The DP World Tour stays in the desert this week and defending champion and desert specialist Thorbjorn Olesen looks an outstanding bet.
Best Bet
Very keen on Dane Thorbjorn Olesen to defend here. He was outstanding winning here last year by six shots in a complete rout. He loves desert golf. Played well last week and finished third at Abu Dhabi last year, the key guide. Ranks 3rd in Strokes Gained: Putting, 4th in Par 5 Scoring and 14th in Putting Average.
Mid-Tier Bet
Soderberg’s form has tailed off since the middle of last season – around the time he blew an eight-shot final round lead – but he has the talent to compete here. Ranks 3rd in Birdies and 3rd in Strokes Gained: Approach and finished 2nd at Abu Dhabi in 2023.
Value Bet
The wildly inconsistent Haotong Li is coming out of the depths of a poor 2023 to start finding himself in the mix again. His biggest win came in the desert when winning the 2018 Dubai Desert Classic. Ranks 11th in Birdies and 12th in Strokes Gained: Approach.
Longshot Bet
It is hard not love Aussie David Micheluzzi, who has the talent and the bottle to go win a decent tournament soon. He played without fear last week and was right in the mix. Ranks 4th in Strokes Gained: Putting and 13th in Putting Average. Chance.