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Mixed martial arts Canadian Open Best Bet: 101.00 Value Pick for This Weekend
Canadian Open Best Bet: Thursday, June 8th
Oakdale Golf & Country Club is the host course for the Canadian Open. We have analysed the betting markets to bring you our Canadian Open best bet.
In this article:
Canadian Open Preview
Thursday, 8th June, 12:00 (UK)
Oakdale Golf & Country Club hosts the Canadian open for the first time, taking over the reins from St. George’s Golf and Country Club.
Oakdale is a 27 hole complex and this week’s test is an 18 hole composite course. Stanley Thompson is the man credited with laying the original design at Oakdale and he was also the course designer at St. George’s. The crossover with St George’s continues by way of Andrew Green. Green was responsible for subsequent renovations at Oakdale and he was also involved with modernisation work at St George’s.
Small greens with plenty of slope will be the primary defence offered by the course this week. Expect scoring to be tougher on the front nine than the back nine, given the inward nine plays around 400 yards longer. Oakdale will play as a par 72, stretching to a maximum of 7,264 yards.
Two time Canadian Open champion, Rory McIlroy, heads up the betting this week at 6.0. The Northern Irishman has won back to back titles in Canada and is seeking to make it three in a row.
Rain showers are possible for the final round but the overall weather forecast is positive. There shouldn’t be any significant draw bias this week.
Canadian Open Best Bet
Rory McIlroy may be the strong favourite but he makes little appeal at odds of 6.0. A strong showing off the tee and around the greens masked some average approach play at Muirfield Village last week.
McIlroy’s approach play has been poor in three of his last four starts, a good week at the PGA Championship the outlier. I don’t see any value in the 6.0, especially on a course that is unfamiliar to him, and he was easy to pass over this week.
Take McIlroy out of the equation and it’s an interesting betting proposition. Matt Fitzpatrick is the only other player in the world’s top 12 to have made the trip across the border and with some players prepping their game for the US Open next week, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a shock winner this week.
Luke List was the player I was most interested in on Monday morning but he navigated US Open qualifying and promptly withdrew from this week’s tournament.
Eric Cole (61.0) was another that caught the eye given he’s posted four top 25 finishes in his last six starts. He too came through US Open qualifying with ease and will be at LA Country Club next week. However, Cole will tee it up for the ninth consecutive week in Canada and there is a question mark over how much energy he has left in the tank.
I’ll be kicking myself if Cole contends this week but I like Mark Hubbard at the bigger price of 101.0.
Hubbard was right in the mix at the Memorial before a final round 79 dropped him down to 30th place. Despite that final round, it was his best finish there in five attempts and he’s clearly a player who is playing with increased confidence.
Hubbard missed out on a place at the US Open in Monday’s final qualifying. A poor opening round left him with too much to do in the 36 hole qualifier. I can forgive that slow start given Sunday’s disappointment and prefer to take encouragement from his improved second round 66.
Three top 20 finishes in his last six solo starts and no missed cuts indicate an increased level of consistency for a player ranked just outside the world’s top 100.
When interviewed after this third round last week, Hubbard mentioned the fact he’s been working with a new coach this season and that has given him added length off the tee and shorter clubs into greens. Still shorter than average off the tee, the test at Oakdale is almost 300 yards shorter than Muirfield Village and that will undoubtedly benefit Hubbard.
Hubbard’s SG: Approach numbers have been excellent for a number of weeks, gaining strokes in each of his last six solo starts. If he can gain strokes off the tee, as he did last week, he should be right in the mix.
Finally, Hubbard played on the Canadian Tour at the start of his career in 2012 and 2013, notching a win in the country at the 2013 Wildfire Invitational. Hubbard can draw on those positive memories to secure his first PGA Tour win this week. Take the 101.0 with bet365 in their Each Way Extra market for eight each way places.
- Selection: Mark Hubbard EW
- Best Odds: 101.00 (bet365)
- Stakes: 1/10
Odds via bet365 as at 10.30 June 6th 2023. Odds may now differ.
