Nicolas Colsaerts looks set to savage familiar Four Seasons layout

Starts 2.40am Thursday
Live on Sky Sports from 8.30am Thursday

Defending champion Dylan Frittelli tops the betting for the Mauritius Open, but the South African faces a different course this year, with Four Seasons taking over from the Heritage Club.

Frittelli missed the cut by a shot at Four Seasons in 2016, but he was world number 237 at the time. Two years on, he is a much better player and he closed with a pair of 66s for seventh place in the DP World Tour Championship the week before last. A tie for 18th in the 28-runner World Cup of Golf last week, though, was a disappointing effort from Frittelli and partner Erik van Rooyen, and the Mauritius favourite doesn't appeal at the prices.

Jordan Smith, 12th in the World Tour Championship, also merits serious consideration, but he is a Mauritius Open debutant who has won only once on the European Tour. The course should suit but his odds are cramped.

Palmer's top tip
Nicolas Colsaerts 20-1

Mauritius is like a second home to Nicolas Colsaerts and his comfort at the venue is a key component to making the Belgian bomber the best bet at Four Seasons.

Colsaerts first visited Mauritius in 1997 and became the touring pro for Four Seasons in 2010. That attachment to the course yielded immediate dividends when he won the 2010 Mauritius Masters, a 54-hole invitational event, at Four Seasons.

Having a European Tour event staged at your practice base is a dream scenario, especially when the track sets up so well for you. The fairways are wide at Four Seasons, allowing Colsaerts to fully unleash his enormous power. A windy week made life trickier for him on the previous occasion Four Seasons hosted the Mauritius Open in 2016, but he still finished third, carding a seven-under-par 65 on the Friday.

Calmer weather is forecast this week, encouraging attacking golf, and Colsaerts should make merry. November has been the month of the comeback story, with Lee Westwood, Matt Kuchar, Danny Willett and Charles Howell all ending long winless streaks, and it may be the turn of Colsaerts to put a victory drought behind him.

The heroics of Westwood in the Nedbank Challenge should provide a particular spur for Colsaerts, whose career highlight came when partnering Ryder Cup stalwart Westwood in the day-one fourballs at Medinah in 2012. The rookie was incredible – Westwood's score counted on just one of the 18 holes they played in beating Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker – but six years later Colsaerts has failed to triumph since the Miracle of Medinah.

Six top-three finishes have been posted on the European Tour during that barren spell so Colsaerts has remained a contender and signalled he was close to his best with tenth place in the Dunhill Links Championship at the start of last month.

His November form figures are 14-35-52-14, the last of those efforts coming in Hong Kong last week on a short, tight, fiddly track which is wholly unsuitable – one where he missed the cut by six shots on his previous visit. The fact he closed with a 65 there on Sunday and topped the greens in regulation stats for the tournament is a huge pointer that this great natural talent is spot-on for Mauritius.

Putting has become his bugbear, but the stroke should hold up better this week on greens Colsaerts knows so well.

Next best
Romain Langasque 30-1

Mauritius is a former French colony where almost all the population speak French and the leaderboard should have plenty of Tricolour representation throughout. Romain Langasque is one of an excellent group of French raiders who should be comfortable attacking Four Seasons over the next four days.

Langasque won the ExpressGolf Tour Challenge at the course on Monday, playing in a team with Clement Sordet, and has got his career right back on track. He won a Challenge Tour event by three shots at the end of September, finished fourth in his final CT outing, then fifth at European Tour Q-School to book his return to the main circuit.

Langasque's best European Tour result is third place in last year's Mauritius Open and he can have high hopes of contending again. Last month he became officially attached to the Heritage, the other Mauritius Open venue, joining friend Sordet as a brand ambassador. Both have plenty of practice rounds under their belt at Four Seasons.

Other selections
Victor Perez 25-1
Zander Lombard 80-1
Clement Sordet 80-1
Garth Mulroy 110-1

Complete the staking plan with two more Frenchmen and two South Africans. South Africans have won two of the three editions of the Mauritius Open, which is understandable given this island is a short hop from their homeland and conditions are similar.

Victor Perez, like Colsaerts, dropped a considerable hint in Hong Kong that he will be a Four Seasons threat. Power-packed Perez finished fourth for driving accuracy, fifth for greens in regulation and third in the tournament, despite the constraints of Hong Kong GC, a layout the French youngster was seeing for the first time.

