Steve Palmer's Betfred British Masters predictions and free golf betting tips

When to bet

By 7.30am on Thursday

Where to watch the British Masters

Live on Sky Sports Golf from 1pm on Thursday

Steve Palmer's British Masters predictions

Adrian Meronk
3pts each-way 14-1 general

Jordan Smith
2pts each-way 18-1 Betfair, Power

Richard Mansell
1pt each-way 55-1 bet365

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Justin Rose headlines the Betfred British Masters from The Belfry and the former US Open champion will probably be tasked by tournament host Sir Nick Faldo with plenty of promotional work before and during the event. The pair are close allies.

Rose can be resisted as favourite because the loose driving which has been blighting him in recent months would be severely punished at The Belfry. One Sunday howler off the tee cost Rose a winning chance in the Canadian Open earlier this month and he will need to straighten up his driving to justify market leadership this week.

Steve Palmer's top tip

Adrian Meronk 14-1

Polish powerhouse Adrian Meronk can cement his place in the European Ryder Cup team by winning at The Belfry on Sunday. This week's venue is a long, punishing track, where Meronk's driving ability stands him in great stead.

Third place on his Belfry debut in the 2021 British Masters showed how well suited Meronk is to this layout – he was magnificent over the weekend and fell just a shot shy of the playoff. Since then, he has won the Irish Open at a similar course to this week's, then the Australian Open and the Italian Open, becoming a far more confident player.

Meronk's missed cut at The Belfry last year can be forgiven – he was still a maiden and was enduring an exasperating run of near-misses – and he should be followed this week with the silverware flowing.

Meronk, inside the top 50 of the world rankings, has form figures of 1-5-3 from his last three starts in regulation DP World Tour events. He missed the cut by a shot in both the Canadian Open and the US Open – narrow failures in top company – but got straight back among the birdies in Germany last week.

Only one player outscored Meronk in the final round of the BMW International Open on Sunday and this determined character looks the man to beat at The Belfry.

Next best bet

Jordan Smith 18-1

Like Meronk, Jordan Smith is in total control of his swing, churning out greens in regulation. The Bath man was sixth in the European Open at the start of this month, then finished 20th in the US Open, closing with a 66 which was bettered by only three players in the field that day.

Smith, one of the best ball-strikers on the DP World Tour, has got British Masters form figures at The Belfry of 17-21. He found some water hazards in round three last year, but bounced back on the Sunday when only four players in the field outscored him. With so many each-way places on offer this week, Meronk and Smith look like rock-solid each-way investments.

Other selection

Richard Mansell 55-1

Local lad Richard Mansell knows The Belfry like the back of his hand and the course sets up wonderfully for him. The track lends itself to quality driving and tee-to-green solidity. Mansell is formidable with the Big Dog in hand and has been threatening a DP World Tour breakthrough for a long time.

Mansell finished sixth in the Singapore Classic in February and has nine top-tens on his DPWT CV. He finished eighth in last year's British Masters – nobody outscored him in round four – and has been creeping back into form in recent weeks. If the Pride of Cannock enjoys a half-decent week on the greens, he should be in the thick of things come Sunday.

The Belfry course guide

Course Brabazon Course, The Belfry, Sutton Coldfield, England
Prize money $3.5m ($538,100 to the winner)
Length 7,336 yards
Par 72 – three par-fives; 12 par-fours; three par-threes
Field 156 The cut Top 65 and ties qualify for round three
Highest-ranked players in field (world ranking in brackets) Justin Rose (31), Min Woo Lee (46), Adrian Meronk (48), Victor Perez (62), Thriston Lawrence (75)
Course records - 72 holes 273 Lee Westwood (2007 British Masters) 18 holes 62 Oliver Bekker (2021 British Challenge)

Course winners taking part Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, Rasmus Hojgaard, Thorbjorn Olesen

When to bet By 7.30am on Thursday

When to watch Live on Sky Sports Golf from 1pm on Thursday

Last week – BMW International Open 1 T Lawrence (90-1), 2 J Luiten (40-1), T3 R Hoshino (60-1), D Hillier (140-1), M Kieffer (55-1), A Meronk (14-1), T7 D Huizing (250-1), M Pavon (50-1), R Neergaard-Petersen (400-1)

Course type Parkland

Course overview The Brabazon Course hosted the Ryder Cup in 1985, 1989, 1993 and 2002. Several Tour events have been staged at The Belfry, including the International Open (2000-2003), the British Masters (2006, 2007, 2008, 2021, 2022), and UK Championship (2020). The 2021 British Challenge (Challenge Tour) was also at the Brabazon. There is more water on the layout than just about any inland course in the British Isles, so scoring can be volatile, and the front nine particularly demands accuracy. The back nine is more open, although heavily bunkered

Story of last year A spectacular eagle-birdie finish from Thorbjorn Olesen secured a one-shot triumph and his sixth DPWT title

Weather forecast A pre-tournament thunderstorm should soften the course, before a largely pleasant week with temperatures around 20C. Winds peaking at 14 mph on Sunday afternoon

Type of player suited to the challenge Strong ball-strikers have traditionally thrived at this venue, which features a series of long, punishing par-fours

Key attribute Accuracy