Preview
Course Info
Course Designer: Neil Coles
Fairways: Average/Narrow
Rough: Thick
Water Hazards: On several holes
Par 5's: 2nd, 7th, 12th & 15th
Hosted Since: 2022
Premium on: Approach
Significant Info To Be Aware Of
- This is a new event on the DP World Tour. However, PGA Catalunya hosted the Open de Espana in 2000, 2009 and 2014. It also played host to the European Tour Qualifying School between 2008 - 2016.
- Continue to exercise caution in relation to Covid-19 related withdrawals.
Trends
Recent Form
Miguel Angel Jimenez triumphed in 2014 having placed 4th in his previous start. However, the rest of the top 4 didn't manage a top 50 in their previous start.
In 2009, the top two both came into the event without a top 60 in their previous event. However, the rest of the top five all came into the event in relatively good form.
World Ranking
The three players who have won the Open de Espana here have been ranked 32-171-224 (most recent first). Two of those three winners had previously triumphed on the European Tour. Brian Davis was the exception, recording his first European Tour win here in 2000.
Stats Analysis
With no previous stats available to analyse, we make no stats comparisons. However, the three previous winners of the Open de Espana (Miguel Angel Jimenez, Thomas Levet and Brian Davis) were all accurate players who excelled with their irons.
In Play
Tough Holes
The 8th and 18th play as stroke index 1 and 2 on the scorecard.
Birdie Holes
As ever, the par 5s will offer plenty of birdie opportunities.
Fast or Slow Start
Miguel Angel Jimenez was 2nd after the first round of the 2014 Open de Espana but found himself four shots back after the 2nd round.
Thomas Levet was 2nd after the opening round in the 2009 Open de Espana but led after the second round.
Brian Davis was six shots back after the opening round of the 2000 Open de Espana and still trailed by three shots at the halfway point.
Closing stretch
The 17th is a par 3 and the 18th is a par 4.
Player Quotes
"The rough is thick and the greens are soft."
Adrian Otaegui
"I think being accurate off the tee will also be very important."
Adrian Otaegui
"It's a very complete golf course, you need to be on point with everything."
Adri Arnaus
Players We Almost Backed
NOTE - These are players who we shortlisted for this event but ultimately didn't advise to subscribers. If you want to find out who we did tip, you can subscribe using the link below.
Adri Arnaus 40/1
Adri has struggled to deliver at the business end of tournaments but odds of 40/1 are fair for a player who has a flat in Girona and occasionally practices out of PGA Catalunya.
Mikko Korhonen 50/1
Mikko has a fantastic record at PGA Catalunya, having played and qualified here multiple times at European Tour Qualifying School. However, the bookmakers are fully aware of this and odds of 50/1 look a little short.
John Catlin
Driving Accuracy is stated to be a key factor this week and this man has it in spades. He's won around Valderrama so a win on Spanish soil is in the bag already. Was last man off our list.
Wade Ormsby 100/1
15th here in 2014 and 9th at Q School in 2013, Wade clearly likes this place. We wanted a slightly larger price.
Guido Migliozzi 150/1
Guido's opening 65 last week was an encouraging sign of life after a poor start to the year and the 150/1 was a tempting price. One to watch in running.
In-play
2022 Catalunya Championship
30 April 2022, 6:35pm (UK time)
| Player | Total |
|---|
| Bekker |
-11 |
| Canter |
-9 |
| Molinari E |
-8 |
| Gagli |
-8 |
| Two Players Tied |
-7 |
Oliver Bekker takes a two shot lead into the final round over Laurie Canter, courtesy of his second eagle of the week on the 15th. He is 11/8 favourite with Canter available at 4/1.
Bekker admitted he got the best out of his round today - "my short game really got me out of a bit of trouble today on a few occasions and I managed to capitalise on the shots that I did well so, all in all, great".
It is unlikely everything will go smoothly tomorrow whilst searching for his first DP World Tour win but he didn't do much wrong when 2nd to Von Tonder in South Africa last December, carding a 66. With six top 11's in eight starts this year, no one could argue his win would be deserved but he hasn't been in this position yet and we couldn't confidently back the 11/8.
The blog yesterday focused heavily on Canter's price being too short and it remains the case in our eyes, having not moved much since yesterday evening. He is now two back and there is a host of top players tucked in behind him now.
The Italian pair of Eduardo Molinari and Lorenzo Gagli have moved into contention with the low rounds of the day and pose a genuine threat at 9/1 and 16/1 respectively. Molinari is a three time winner on tour but hasn't won since 2017 while Gagli has a couple of 2nd places to his name but was horrendous in contention at the 2020 Andalucia Masters.
Ryan Fox and Adrian Meronk are one back of the Italians but we are happy to ignore them at less than generous odds of 12/1. Both are obviously capable but we could think of better venues to suit both power hitters and it's likely they will find some trouble tomorrow.
The two players the Bekker and co will be keeping an eye on in their rear view mirror are Pablo Larrazabal and Bernd Wiesberger who are one further back and five behind Bekker. Larrazabal's claims are obvious, he has become a different animal on Sunday's to his peers but another win would be a big ask and Wiesberger is preferred at the prices.
