The European Tour’s finest will be playing on two different continents this week, with the WGC-Mexico Championship running alongside the Tshwane Open.
While Jon Rahm, Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood are among those hoping to stop Dustin Johnson from defending his title in Mexico, George Coetzee will be hoping to win his second Tshwane Open title in his hometown.
There is a difference of around 3,000ft in altitude between this week’s courses, with the tree-lined Chapultepec GC in Mexico City located 7,500ft above sea level. Johnson triumphed there last year, however several of this week’s WGC field, such as Dylan Frittelli and Charl Schwartzel, have extensive experience at altitude and could be ones to watch.
Our stats guru has weighed up the numbers and put forward the following three men for your Fantasy side.
Favourite: Tommy Fleetwood
Comedown? What comedown? After the elation of winning the Race to Dubai last season, a dip in Tommy Fleetwood’s form would have been understandable. There has, however, been no let-up from the Englishman, who claimed his fourth European Tour title at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA in January. His two other appearances on tour this season have both yielded top six finishes, meaning confidence is at an all-time high.
The fact he returns to a course he finished runner-up at last season will only fuel his belief. Dustin Johnson finished one shot clear of Fleetwood in 2017, but a 66-66 finish almost forced a play-off with the 2016 US Open winner. With Fleetwood’s strong iron game, he could go one better this time around. Johnson was tied for fifth in GIR in Mexico City last season, a category Fleetwood topped on the European Tour in 2017. Another fine week from tee-to-green could put Fleetwood firmly in the frame for a first WGC win. Watch this space.
Form horse: Francesco Molinari
A recurring comment from last season’s event was how similar Chapultepec GC felt to a European-style course, in the mould of an Italian or Spanish track. Francesco Molinari has reason to feel at home. The Turin-native finished in a share of 20th last season in Mexico and looked very much at home, thriving on the par-71 layout. If Chapultepec really does echo courses found in Europe, then Molinari will take confidence from the fact he’s won three out of four of his tour titles in Italy (twice) and Spain.
The 35 year old is widely considered one of the most solid players around, averaging 9.4 fairways hit per round last season, the 11th best in that category. If he finds his rhythm this week, he could become the first European winner of this event since Justin Rose in 2012.
Wildcard: Erik Van Rooyen
It’s been an impressive start to life as a European Tour player for Erik Van Rooyen. A 2017 Challenge Tour graduate, the South African has a runner-up finish and a top 20 to his name in four appearances this season. His most recent performance in his home country was that second place at the Joburg Open, a week that began with an opening round of 64. He returns for the Tshwane Open following a mixed week at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters. The 28 year old was in the mix on Friday night thanks to rounds of 68 and 66, before a tricky weekend ultimately derailed another run at a maiden title.
He performed well at Pretoria Country Club in 2015, finishing in a tie for tenth. A similar standard of performance would surprise few given how adept he seems at this level already. Van Rooyen is 34 under par for his last three events and could well be a dark horse in the year’s penultimate event in the South Africa.
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