Golf: Dutch Open
Venue: Bernardus Golf Course, Netherlands.
Dates: Thursday 26th – Sunday 29th May 2022.
Tournament Preview
The KLM Dutch Open has been a staple on the European Tour since 1972 and once again it has managed to entice an attractive field in 2022. The Bernardus Golf Course will host the event for the second time as some of the top players across Europe and further afield descend on the Dutch capital. Previous winners of the event include Seve Ballesteros, Colin Montgomerie, Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke and the competitions standing on the European Tour continues to grow every season. With a prize purse of 1.75 million euros, there is plenty to play for on the European Tour Money List too.
Betting Preview
Outright Winner
Whilst the course and the field has a distinctly European feel, how each player adapts to the conditions is sure to have a huge bearing on the outcome at the Bernardus Course this week:-
Austrian Bernd Wiesberger was beginning to show some impressive form at the USPGA Championship last weekend, and few are better than him at this level.
Big-hitting Belgian Thomas Pieters is a previous winner at this event, and he looks to have a great chance in an open field here at the Bernardus Course.
New Zealander Ryan Fox is in fine fettle and his performances across the globe make him a consistent contender, in every event he plays.
Belgian Thomas Detry is another player who tends to play their best stuff at the biggest events and a return to familiar surrounds could benefit him here.
Home favourite Joost Luiten is a two-time winner of the Dutch Open and having missed out over the past couple of seasons, he will be keen to pick up a third tournament win here.
1st Round Leader
Producing the goods over 72 holes is often the most difficult thing for any golfer to do therefore here are our first round leader picks:-
Englishman Jordan Smith has been banging on the door at some of the biggest events on the European Tour this season and he could be one to keep an eye on from the off here.
Frenchman Victor Perez is a competent ball striker and with conditions in the Netherlands set fair, he could be a real candidate to go low on day one.
Top Ten Finish
With so many quality players assembled here at the Bernardus Course, getting into the winning enclosure could be tough but there are plenty of candidates to finish in the top 10 come Sunday:-
Dane Thorbjorn Olesen held his nerve to win well at the British Masters last month and if he can rekindle that form here, he could be a very tough man to stop this week.
South African George Coetzee is a fierce competitor, and he could be in contention all the way through the tournament in the Netherlands this week.
Spanish former Ryder Cup player Rafa Cabrera-Bello hasn’t been anywhere near his best over the past couple of seasons but conditions here should suit and he looks overpriced for a top 10 finish.
Dutch Open betxchange.com Best Bets:
Outright Winner: Thomas Pieters – 25/1
1st Round Leader: Jordan Smith – 40/1
Top Ten Finish: George Coetzee – 5/1
