16-1 Spiderman can climb to Tour success

16-1 Spiderman can climb to Tour success

Punting
Michael Duffy

AFTER another titanic weekend of golf in the US, it’s difficult to imagine how the likes of Phil Mickelson, Anthony Kim, Sergio Garcia, Jim Furyk, Justin Leonard, Ben Curtis et al will get themselves up for the Tour Championship which begins at East Lake on Thursday.
Aside from — in Mickleson’s case at any rate — 36 holes of golf on two consecutive days before an emotional 18 on Sunday, the whole circus that surrounds the Ryder Cup make a bet on any competitor there winning this weekend an extremely fragile one.
We’re going to look at players who had their feet up last weekend, and while Vijay Singh will be the shortest price of that group, better value lies in the Colombian they call ‘Spiderman’. East Lake is a birdie-fest of a course and Camillo Villegas is the man to take advantage. He broke his duck two weeks ago with victory in the BMW Championship, and can go very close again this weekend. He’s a golfer becoming increasingly en vogue and consistent, so grab the last of the fancy prices.
Recommended Camillo Villegas 16-1 (Tour Championship, begins Thursday).
Swop offers good value
IN search of yet another Group 1, Aidan O’Brien would love to see some fast ground this weekend for Henrythenavigator. If it was top of the ground, he would have a serious chance of grabbing a fifth Group 1 himself but any ground with some juice in it makes him a lay.
For our ante-post portfolio, add Luca Cumani’s Swop for the Cambridgeshire on Saturday week. On just his fifth career run, Swop was a 6-1 joint-favourite for a valuable Heritage handicap at Sandown at the end of last month. He got a little bump off his stablemate Ask The Butler and did well to finish third to him, with Michael Stoute’s Lang Shining splitting them. Hit with just a three-pound rise for that effort Swop looks well-placed to step up on that performance. Hailing from the quarters he does, the 9-1 still available about him is unlikely to last. Eight of the last 10 winners of the race have carried less than nine-stone (Swop is due to carry 8-12), and seven older horses have won in that period of time. As a five year-old, he has everything in his favour.
Recommended Swop 9-1 (Cambridgeshire, Saturday week).
Cork ladies a confident bet
IT’S ladies day at Croke Park on Sunday, when the footballers of Cork and Monaghan battle it out for the Brendan Martin Cup. It’s a little while since Monaghan have reached this stage, and since then the Rebels have been busy notching up titles — a victory this weekend would mean a fourth successive one.
And that is the most likely scenario, because Cork’s lady footballers are like Kilkenny’s hurlers: utterly dominant, ruthless and perhaps the best we have seen. They have been further boosted by the return of Valerie Mulcahy (she was sent off in the semi-final hammering of Monaghan but received only a two-week suspension) and present a real test for bookmakers in framing a spread. They have taken a punt on Cork winning by four, but we think they’re wrong. Cork, at evens, a confident bet with the handicap.
Recommended Cork -4 Evens (v Monaghan, All-Ireland ladies final, Sunday).