Mahan to call the tune in AT&T National

Hunter Mahan is one of the form golfers on the PGA Tour and he is worth backing to win the AT&T National tournament and make it three victories in little more than four months.

Mahan has taken part in 14 PGA Tour events so far this year, winning twice, making the top 25 nine times and missing the cut once when playing poorly in The Players Championship.

The 30-year-old from Orange County in California is third in the current FedExCup standings, with his 2012 victories coming in February`s World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship and April`s Shell Houston Open.

Mahan arrives at Congressional having finished tied for 11th place in last week`s Travelers Championship where he carded an amazing career-low, bogey-free 61 in the final round.

The AT&T National has not been played at Congressional since 2009 when Mahan was a one-shot runner-up to Tiger Woods. In 2008, he tied for 12th position and, in 2007, he tied for eighth spot, so you could say that he likes the course.

Mahan is the headline pick at around the 12-1 mark, with most bookmakers having him second only to Woods in their winner markets. But there are other golfers to consider, both near the summit of the betting and midway down.

Ryan Palmer will attract support at a general price of 33-1. The 35-year-old Texan has not won a PGA Tour title since 2010 but the way that he is playing means that it is only a matter of time before he adds to his three career victories.

In his last five starts, Palmer has registered four top-10 finishes, including in each of his last three tournaments. He tied for 21st place in the 2011 US Open and that is of note because the venue was none other than Congressional.

Jim Furyk holds obvious claims based on his recent form - seven top 10s in his last nine starts - and results at Congressional in this event - three top 10s in as many appearances - but the anguish that he suffered in not winning the US Open having shared the lead after 36 and 54 holes means that he is passed over at odds of around 16-1.

A couple of men to consider at much bigger prices are Davis Love III (about 66-1) and Kevin Chappell (about 100-1).

At 48, Love III`s best days are behind him and he has not win a PGA Tour event since 2008. But he is good form having tied for 16th position in the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance, finished joint third in the FedEx St Jude Classic and come equal 29th in the US Open. Also, he tied for 11th spot in last year`s US Open at Congressional.

Chappell performed even better than Love III in the 2011 US Open on the Maryland layout - he was one of four men who shared third place behind Rory McIlroy and Jason Day - and he travels to Congressional having recorded his best finish of 2012 on his most recent start, this month`s US Open.

Serious golf punters will swerve the European Tour`s Irish Open because of the lack of course form to analyse. Royal Portrush is rarely used for championship events and, therefore, the Irish Open is a bit of a guessing game.

However, Darren Clarke and Graeme McDowell will have their followers because they are members of the Northern Ireland club. McDowell learned to play golf on the links course.

Go To bet365

#Ad

26/06/2012     © Frixo 2026