Prize Fund – €2,700,000
Winner’s Share – €450,000
Course – Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Course (6,848 yards Par 70)
After a truly outstanding week at St Andrews, we move on to one of the most breathtaking courses in world golf.
Crans-sur-Sierre is simply mind blowing. Built smack bang in a skiing town, this magical track weaves through the side of a mountain resulting in some of the most picturesque scenes you could ever imagine.
One half of DownThe18th has luckily been over there this week (one of the reasons for this late preview!) and having spoken with a lot of the players, they all share the belief that this is a truly unique tournament.
The 7th hole is pretty ridiculous..
The course isn’t the most challenging you’ll ever find, as proven by some of the winning scores, but it sure is made up for by the intriguing layout. On the face of it, you have a tree-lined and undulating short track that requires some thought off the tee with quite a few narrow fairways.
The bigger hitters can definitely reach a couple of the par 4’s – 6 and 7 – and eagle opportunities are rife with the right tee-shot. With the thin air, the ball travels a lot further though, meaning the course can be over-powered but you can be punished within the trees if you are too wayward.
An ampi-theatre-esque hole that was designed by the one and only Seve Ballesteros
The winner will definitely have had a solid week tee to green and given themselves the opportunity to attack pins, but we are certain this is a course where you have to push and hold back depending on your drives and approaches.
A decent field has been assembled with the move back to July, so expect a really fascinating week.
Advised Bets
Victor Dubuisson (25/1 Paddy Power)
Tyrrell Hatton (50/1 BetVictor)
Alexander Levy (60/1 Paddy Power)
Alejandro Canizares (110/1 BetFred)
Outside Bets
Mike Lorenzo-Vera (150/1 Coral)
Lionel Weber (300/1 Paddy Power)
DownThe18th 