Mauritius Open: Antoine Rozner lining up title defence at tasty odds

Playing host for the weekend is the La Reserve Golf Links at the Heritage Golf Club on the idyllic Indian Ocean island - a par 72 and 7,111 yards in length, it is littered with pot bunkers, infinity greens and generously wide fairways, all combining to suggest a birdie-strewn weekend. 

South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen is installed as the 13/2 favourite after his hard-won victory in last week’s Alfred Dunhill Championship in his home country. Boasting the rare achievement of a runner-up Grand Slam, having finished second in all four majors, Oosthuizen is part designer of this course and so knows it well. 

Can the 2010 Open Championship winner go back-to-back here? Possibly, but sadly the bookies think so, too, so he’s not much value at those odds.

Dropping down the market a notch, we find Matthieu Pavon and Antoine Rozner at a more appealing 12/1 and 14/1 respectively. French golfers tend to have a strong relationship with Mauritius, due to its historical significance, and of the two, the latter catches the eye as the defending champion,albeit on a different course.

Rozner has not missed the cut since messing up in the Open de France in September, with three top-20 finishes in his six subsequent tournaments suggesting his game is in good shape to tackle a relatively weak field on a course at which he has finished runner-up in the past.

Suggested bet: Antoine Rozner each-way in the Mauritius Open

At 20/1 is the young South African talent Jayden Trey Schaper, who has shown some decent form in recent weeks, but equally you could say that he is yet to fulfil his potential, and he might be one to follow next year.

Marcel Siem has endured an inconsistent year and has looked good on only a few occasions. As a course ambassador he will know this terrain well, but he needs to find his form to contend, and his 22/1 tag looks a fair reflection of his prospects.

Louis de Jager placed on this course in 2017 and has been playing well throughout the South African swing of the DP World Tour, finishing 43rd, 17th and third (South Africa Open) before having to withdraw from last week’s Alfred Dunhill Championship.

If Louis tees off fully fit then he could well be in equally good shape on Sunday, by which time he could be making a mockery of his current 25/1 odds.

Suggested bet: Louis De Jager each-way in the Mauritius Open

The same argument could be made for Oliver Bekker, who looks an each-way snip at 50/1. The South African missed the cut last weekend, but had put himself in contention at various stages of his previous two outings at the Joburg and SA Opens.

Most significantly, Bekker has finished in the top twelve of this tournament the last three times it has been played, suggesting his game could be well-suited to the conditions he will find here.

Looking further into the hidden depths of the betting market we find a golfer who was highly rated not that long ago, but who has lost his form in recent times. 

We have to remember that in this field there are many golfers who are well off DP World Tour level, so John Axelsen could be flying under the bookies’ radar at a sumptuous-looking 150/1 that's perhaps worth a cautious each-way dabble.

Suggested bet summary:

• Antoine Rozner, 3 points each way at 14/1
• Louis De Jager, 2 points each way at 25/1
• Oliver Bekker, 2 points each way at 50/1
• John Axelsen, 0.5 points each way at 150/1