The European Tour shifts to Stockholm, Sweden this week for the Nordea Masters from the Bro Hof Slott Golf Club. While it is a fairly new tournament, Lee Westwood, Adam Scott, Nick Faldo, Vijay Singh and Graeme McDowell are among the notable names that have already won here.
Last week, the Tour was in Ireland where Rory McIlroy came away with the win. That has helped him vault up the standings for the Race to Dubai, but he’s still a far ways away from Danny Willett, who has been the best player on the European Tour this year. But if you’re betting this event, then it’s worth noting that Willett and McIlroy both won’t be at the event this weekend, which leaves Henrik Stenson in the pole position in terms of the odds. Here’s our preview of the Nordea Masters:
Event Details
Event: The Nordea Masters
Category: European
Date: June 2-5
Location: Bro Hof Slott Golf Club, Stockholm, Sweden
After two years at the PGA National in Malmo, the Nordea Masters will return to the site that hosted the event for four years between 2010 and 2013 in the Bro Hof Slott Golf Club. The Memorial tournament has attracted a star-studded field but there are some notable names at the top of the list for the Nordea Masters including the 2012 winner Westwood and Henrik Stenson.
Past Five Winners
2015: Alex Noren -12
2014: Thongchai Jaidee -16
2013: Mikko Ilonen -21
2012: Lee Westwood -19
2011: Alex Noren -15
What To Know About The Course
The stadium course at the Bro Hof Slott Golf Club is a long one so length off the tee will be an important stat to track heading in to this week’s tournament. The last three to win at this tournament each ranked inside the top-10 for Driving Distance and all four course winners played the par five holes in double-digits under par. The exposed track could lead to heavy winds having a significant impact on the course so make sure that you keep an eye on the forecast heading in to the week to make sure the weather doesn’t pose any problems.
The Field
Westwood returns as the defending champion at +1100 odds but he won’t be the favorite with Stenson looking to take care of business this week. Stenson is listed as the betting favorite to win this event outright at +605 odds and it will be very interesting to see if he can live up to the hype. The two-time winner Noren is next in line at +1650 odds and he should be a strong bet to contend. Tyrell Hatton, Thomas Pieters and Peter Hanson round out the list of contenders this week. Hatton sits at +1850, while Matthew Fitzpatrick, Hanson and Pieters all sit at +2550. Stenson is a significant favorite as he’s the only player inside of 10/1 to win the event and there are only four players overall that are inside of 20/1 (Westwood, Noren and Hatton). The longest shot on the board is Jorge Campillo at +6500, who is tied at that number with eight other golfers.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Thomas Pieters over Ross Fisher
Fisher should be in line for a decent outing this week but we are high on Pieters’ potential so this looks like a prime matchup to bet. Pieters packs a ton of power off the tee so this is exactly the type of event where we can see him breaking through with an excellent performance. Pieters wasn’t awful at Wentworth last week when he finished tied for 27th and a top-10 finish wouldn’t be a surprise here this week.
Top-Five Pick: Alex Noren
Noren is among three golfers that have won this event twice along with Ilonen and jesper Parnevik and we like the defending champ to produce a strong result again this week. Noren struggled at the Irish Open and the PGA Championship but he is much more comfortable at this event and we are banking on that he will revert to the form that he showed here when he won the Nordea Masters a year ago.
Top 10 Odds To Win The Nordea Masters
Henrik Stenson +605
Lee Westwood +1050
Alex Noren +1650
Tyrrell Hatton +1850
Matthew Fitzpatrick +2550
Peter Hanson +2550
Thomas Pieters +2550
Pablo Larrazabal +3050
Rikard Karlberg +3050
Ross Fisher +3050
