For the third time in a month, the European Tour will switch continents when it heads to Beijing, China for the Volvo China Open. While the experts might not be putting too much stock in to the travel schedule, it’s not a stretch to think the trips from the United States to Spain to Morocco and now to the Far East might begin to take their toll. Alexander Levy, Kiradech Aphibarnrat and Bernd Wiesberger will headline the field for this week’s Volvo China Open, which will feature a strong contingent of Asian players. Will it be one of those fan favorites that delivers and comes out on top in Topwin this week? Or will a European star emerge with another victory this week? Here is a closer look at this week’s Volvo China Open with the odds courtesy of BetDSI Sportsbook.
Event Details
Event: Volvo China Open
Category: European
Date: April 26th-29th, 2018
Location: Topwin G&CC, Beijing, China
Aphibarnrat will headline this week’s contingent of Asian players along with China’s Hao Tong Li. While Aphirbarnrat missed the cut in his only appearance at this tournament last year there is no doubt he has the talent to compete this week. Meanwhile, Li is a former champion at this course after he won here in 2016 with a minus-22 score. With a moderately weak field competing in this week’s tournament, Aphibarnrat and Li are two names in particular that are worth taking a long look at from a sports betting perspective.
Past Five Winners
2017: Alexander Levy -17
2016: Li Haotang -22
2015: Wu Ashun -9
2014: Alexander Levy -19
2013: Brett Rumford -16
What To Know About The Course
Topwin will be staging this event for the third time. This course has generous fairways but there are water hazards on all but three holes along with tricky undulating greens. Driving Distance should be an important statistic to consider when evaluating the field for this week’s tournament. Meanwhile, when Li won here back in 2016 he fared better on the Par 4 holes than any other golfer, which is something worth considering. While Driving Distance will be the most important statistic to consider, both Scrambling numbers and Par 4 Performance should be factored in to your decision-making when evaluating the best sports betting options for this week’s tournament.
The Field
Alexander Levy is the defending tournament champion and the obvious sports betting favorite to win this event for the second year in a row at +1000 odds. Next up are Li and Aphibarnrat, who are listed at +1400 odds and +1600 odds respectively. Wiesberger and Joost Luiten round out the top-five list of sports betting favorites at +1600 and +1800 odds respectively. With such a relatively weak field, there are plenty of sleeper value options that will be worth considering. However, this definitely appears to be Levy’s tournament to lose.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Pablo Larrazabal over Julian Suri
This pick is more about finding a decent option to fade against Larrazabal than anything against Suri. Basically, Larrazabal at +3300 odds to win outright is an excellent value bet when matched up against Suri, who is listed at +2500 odds to win outright. Larrazabal struggled last week but the four-time European Tour winner finished third here last year and should definitely be in the mix this week. Larrazabal likes his trips to the Far East and absolutely nobody will be shocked if he rebounds with a strong performance in China this week.
Top-Five Pick: Alexander Levy
The defending tournament champion is looking to win the Volvo China Open for the third time. He couldn’t be hotter heading in to this event following his victory in Morocco last week. Meanwhile, at +1000 odds to win outright, Levy is actually still available at decent odds to win this event in back-to-back years. Considering his history at this course, his recent form and the relatively weak field he will compete against, Levy should be an excellent sports betting option to finish in the top-five this week.
