PREVIEW: 2023 Open de France

2022/2023 DP World Tour
Cazoo Open de France
Le Golf National, Paris, France
21st-24th September

Ryan Fox’s fabulous victory at Wentworth felt like the ultimate validation following his ludicrous exclusion from last year’s President’s Cup side. Fox had to hold off a slew of Ryder Cuppers in one of the most decorated fields in recent European memory. Luke Donald should be pleased after no fewer than seven of his Ryder Cup squad managed top ten finishes last week. The European side is starting to look immense going into next week’ prestigious biennial event. The tour now moves to France for the oldest national golfing event in continental Europe: The Open de France.

rance’s Arnaus Massey- winner of the 1907 Open Championship- won the first two editions staged back in 1906 and 1907. A mainstay on the tour for over 50 years, this year’s Open de France feels a little bit deglamorized due to next week’s Ryder Cup action. It feels fitting-on the eve of golf’s most feverishly exciting week- that the tour moves to the site of Europe’s last great victory: Le Golf National.

Designed by Hubert Chesneau and Robert Van Hagge, Le Golf National was only opened as recently as 1990. It is a stadium style course that underwent significant changes ahead of the 2018 Ryder Cup. It is an exposed, linksy style layout that frustrated the US bombers back in 2018. Phil Mickelson was left childishly complaining about the fact that wayward drives were being punished. It was laughable. Moli-Wood- Francesco Molinari and Tommy Fleetwood- really set the blueprint for success around Le Golf National, hitting fairways and finding greens in regulation.

Nine of the last 16 winners have ranked inside the top 15 for GIR. Even more crucially, the top scrambler has placed at Le Golf National in 15 of the last 18 editions. The Bentgrass greens run at around 12 on the stimp and require a deft touch. It really is a true test of precision-based golf and it is also a course that rewards familiarity.

South Korean Tom Kim is one of golf’s fastest rising talents and I’m not surprised that he’s leading the markets this week. He was bang in contention last week until an uninspired final round put pay to his chances. Wentworth champ Ryan Fox will be looking to make it back-to-back wins while the ever-consistent Min Woo Lee is always a factor. Robert Macintyre is the only Ryder Cup player who will be participating in Paris. And I’m not surprised.

He couldn’t get things going last week and finished 2nd to last amongst the Ryder Cup squad (Nicolai Hojgaard was the only member of the current squad who he beat). Elsewhere, Aaron Rai will also want to build on a magnificent showing at Wentworth. Defending champion Guido Migliozzi is one of the most unpredictable players on the tour and cannot be ignored on this quirky track.

Past Winners

2022: Guido Migliozzi (-16)
2021: event cancelled
2020: event cancelled
2019: Nicolas Colsaerts (-12)
2018: Alex Noren (-7)
2017: Tommy Fleetwood (-12)

Betting Favourites (To Win)

Tom Kim (8/1), Min Woo Lee (12/1), Aaron Rai (13/1), Ryan Fox (13/1), Billy Horschel (16/1)

Value Bets

Adrian Otaegui- To Win (33/1)

I’m liking the look of Adrian Otaegui this week. He finished 2nd at a linksy course at the KLM Open before sitting 7th at the halfway stage of the Open Championship. Sure, his form has died a bit recently. But his stats make him an ideal candidate for success this week (especially in this field). He currently ranks 1st for Driving Accuracy, 2nd for Scrambling and 4th for SG: Approach. That is almost the perfect trifecter for success around this layout. He also has some course history, finishing 7th in 2017, 12th in 2018 and 13th last year.

Ewen Ferguson- To Win (66/1)

Ewen Ferguson has gone off the boil since a brilliant 12th place finish in a high-quality Scottish Open field. Ferguson hit the top 15 six times in ten starts between March and July. This included a 3rd at the SDC Championship, 4th in the Jonsson Workwear Open and 4th in the British Masters. Sure, he has missed a few cuts of late (he also missed the cut here on debut last year). Crucially, he ranks 12th in GIR and 17th on Approach this season. Both of his wins last year came in tough events, including a 7-under-par winning total in Qatar. He has the game to grind it out this week.

The Man to Beat- Min Woo Lee- To Win (12/1)

I’m sticking with the classy Min Woo Lee this week. He ranked 3rd off the tee at both the K Club and Wentworth. That’s pretty impressive given the fact that he was coming off a six-week break. His iron play dipped a little last week and he ultimately had to settle for a 14th place finish. Lee has played some of his best golf on tough tests this year. He finished 5th at LA Country Club and 18th at Oak Hill. He currently ranks 6th on the DP World Tour for Scrambling and everything just looks right for Lee this week.