European Open tips: Rasmus Hojgaard can rise above weakened field at Green Eagle

European Open key stats:

• When: May 30 - June 2 2024
• Where: Green Eagle Golf Course, Winsen, Hamburg, Germany
• How long: 7,882 yards - par 73
• What to expect: Long course, five par-5s, water hazards on all holes but one, generous fairways, large undulating greens
• Who won last year: Tom McKibbin (-9)

Such is the open nature of this tournament that even the three market leaders are tastily priced at between 18/1 and 20/1, with defending champion Tom McKibbin expected to rekindle his reputation as the next Rory McIlroy, Apart from his missed cut at the Singapore Classic, McKibbin has made the top 25 in all of his other seven outings this year, including three top tens.

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Jordan Smith won this in 2017 but has not won since. He is long off the tee, but was poor at last week’s Soudal Open after having put up a decent top-half performance at Valhalla in the PGA Championship

Rasmus Hojgaard is a multiple winner on the tour at a young age and he is our main pick to win this if he can bring his best game to the Green Eagle course.

The talented Dane enjoyed five straight top 12 finishes on the Middle East swing at the beginning of the year before missing the cut on his first Stateside attempt at the Cognizant Classic.

He made the cut last time out at the PGA Championship before finishing well down the field, but this return to more familiar European territory and a relatively weak field should see him rise back to the top.  

Suggested bet: Rasmus Hojgaard (20/1) each-way in the European Open

Our next group in the betting brings us to a talented quartet of proven performers, all of whom will fancy their chances in this company. 

Richard Mansell was as solid as usual to finish 11th in Belgium last week without getting near to the lead.

Bernd Wiesberger’s solid game tee to green was undone by his putting woes, but if the Austrian finds the magic with the flatstick, he could be a contender this week. 

Laurie Canter is back on the Tour after his LIV experience, and his sixth place at the Soudal Open suggests he is starting to get back into the swing.

Keita Nakajima is a recent winner on tour, and backed up his Indian Open success with a decent top ten position in Japan, before finding the demands of the PGA Championship too much, and there are doubts about whether this course will suit him.

Ahead of this bunch, however, we're opting for Matthew Jordan, who has been in decent form before missing consecutive cuts in Japan and China, but he bounced back strongly last week in Belgium, finishing really well to tie for fifth.

The Englishman remains a maiden on Tour, but he finished just outside the top 20 on this course last year, and this is the kind of event that offers the perfect chance for Jordan to break his duck  

Suggested bet: Matthew Jordan (50/1) each-way in the European Open

Others to watch:

• Johannes Veerman (33/1) - Already a Tour winner, a solid performer adept at bogey avoidance, which could be key here, 10th here in 2022 and ready to take another step forward.
• Marcel Siem (100/1) - Near miss runner-up in this last year, not at his best this term, but I like him as a homegrown golfer at big odds in front of his own fans
• Mike Lorenzo Vera (120/1) - Four missed cuts in five before bouncing back to come eighth at the Soudal last week - a similar strong finish could make his current odds look huge by Sunday

Suggested bet: Mike Lorenzo Vera (120/1) each-way in the European Open

Suggested bet summary:

• Rasmus Hojgaard (20/1) - 2 points each-way
• Matthew Jordan (50/1) - 1 point each-way
• Mike Lorenzo-Vera (120/1) - 0.5 point each-way

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