Omega European Masters Tips: Seven selections at the stunning Crans-su-Sierre

Another dramatic European Tour event concluded on Sunday at the Czech Masters. As American, Johannes Veerman became the 6th first time winner on the bounce on the tour, capitalizing on a late collapse from Finland’s Tapio Pulkkanen. 

This week we head to Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club for the Omega European Masters. Situated in the Swiss Alps, it’s a course that is renowned for being one of the most visually striking in the world and is one of the most familiar stops on the European Tour, hosting the event, or a variation of it as far back as 1923.

The last time we saw the event in 2019, Sebastian Soderberg came out victorious in a 5 man playoff. The 4th playoff in a row in the event and the 6th time in 7 renewals that extra holes have been required.

Originally designed by Harry Nicholson, then upgraded by Seve Ballesteros (a three time winner here) in the late 90’s, the course measures 6848 yards and plays to a par 70. Short by modern standards but even more so when you counter in the fact they’re playing at altitude up in the mountains, meaning the ball travels further due to the thinner air.

Despite being heavily tree-lined in parts, the fairways on the whole aren’t as narrow as you’d expect bar a couple of exceptions, though there is still importance in accuracy off the tee. With tricky doglegs and trees blocking out a direct approach into some of these largely small greens, you have to make sure you find the correct part of the fairways, or at least miss on the preferable side. Expect plenty of hanging lies on this typically mountainous terrain.

There is plenty of water in play, particularly on the back 9. None more so than on the 18th hole, with a tough drive to a fairway that tilts heavily from left to right, towards bunkers or worse, and a pond guarding the front right of the green. It is a hole which always plays a dramatically pivotal role in deciding the outcome of the event.

A course which appears to suit both longer and shorter hitters alike. One of few occasions in which the shorter hitters aren’t at a serious disadvantage due to the length of the course, whilst also meaning that bigger hitters can club down on many of the holes to give themselves more accuracy off the tee. Completely contrasting players like Matthew Fitzpatrick and Scott Hend both having excellent records here alludes to this.

It’s a good test of a player’s tee-to-green game. Driving it well is important in giving yourself the chance to make the post of the drivable par 4s and scorable par 5s, meaning, as is usually the case, precision iron play will be key. Though one of the most noticeable stats that popped up in recent renewals is your ability to get the ball up and down, with each of the last four winners all ranking top 5 for scrambling and it being a constant feature in the stats of people reaching the upper end of the leaderboard. It makes sense when you consider the unfair way these greens, shaped like upturned saucers, often repel balls off the putting surfaces.

As far as correlating courses go, none stand out more than Fanling, home of the Hong Kong Open. Scott Hend, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Lucas Bjerregaard and Miguel Angel Jimenez amongst a bunch of players who have form at both courses. The Kenya Open (Karen) also appears frequently, with Soderberg a winner at both. As well as, to a smaller extent, Valderrama and Wentworth.

Bernd Wiesberger heads the market in a strong European Tour field. Followed next by the erratic Sam Horsfield and Belgium’s Thomas Detry, still looking for his first win. My first selection was also without a win at this level until his last start, when he won the Cazoo Classic. Scotland’s Calum Hill and I think he looks a good fit for this week’s test.

A great talent with winning pedigree coming from the Challenge Tour, it was only a matter of time before Hill won on the European Tour and despite not being on him, as I have been many times this year, it was good to see him get one over the line.

He’s a player with very little wrong with his game. Excellent putter, strong ball-striker and solid around the greens. Particularly excelling in scrambling, where he ranks 17th on tour, which should prove vital this week. With this it comes as no surprise that he ranks 6th in Europe for both birdie average and bogey avoidance.

Though he’s never played here before, he has form elsewhere that suggests the track will suit. Recording 3rd and 8th place finishes at the two events in Kenya at the start of the year, which I highlighted as a course that correlates. He also has another piece of form which I think could be a good pointer this week, a victory in the Euram Bank Open on the Challenge Tour at Adamstal. Set in the Austrian Alps, it’s another short, tree-lined course with hanging lies on the fairways and small greens.

It is unusual for players to go back-to-back but when Hill won his 2nd event on the Challenge Tour, he followed it with a 3rd on his next start and then another victory after that, showing a player who can stay hot once he finds his game. That victory in the Cazoo Classic should’ve given him even more belief in his potential at this level and with a course that sets up well I think this talented Scot will be in the mix again.

Another player with form at Karen Country Club, home of the Kenya Open, where he finished 1st and then had every chance to make it two on the spin the next week, before a final round 73 put paid to his chances. Justin Harding is a proven winner and has looked in recent weeks like he’s ready to win again. 

With three top 10s in his last six, including a 2nd at the Cazoo Open in Wales, as well as finishing top 20 in The Open, Harding has shown a return to the form which helped him to that victory in Kenya earlier in the year.

A solid ball-striker, who is much more accuracy over power, it’s in his short game where he really excels. Ranking 14th for scrambling, 21st around the greens and 49th for putting, capable of blistering weeks in that regard.

