The Punter 
/ Steven Rawlings / 31 January 2011 / Leave a Comment 
Bubba Watson – The deserved winner of the Farmers insurance Open
“Bubba had gone to bed on Saturday knowing he was right in the heat of battle. He was presented with the lead after just three holes and he never looked back – attacking all day and although it grieves me and my pocket to say so, he was the worthy winner.”
It's been a poor week for our man but there's plenty of praise for the man that ruined his week...
Paul Casey made a terrific up-and-down on the final hole in Bahrain to edge out Peter Hanson and Miguel-Angel Jimenez and to become the latest in a string of punter friendly winners on the Race to Dubai.
Whilst in the States, Bubba Watson became the 4th triple-figure priced winner in-a-row on the PGA Tour in 2011. And if Casey's up-and-down on 18 was terrific, Bubba's on his final hole last night was miraculous.
My Bets
All my in-running plays up until Sunday night are detailed in my Live Golf Blog.
I assumed that someone had been on the sauce on Saturday night when I saw that my ambitious plays on Francesco Molinari and Matteo Manassero were matched at 3.53 am on Sunday morning but whoever it was that took my wagers had little need for concern. The Italian pair soon followed all my other wagers in Bahrain and played particularly poorly. Both were out of the equation by about the 5th hole - it was time to put the spade down and stop digging.
Having lost on the European event I wanted a good night in the States and with both Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim onside with a round to go, I wasn't without a chance.
Having had a fairly decent bet on Tiger Woods from the start at just [4.0] my outlay for the week had been higher than normal and my plan was to lay Lefty back for all my weeks stakes, should he go odds on, and I'd resigned myself to a very bad week if he didn't. Well he didn't - the lowest he traded at was [2.10] but mercifully I ditched the plan after Mickelson had played just two shots!
When he hit the green on the 1st, as his playing partners were making a mess of the hole, I layed back half of the week's stakes at [2.18]. Had he made his birdie putt there, I'd have layed back the other half at odds on and there were other moments when he could have gone odds on too - when his eagle putt lipped out on 13 for example. But he didn't and I'm thankfully I was sensible enough to have layed what I did, when I did.
So it's been a bad week, but it's not been horrendous and after the great start I've had to 2011 I'm not about to start moaning.
Player to watch
I can't praise Bubba Watson highly enough. When I surveyed the leaderboard with a round to go I felt if Mickelson broke 70 he'd win, and I imagine he thought along the same lines, but then, like me, I doubt he could have expected such an immense display from Bubba.
The man was a gibbering wreck whenever he found himself in contention right up until he managed to get over the line at the Travelers Championship last June. There then followed a terrific performance at the US PGA Championship, when Martin Kaymer beat him in a play-off and now this.
It's ever so slightly galling to see him win at such a big price, given he had perfectly decent form at this event and that I'd backed him first time up this year at [50.0], when I wrote in my preview "I think something finally clicked with this truly talented and gifted lefty last year and I think the market is still underestimating him."
The frustration of him beating Mickelson rubbed salt into the wound but I can only sing his praises. He made a very brave par save at the penultimate hole from 10 feet and his up-and-down at the last was amazing. After his approach shot had found a really tough lie in the bunker I felt a five was the best score available and that six was definitely more likely than a birdie four, but no. A quite brilliant bunker shot left him 12 feet from the hole, from where he dribbled it in to claim the title.
He had gone to bed on Saturday knowing he was right in the heat of battle. He was presented with the lead after just three holes and he never looked back - attacking all day and although it grieves me and my pocket to say so, he was the worthy winner. And if this was a sign of what's to come, there'll be many more to follow.
Player to swerve
No need to waffle here, two words required, Tiger Woods.
What have we learnt for next year?
I still can't decide whether accuracy over power is what's required at the new Montgomerie course - used for the Volvo Golf Champions. Off the tee, I tend to think you can get away with a degree of inaccuracy and that the big-hitters have an advantage over the shorter fairway finders.
Paul Casey ranked just 52nd for GIR (Greens in Regulation) but I still fancy accurate iron-play is what will prove to be the best asset here over time. The greens are tricky in the extreme and not just finding the green but finding the right part of the green will prove vital here over the years.
And finally, I highlighted the hole averages in my Live Golf Blog on Thursday and it's worth reiterating. The run of 6 holes from 9 to 14 is very much the scoring section of the course and the finish is tough here. Players starting on the 10th hole next year are much more likely to start well, especially if they have a morning tee-time.
This week's events are the Qatar Masters and the WM Phoenix Open. I'll back tomorrow or early on Wednesday with my preview.
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