Golf fans are in store for a treat this week as the European Tour plays host to the final World Golf Championship of the year: WGC-HSBC Champions at Sheshan International Golf Club in China.
The Shanghai tournament boasts a high-quality field, featuring World No.1 Dustin Johnson, defending champion Hideki Matsuyama, major winners Jason Day and Justin Rose, Race To Dubai leader Tommy Fleetwood, and let’s not forget the in-form Tyrrell Hatton who is bidding to make tour history at the event.
European Tour Recap: Sergio Garcia won the Andalucia Valderrama Masters last weekend, which was the Spaniard’s first success since April when he ended his elusive search for major glory at the Masters.
This Week’s Course: The WGC-HSBC Champions will take place at the Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai. The par-72 course has hosted the tournament every year between 2005 and 2017, with the exception of 2012, and plays at 7,261 yards.
TV Schedule: It's an early start for us Brits who will have to set the alarm for 3am Thursday morning, with live play on Sky Sports Golf running through until 9am. It's the same time frame on Friday and Saturday, while Sunday's coverage ends an hour earlier at 8am.
Right, let’s take a look at six names in the frame for glory at the 2017 edition of WGC-HSBC Champions.
The Favourite: Dustin Johnson
Where else to start than with World No.1 Dustin Johnson who returns to the venue he triumphed at in 2013 as a 40/1 outsider. Fast-forward four years and the American is the 8/1 favourite (Bet365) as he attempts to become the first player to accumulate three of the four WGC titles in the same season.
Johnson enjoyed a superb first-half of the year, bagging wins at the WGC-Mexico Championship, then the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, taking his tally to five WGC titles, which he hopes he can extend to six come Sunday.
The Defending Champion: Hideki Matsuyama
Johnson will no doubt face stiff competition from defending champion Hideki Matsuyama who returns to the event looking to become the first back-to-back winner.
Last year in Shanghai Matsuyama won his first European Tour title and in the process became the first Asian player to hoist a World Golf Championship in the air after obliterating the field in a seven-shot success - a tournament record.
Matsuyama certainly got a taste for the WGC as he went on win August’s WGC-Bridgestone by five strokes, and if he comes out on top this time around it will be back-to-back WGC successes for the 10/1 priced Japanese superstar.
Matsuyama is certainly looking forward to Thursday’s event, telling Golfshake.com:
“Sheshan has some very special memories for me. It was a great honour to become the first Japanese winner of a World Golf Championships and to do it against such a world-class field was very special. I believe the confidence I gained with such a big victory there has really helped me with my performances this year.”
Hat-trick Hero...Tyrrell Hatton...?
Tyrrell Hatton returns to the European Tour this week looking to stamp his name in the history books. Hatton is a man on fire after winning back-to-back tournaments - Alfred Dunhill Links Championship then the Italian Open - before taking a breather last week.
The Englishman, one of 39 European Tour players in the field this week, now returns to the tour bidding to become only the third player in European Tour history to bag three tour wins in three tournaments, with the 26-year-old a 25/1 shot to accomplish this.
The only two other players to achieve this feat are Rory McIlroy in 2014, and Tiger Woods back in 2000.
The Race To Dubai Leader: Tommy Fleetwood
The Race To Dubai is heading for a cracking climax, with Tommy Fleetwood still leading the way at the summit with four weeks to go until the season comes to a close.
So far this year Fleetwood has triumphed at Abu Dhabi Championship and French Open, while he was a runner-up to Dustin Johnson at the WGC-Mexico Championship. In his last outing the Englishman came T6 at the Italian Open, and another decent finish this week will edge him closer to the European Tour crown.
The Spanish Sensation: John Rahm
Only two players sit above Spanish sensation John Rahm in the Race To Dubai rankings: Fellow countryman Sergio Garcia, and the runaway frontrunner Fleetwood.
The World No.5 will be gunning to bounce back from his disappointing showing in his homeland last week, where he missed the cut at the Andalucia Valderrama Masters, which was won by host Garcia.
The Irish Open winner has performed superbly at the WGC’s this term, finishing T3 at the WGC-Mexico Championship, swiftly followed by a runner-up showing to Dustin Johnson at the WGC- Dell Technologies Match Play, now he’s 18/1 to finish top of the pile in China.
The Contender: Ross Fisher
One man to keep an eye on in China is Ross Fisher who can be found at 25/1 to strike third time lucky following back-to-back runners-up finishes to Tyrrell Hatton.
Fisher is 4th in the Race To Dubai and in four appearances at the WGC-HSBC Champions he has two top-6 finishes, including T3 in 2015. The 36 year old’s game is on point at the moment and he looks a decent bet at 9/2 to finish as the Top Englishman, while he can be backed at 9/1 to be the Top European player at the tournament.
