Whilst the cream of the crop of the golfing world head to the Arizona desert for the WGC-Accenture Matchplay Championship, some of the lesser lights of the PGA tour tee it up south of the border at the Mayakoba Classic.

The Greg Norman-designed El Camaleon Golf Club is the host course this week, and it’s an intriguing track which features a cave in the middle of the first hole amongst other unique features.

Looking at previous leaderboards from this event, it’s clear that accuracy (rather than distance) off the tee is of paramount importance. Furthermore, experienced tour players would appear to have the edge here with players such as Funk, Beckman, Gay and Wilson all having won here.

It would also seem that strong wedge players tend to go well here. Each of the last four winners have ranked highly in the GIR percentage from 125-150 yards stat in the season of their victories here, so this may be worth keeping an eye on.

The top three in the betting all have their merits this week. Spencer Levin has been in very strong form and has a good record in this event. Although I’m a big fan of his game, the price is far too short for a non-winner. Johnson Wagner is the defending champion here and already has a win to his name in 2012 so has to be respected, but again the price doesn’t appeal. Brian Gay is a past champion here amongst other good finishes and it’s one of those courses that suits his game down to a tee. Gay is the hardest of the trio for me to leave out, but this is a tournament for outsiders in my mind, and that will be my tact this week.

Here are my 7 selections:

Heath Slocum – If Twitter is worth paying attention to, Heath Slocum recently tweeted that he felt ‘really close to some great golf’. He maybe onto something as since this time he has posted two top-40 finishes and he ranked highly in GIR in his last start at Pebble Beach. In his two starts at the Mayakoba Golf Classic, Slocum has finished tied 3rd and tied 13th so he obviously likes something about El Camaleon. For a player who favours accuracy over distance, it would certainly seem to be a perfect fit, and the four-time PGA tour winner looks a cut above most of this field.

2.5pts each way 45/1 Voltbet

Michael Thompson – Thompson is one of those players who flew under the radar somewhat in 2011, despite finishing in the top-100 on the PGA tour money list. Punters may remember his near-miss at the McGladrey Classic back in October, and he also went very close at last year’s Transitions Championship. Thompson’s appearance in last year’s Mayakoba Classic was only his fourth PGA tour start, so I will forgive his missed cut which was the result of a second round 75 after a solid 69 in the opening round. This year he enters the event with experience under his belt and a very solid tie for 17th at last week’s Northern Trust Open.

2pts each way 50/1 BetXchange, Ladbrokes, Sportingbet, Hollywood, Voltbet, Sportsbet

Chris Stroud – What I like about Stroud this week is his progressive form at the Mayakoba Golf Classic. In his three starts in this event his form reads C-60-40-4 which shows he’s improving with every visit to El Camaleon. 2012 has been something of an odd year so far for Stroud with top-15 finishes in both the Sony Open and the Phoenix Open sandwiched by three missed cuts. His overall form still makes far better reading than last year where he entered this event on the back of 68-C-C-C. It is Stroud’s sixth season on the PGA tour this year, so hopefully experience can bring him his maiden title this week.

2pts each way 55/1 BetXchange, Hollywood, Voltbet, Sportsbet

Billy Horschel – Last year, Horschel opened his season with a stretch of 7 missed cuts with one exception thrown in the middle – a tie for 13th here at the Mayakoba Golf Classic. Horschel did his utmost to salvage his PGA tour card with some solid form towards the back-end of the season, but sadly it wasn’t enough and Horschel will be splitting his time between the PGA tour and the Nationwide Tour in 2012. I’m enticed by some form that Horschel showed last week on the Nationwide Tour season opener where he was the 36-hole leader in Colombia before an average weekend display. Like Slocum and Durant, the foundation of Horschel’s game is accuracy off the tee, and El Camaleon should reward this attribute.

1.5pts each way 70/1 BetXchange, World Sports Betting, Sportingbet, Hollywood

Joe Durant – It’s been nearly six years since Joe Durant’s last win on the PGA tour win, and for someone who consistently ranks in the top-10 on tour in both Driving Accuracy and GIR, it’s obvious what the missing link is….putting. Durant was runner-up in this event in 2010, and I will turn a blind eye to his missed cut last year which came immediately after an unexplained withdrawal at the Northern Trust Open the week before. Without a full PGA tour card, Durant has to make the most of the starts that he does get, and this is sort of tournament that rewards the accurate hitting of Durant.

1pt each way 75/1 Voltbet

Roberto Castro – Although Castro is a player I knew little about before 2012, I’m impressed with his run of four straight made cuts to start off his PGA tour career. Castro doesn’t mind golf south of the border either, having finished in the top-5 at the Mexico Open on the Nationwide Tour last year. The 26 year-old will be making his debut at El Camaleon this week, but his stats would suggest he has the type of game to go well here. Castro ranks 3rd on tour in Ball Striking, and he’s a strong wedge player.

1pt each way 100/1 BetXchange, World Sports Betting, Ladbrokes, Sportingbet, Hollywood, Voltbet, Sportsbet

Erik Compton – Having undergone two heart transplants, a win for Erik Compton on the PGA tour would undoubtedly be a popular one with golf journalists around the globe. Having won the Mexico Open on the Nationwide Tour last year, there’s every reason that Compton can step up and win on the bigger stage. Compton teed it up in the 2010 Mayakoba Golf Classic where he finished tied for 40th, so he does have some experience of El Camaleon. This season Compton has played solid, if unspectacular golf, and he could just be the surprise package this week.

0.75pts each way 125/1 BetXchange, Ladbrokes, Sportingbet, Hollywood

You are most welcome to add your own picks on our discussion forum

Sam Harrop has been a golfing enthusiast most of his life and has developed an in depth knowledge of the players, tournaments and stats on the PGA Tour. He has launched a website www.golfpuntersguide.com and he has kindly made his preview available to Goodforthegame.

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