Like Hill he hasn’t played here before but as well as that form in Kenya, he has a 3rd at Valderrama to his name, highlighting his preference for a shorter, tree lined track. 

Now a two time European Tour winner, making it nine career wins in total, he’s one of the most prolific winners in this field and with the type of solid tee-to-green game to suit, he should go well on his first visit to this stunning setting.

Two longshot selections, with one extremely long. There wasn’t much else outside of the two that caught my attention at 100/1+. Dale Whitnell’s stats suggest he can go well but he was disappointing when in a good position in the Cazoo Classic. Instead, I’m going for another player I backed that week, one who achieved a top 10 finish, providing further proof of him returning to form and that’s India’s Shubhankar Sharma.

It was a really good performance from Sharma two weeks ago. A pair of 68s over the weekend was one of the better scores in the field and it led to a 9th place finish for him, in what was only his 2nd top 10 in two years. 

His performance that week was built on his continued quality iron play, ranking 13th for the week in approach and 35th for the year. He also drove the ball solidly again and putted very well. The short game continues to be his Achilles heel, which would be a slight concern this week but the ball-striking should see him create plenty of chances for himself.

Only one previous visit here, which resulted in a missed cut in 2018, though he was playing really poorly then, so that is easily overlooked. A huge plus for his chances here lies in his excellent record in Hong Kong, where he’s finished 10th and 6th in the past. As well as a top 20 at Wentworth in the BMW PGA Championship, a course where winners here like Alex Noren and Danny Willett have carried form over.

The game looks in great shape and if he can continue to drive it straight and hit quality approach shots, he should go much better than he did on his debut here.

This one requires a bit more imagination, but Stalter has some interesting pieces of form, as well as some improved performances in recent weeks and at a huge price could surprise. 

This recent improvement comes in the form of a couple of made cuts in his last four starts. The first a solid 44th place finish in the Scottish Open, which boasted a stellar field. The second a 51st place finish at the Cazoo Classic last time out. Both times the short game, particularly the putter, has looked in good nick, though in the Cazoo Classic he also drove it pretty straight and put up solid approach numbers. Bookending his tournament with two rounds in the 60s.

Now this alone isn’t cause to give Stalter much more than a passing glance but some past results point to a player who should like what he finds at Crans. Last year he won the aforementioned Euram Bank Open, a course he also won on in a top class amateur career. Added to that he has a 15th place finish in the Kenya Open in 2016 and that same year finished 14th in Hong Kong.

This is a huge longshot and should be treated as such, a good week for him will be another made cut but there’s enough promise in recent and past results to suggest Stalter will at least outplay those huge odds.

Also worth checking out in all the place markets when those odds become available.

To finish off I’ve got a couple from the very attractive middle section of the betting. Andrew Johnston and Masahiro Kawamura the last two off the list, the former because of a real worry about sharpness due to a lack of golf and the latter because for all he looks a good fit, it’s hard to entirely look past his record here. Neither of those are the case with Wales’ Jamie Donaldson.

A three-time European Tour winner, though it’s the 2014 Ryder Cup, when he secured the winning point for Europe, that the likeable Welshman will be most remembered. It was also then that he secured his last victory but he’s another amongst a bunch of more experienced guys who’ve reignited their careers over the last couple of years. 

A really strong finish to 2020, one which saw Donaldson miss just a solitary cut in his last thirteen events. He has continued that into 2021, totting up another couple of top 10s and missing just three cuts in fourteen. The best of those efforts coming when he finished 3rd on his last start in the Cazoo Classic.

This form is a result of Donaldson doing everything to a good standard. 30th in scrambling, 34th in putting, 34th in driving accuracy and 55th in approach. Resulting in him making fewer bogeys than most, ranking 22nd in bogey avoidance and he also racks up his fair share of birdies, ranking 47th in birdie average.

He’s played here many times before and has an excellent record. 3rd in 2011 his best, also recording top 10s on two other occasions, to go with multiple other solid efforts. He also boasts good finishes at each of the four correlating courses mentioned. Further enhancing his chances this week.

In a year where many veterans have returned to winning ways, Donaldson would be another popular winner. There’s no doubt he’s playing well enough to follow up that 3rd place finish last time out with another top performance.

After backing him twice in recent weeks, I’m really keen to give Jacques Kruyswijk another go. 

He finished 7th for us last week to grab some place returns and notched up his 5th top 25 in 6 starts. Excellent tee-to-green yet again, ranking 6th in the field but had an unusually off week with the putter, ranking 47th. Which ultimately cost him being a contender. 

He’s played here twice and missed the cut both times but he’s a considerably better player now. Two fifth place finishes in Kenya this year and a top 20 at Wentworth point to a player who has the game to contend in the Alps. Though to be fair, the stats tell you he’s playing well enough to contend just about anywhere.

1st in stroke average, 1st in par 5 scoring, 4th in birdie average, 6th tee-to-green, 9th in putting and 10th in bogey avoidance. This is genuine world class golf that the big hitting South African is playing right now and it is surely only a matter of time, if he continues to produce numbers like this, before he enters the winner’s circle.