Steve Palmer's Mauritius Open predictions & free golf betting tips

Golf tips, best bets and player analysis for the Mauritius Open at Mont Choisy on the DP World Tour.

Where to watch

Live on Sky Sports Main Event and Golf from 8.30am Thursday

Best bets

Dean Burmester
5pts 13-2 general

Tom McKibbin
2.5pts each-way 33-1 general

Martin Vorster
1pt each-way 150-1 Coral, Ladbrokes

Casey Jarvis
1pt each-way 125-1 Hills

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Thomas Detry has been shown great respect by bookmakers this week - one firm chalked up 9-2 in their opening show - but the Belgian is yet to win a main-tour title and turns 30 next month.

Detry has been in good form on the PGA Tour, striking up a strong partnership with experienced caddie JP Fitzgerald, but the Irishman has been at the World Cup in Qatar and is not available for the Mauritius Open.

Steve Palmer's top tip

Dean Burmester 13-2

The clear favourite this week should surely be Dean Burmester, who has won two DP World Tour titles, the last of which came on the breezy island of Tenerife. And that five-shot Tenerife Open success can be followed by more island joy on Sunday.

Burmester knows this venue well. It has been open for only five years and Burmester has been the Mont Choisy brand ambassador from day one, practising regularly at the track. He can hit the ground running at a layout which is uncharted terrain for the vast majority of this field.

One of the longest drivers in the world, Burmester will be licking his lips at the five par-fives and two driveable par-fours he can attack this week. He was firing 400-yard bombs at Leopard Creek last week and is better equipped than anyone to take advantage of the scoring holes at Mont Choisy.

The last fortnight has provided excellent preparation. He had a bad start to the South African Open - his son was ill and the Burmesters were suffering sleepless nights - but a strong weekend ensured a fifth-place finish. Last week he teed up at a course where his record was terrible - he had missed seven cuts in nine previous starts at Leopard Creek - yet he posted an Alfred Dunhill Championship personal best by finishing seventh.

Burmester is enjoying the best ball-striking form of his career and is up to a high of 56th in the world. He is 28 spots superior to anyone else in this week's line-up and any warming of the putter would allow him to destroy Mont Choisy.

Two of the five Mauritius Opens have been won by a South African and that statistic could easily become three from six on Sunday.

Next best bet

Tom McKibbin 33-1

Northern Irish lad Tom McKibbin turns 20 on Monday and he could have a trophy to accompany his celebrations. The youngster has had to deal with comparisons to Rory McIlroy - they both cut their teeth at Holywood Golf Club - and McKibbin seems happy to deal with the huge weight of expectation.

McKibbin has a calmness about him - an apparently deep-rooted self-belief - and it is understandable when you consider how he breezed through the Challenge Tour to gain rapid promotion to the main circuit.

McKibbin finished third and seventh in two Challenge Tour events in South Africa at the start of the year, and has form figures of 18-15-13 in the same country over the last three weeks.

A windy week in nearby Mauritius seems ideal for this rising star to continue his progress. He is sneaky long off the tee and can approach the five par-fives with confidence.

Other selections

Martin Vorster 150-1

Casey Jarvis 125-1

Martin Vorster, like Burmester, can quickly settle at Mont Choisy. Vorster competed in the 2019 All Africa Team Championship there and he was the second-best scorer in the competition as his South Africa team cruised to victory.

Vorster, the top-ranked South African amateur before turning pro, has spent a year in the paid ranks and has been starting to appear on Sunshine Tour leaderboards. This big talent, who turns 21 next month, is worth chancing at a juicy price, while the same can be said of Casey Jarvis, a 19-year-old who made waves in the Joburg Open last month.

Jarvis led during round three of the Joburg Open, eventually finishing the event in ninth place, gaining valuable experience of contending for a DP World Tour title. He took over as South Africa's top amateur when Vorster turned pro, then joined Vorster in the paid ranks in August.

Rounds of 79 and 69 meant Jarvis missed the cut in the Alfred Dunhill last week, but that much-improved Friday effort included seven birdies, so he may have clicked back into gear in time to be a serious runner in Mauritius.

Players to note

Jayden Schaper
The South African youngster was the best scorer in the All Africa Team Championship at Mont Choisy and he has been in rock-solid form recently. A dangerman.

Laurie Canter
A Sunday 64 meant third place for the Englishman in the Alfred Dunhill. He beat Patrick Reed in a LIV Golf Miami matchplay contest in October. A DP World Tour maiden to consider.

Mont Choisy course guide

Course Mont Choisy Le Golf, Grand Baie, Mauritius
Prize money €1m (€166,660 to the winner)
Length 7,050 yards
Par 72 - five par-fives; eight par-fours; five par-threes
Field 156 The cut Top 65 and ties qualify for round three
Highest-ranked players in field (world ranking in brackets) Dean Burmester (56), Thomas Detry (84), Oliver Bekker (108), Laurie Canter (153), Antoine Rozner (185)

When to bet By 2.20am Thursday morning

When to watch Live on Sky Sports Main Event and Golf from 8.30am Thursday

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

Last week - Alfred Dunhill Championship 1 O Strydom (175-1), 2 A Otaegui (33-1), 3 L Canter (40-1), T4 O Bekker (55-1), A Cockerill (200-1), B Grace (18-1), T7 D Burmester (16-1), L Oosthuizen (12-1)

Course type Parkland

Course overview The inaugural Mauritius Open was staged in 2015 at Heritage GC, before Four Seasons took over in 2016. The two tracks have shared the event since, but this time a new venue comes into the spotlight - Mont Choisy, a relatively short resort layout with five par-fives. It was designed by South African Peter Matkovich, who was also responsible for Heritage GC, venue in 2015, 2017 (2018 season) and 2019 (2020 season). Mont Choisy opened in October, 2017. The palm-fringed fairways are routed around several small lakes. The fairways are generous but the rough is penal. The third and the 13th are driveable par-fours in the right weather while the par-three 15th has an island green

Story of 2019 Rasmus Hojgaard won the last Mauritius Open at Heritage GC, conjuring an eagle to end a playoff which featured Antoine Rozner and Renato Paratore

Weather forecast Sunny, warm and breezy throughout

Type of player suited to the challenge The course looks easier on the scorecard than in reality, with winds nearly always a feature of Mont Choisy and the rough not be messed with. Powerful players with an ability to handle a breeze should flourish, with five par-fives and two driveable par-fours the key scoring areas of the layout

Key attribute Power

Spotlight insight Two of the five Mauritius Opens have been won by a South African

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