Perez has rapidly developed, winning on the Alps Tour in 2016, the Challenge Tour in 2017, then again on the CT at the end of October. He was second in the Challenge Tour Grand Final at the start of this month, beaten by only a shot, has claimed a European Tour card, and was fifth in the 2016 Mauritius Masters at Four Seasons.

Zander Lombard almost won the Rocco Forte Open at a coastal track last year, losing a playoff to Alvaro Quiros, and the South African should relish a similar assignment this week. Lombard won his maiden Sunshine Tour title in August and finished joint-first at European Tour Q-School the week before last to regain his playing rights.

Sordet, victorious alongside Langasque at Four Seasons on Monday, is a Mauritius regular from his association with the Heritage. Sordet finished sixth at Q School and the four-time Challenge Tour champion should be ready to do himself justice on the main circuit this season.

Garth Mulroy, 2011 Alfred Dunhill champion and twice a winner on the Web.com Tour, has not missed a cut since turning 40 at the start of July. The resurgent Durbanite won a fourth Sunshine Tour title a month ago and could be a factor on a Four Seasons layout which suits.

Others to note
Haydn Porteous
The South African slugger has had a quiet year, but Four Seasons is a track on which he could do plenty of damage. He holidayed in Mauritius in August.

Justin Harding
The Cape Town man is enjoying the greatest year of his career, winning twice on the Sunshine Tour and twice on the Asian Tour. Dangerous, but with Mauritius Open form figures of MC-MC-MC.

George Coetzee
The 2015 Mauritius Open champion has a great record in this event, but he has gone seven months without a top-ten finish anywhere and is a carefree character who is difficult to trust.

Julien Brun
A 26-year-old Frenchmen attached to Four Seasons with plenty of course knowledge. He won on the Challenge Tour as an amateur in 2012, but has failed to train on. Value option at 500-1.

Jaco Prinsloo
The South African youngster made his Sunshine Tour breakthrough last year and is in decent form. Tempting 400-1 rag.

Alvaro Quiros
The Spaniard should enjoy this course on his Mauritius Open debut. He has hinted at a return to form on less suitable tracks in recent weeks.

Staking plan
N Colsaerts
2.5pts each-way 20-1 general
R Langasque
2pts each-way 30-1 Sky Bet
V Perez
2pts each-way 25-1 Sky Bet
Z Lombard
1pt each-way 80-1 Betfred, Sky Bet, 188bet
C Sordet
1pt each-way 80-1 Betfred, Sky Bet, 188bet
G Mulroy
0.5pt each-way 110-1 Sky Bet

The lowdown

Course Four Seasons Golf Club, Anahita, Mauritius

Prize money €1m (€166,660 to the winner)

Length 7,401 yards

Par 72

Field 156

Course winners taking part Nicolas Colsaerts (2010 Mauritius Masters), Gregory Havret (2011 Mauritius Masters), Jeunghun Wang

Course records – 72 holes 282 Jeunghun Wang 18 holes 65 Nicolas Colsaerts

When to bet By 2.40am Thursday

Where to watch Live on Sky Sports from 8.30am Thursday

Time difference Mauritius is four hours ahead of the UK and Ireland

Last week – Hong Kong Open 1 A Rai (80-1), 2 M Fitzpatrick (14-1), T3 V Perez (80-1), J Scrivener (33-1), 5 D Drysdale (175-1), T6 R Cabrera-Bello (11-1), S Garcia (7-1), S Sharma (40-1)

Course overview The inaugural Mauritius Open was in 2015, staged at Heritage Golf Club, the course which has taken turns with Four Seasons each year to host the event. Four Seasons is set against lush mountains and fringed by lagoons, with six oceanside holes. There are two par-fives on each nine, all between 549 and 582 yards, while the four par-threes vary greatly in length. The 231-yard eighth is the toughest, while the 157-yard 17th is much shorter. This flat track has generous fairways and its difficulty will depend heavily on the weather. Some holes are so exposed to sea breezes that any wind could send scores shooting up. The Mauritius Masters 54-hole invitational event was staged at Four Seasons every December between 2010 and 2016

Story of last year Dylan Frittelli beat Arjun Atwal in a playoff at the Heritage Club, Bel-Ombre

Weather forecast Some pre-tournament storms have slightly softened the track, but hot, sunny, calm conditions are expected for the competition days

Type of player suited to challenge Only two players finished under par when Four Seasons last hosted in May, 2016, but that was a windy event. Much better weather conditions are forecast this week, scoring should be low and a hot putter is essential

Key attribute Touch

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