Round 4 Bet
- 2pts Bernd Wiesberger Win Only 18/1 @ General
Wiesberger won last year with a final round 64 in Denmark and also has plenty of experience winning from off the pace, notably for the Italian Open with a final round 65 in late 2019. On a day where the leaders could throw in mistakes, the Austrian may be able to make up ground fast and would be most likely in our eyes to clinch the win if he can start fast. He ranks 4th for approach and 3rd tee to green this week so the long game is in good order and just needs a few more putts to fall to challenge.
29 April 2022, 9:05pm (UK time)
| Player | Total |
|---|
| Canter |
-7 |
| Morrison |
-6 |
| Bekker |
-6 |
| Five Players Tied |
-5 |
Laurie Canter leads by one at Catalunya despite being overtaken in the afternoon by Oliver Bekker. The Englishman is now 4/1 to win which seems very short given he is yet to win on tour and 25 players are within four of his lead.
Canter is clearly feeling at home on this course and has plenty of experience playing here from qualifying school. An eagle on the 6th hole was a key contributor to his score today and backers should be wary of his last performance when leading the way - which was also in Spain at Valderrama.
Canter led by three shots heading into the final round and shot 76 to finish four shots behind Fitzpatrick. The tight, tree lined course here has some resemblance and Canter may find it just as hard to get over the line here.
Ryan Fox is a big danger two shots back but he was in a similar position at Valderrama too and a third round 74 cost him. Oliver Becker may find it hard to bounce back from a sloppy finish and odds of 7/1 make little appeal also.
The event has a feel about it that we may see a lot of movement in the leaderboard and for that reason we would be cautious to back anyone short priced. Pablo Larrazabal was considered at 22/1, although we didn't like him at the start of the week, he is hanging in there and no doubt a stronger closer than most ahead of him.
We will look to get a couple of outsiders onside at this stage.
Round 3 Bets
- 0.5pts Each Way Thomas Bjorn 80/1 @ Betfair (1/5 1-5)
Thomas is the lowest ranked player on the leaderboard but still has the ability to compete on this course. He ranked 3rd for driving accuracy and 17th driving distance today and keeping the ball on the short stuff is so important this week. Top 60 finishes in Dubai and Abu Dhabi this year show he's not a million miles off a big finish and he can use his experience to potentially make a mockery of 80/1.
- 0.5pts Each Way Ricardo Gouveia 66/1 @ Unibet (1/4 1-4)
This stand out price at Unibet needs to be taken on a player who won back to back titles on the Challenge Tour last year, as well as five other top 5's. He has ranked 3rd and 18th for GIR over the first two days and all parts of the game seem in good order. He is too big at 66/1, use Mr Green or 32Red accounts if you can't get on at Unibet.
28 April 2022, 8:05pm (UK time)
| Player | Total |
|---|
| Fichardt |
-6 |
| Winther |
-6 |
| Bekker |
-6 |
| Heisele |
-5 |
| Li |
-5 |
| Morrison |
-5 |
It looked like Darren Fichardt was going to lead on his own but a double bogey at his last hole (his only dropped shots of the day), saw him slip back to join Oliver Bekker and Jeff Winther at the top.
Fichardt was a 200/1 pre-event selection of ours and he was one of the few players to score well in the slightly trickier afternoon conditions. He'll have to set aside his disappointing finish but he's in fine form after an 8th place finish last week. We highlighted Fichardt's ability to maintain form in our tip to subscribers and we're obviously hoping that continues over the remaining 54 holes. Odds of 20/1 are fair given his stats were solid in the opening round.
Only two of the top six played in the afternoon wave, Jeff Winther being the other. The Dane is available at 14/1 and it's not an unattractive price. He goes out in the morning tomorrow, which should see him have the best of condions. He also has positive memories of PGA Catalunya, having finished 18th here in 2016. A winner last year in Mallorca, he'll be keen to add a 2nd DP World Tour title to his CV.
Oliver Bekker is the favourite with the bookmakers (8/1) but it's hard to side with him at that price. He's off in the afternoon tomorrow, he's yet to win outside of Africa and there remains a doubt about his ability to close tournaments when in contention. Having passed up a good opportunity to win last year on the Challenge Tour at the British Challenge, we aren't keen to back him at single figure odds.
The group at five under par all play in the afternoon and whilst that doesn't put us off entirely, we're in no rush to back James Morrison or Sebastian Heisele. Haotong Li is a little short in our eyes and we'd prefer to look at him again after the 2nd round.
As we noted in the Preview, two of the last three winners of the Open de Espana played at this course were in 2nd place after round 1. Brian Davis showed it is possible to win from behind here in 2000 but those players up with the leaders are preferred.
Weather for the 2nd round will be dry with the wind set to pick up to around 8mph in the afternoon.
Round 2 Bet
- 1.25pts Each Way Jeff Winther 14/1 @ Betfair (1/4 1-5)
We backed Jeff last week after the opening round and we're siding with him again after a promising start. His long game stats for round 1 were solid (note - we are still treating these with a degree of caution), ranking inside the top 25 for SG: Approach and SG: Off The Tee. Furthermore, three of his six career best finishes have come when playing in Spain. His win at the end of last year shouldn't be underestimated given the players surrounding him on the leaderboard lack recent contention experience. Julien Brun was the other player we contemplated selecting. Brun won the Emporda Challenge on the Challenge Tour last season and given that event was played in Girona, he'll have positive associations with the area. We wanted 20/1+ but he's a player we'll be watching in-running.
