Lyoness Open, including his recent runner-up finish in the Open de Espana.

Larrazabal has competed on the Diamond Country Club layout once before, firing rounds of 71, 71, 69 and 72 to finish tied for 32th in the corresponding tournament two years ago, a performance with which he was delighted considering he had arrived in Austria having missed six of the last seven cuts during one of his inconsistent spells. He is in much better form and looks worth following at the available odds.

Olesen, the only other Lyoness Open participant with a world ranking containing fewer than three figures - the Danish youngster occupies position number 99 currently - heads the betting largely because of his eye-catching performance in the Open Championship where he tied for ninth spot.

Winner of this year`s Sicilian Open, Olesen was in serious contention the Claret Jug going into the third round at Royal Lytham and St Annes, finding himself paired with 14-time major champion Tiger Woods for Saturday`s play following rounds of 69 and 66 on the first two days.

Olesen held his nerve on Moving Day, shooting a 71 that was only one shot worse than the effort of Woods and marking out himself as a golfer with an incredibly bright future.

However, the 22-year-old from Fureso, 20 kilometres north west of Copenhagen, is not worth backing to win the Lyoness Open for a number of reasons. First, there has to be a good chance that being near the top of the Open Championship leaderboard for long period will have taken its toll on someone so young and inexperienced. Second, Olesen is playing the Diamond Country Club course for the first time. And third, at around 14-1, he is shorter than Larrazabal.

Stick with the Spaniard to small stakes in what is a very different tournament to assess. For what it is worth, the defending champion is Kenneth Ferrie and the 2010 titleist, also at the Diamond Country Club, was Jose Manuel Lara.

Ferrie, who has won three European Tour event since turning professional in 1999, is 100-1 and bigger to go back to back, while Lara is a general 66-1 chance to add the 2012 Lyoness Open to his other two European Tour victories.

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25/07/2012     © Frixo 2024