The reigning British Open champion Darren Clarke is hoping a new fitness regime can ignite some form on the course heading into the first Major of 2012 at the Us Masters.

The 43-year-old Northern Ireland star burst back onto the international scene at Royal St George last summer, when he tamed the winds that plagued the tournament to lift the trophy in emotional circumstances. People betting on golf would have been very impressed.

However, that success was one of only two tournament wins in 2011 – with his victory at the Iberdrola Open weeks earlier his first Tour title in three years – and after the glory of the Open Clarke slumped and has not managed a top ten finish since.

The popular star is known for loving a drink and can be often seen sporting a cigarette or celebratory cigar on the golf course, but he has pledged to ditch the junk food and alcohol in order to get back to the top of the game. Those following the US Masters betting odds will be wondering if he can turn things around.

He admits his form is not great but is confident of a turnaround in fortunes over the coming months, but it would require a major turnaround to be in contention for the US Masters.

“I’ve been doing everything right and I’ve been in the gym working hard,” said Clarke. “I’m not eating all the rubbish I was or partaking in alcoholic beverages.

“I had gotten too big and, if I want to be properly competitive, I had to get myself back into shape.”

Clarke has also got a new caddy in the shape of Phil Morbey, and his new bagman has experience of victory at the US Masters having worked with Ian Woosnam during his win at Augusta many years ago.

Rafael Cabrera-Bello will get his chance to continue climbing up the rankings next week when he tees off at his maiden Accenture Match Play in Arizona. A place at the match-play tournament was one of the prizes that came the way of the Spaniard following his stunning one-shot victory at last week’s Dubai Desert Classic, with Cabrera-Bello shooting up the rankings from 119th to 60th, giving him an invitation to this week’s event in Arizona.

The 27-year old admitted competing in his first world championship would be a much tougher test than what he was used to, although, the Spaniard made it clear this is the step up that he needed to make at this stage in his career. People following the best in-play betting odds online will be keeping an eye on his progress.

“This was the quality jump I was looking for in my game and it’s offered me the opportunity to play with the world’s best players,” he said.

Before his title in Dubai, the Spaniard had only triumphed once on the European Tour – when a sensational final round 60 saw Cabrera-Bello claim the 2009 Austrian Masters. Now, the question will be whether or not the 27-year old can build on the biggest win of his career and push on up the rankings through the rest of the year.

Cabrera-Bello will also be looking at the upcoming Masters as his chance to play in his second major tournament, following his 47th place finish at the 2010 US Open. If he can keep producing the sort of form he showed in Dubai, then this could well be a very big year for Cabrera-Bello.

Tiger Woods is one of the legends at Augusta National Golf Club and will be dreaming of proving his comeback well-and-truly come the US Masters in April, but if the sport’s former poster boy wants that to happen he will need to ensure his putting is up to scratch.

The 36-year-old first burst onto the world golf scene at the US Masters in 1997, becoming the tournament’s youngest-ever winner, and since then he has also tasted glory at Augusta in 2001, 2002 and 2005. Fans of golf betting should bear this in mind.

While his glories on the course are fondly remembered, of course many will look at his high-profile personal problems as when the gloss really came off the Woods brand and he has struggled to get that shine back ever since.

A few months ago he had slumped to 58th in the world rankings but has regained the winning feeling finally – at the Chevron World Challenge at the back end of 2011 – and has shown he still has the ability to compete for Major titles over the coming years.

Woods’ history with Augusta means many will fancy him to be among the frontrunners in the 2012 US Masters but he showed at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am that his game is still haunted by issues and he is just as likely to blow hot-and-cold come the Major. Anyone looking at the US Masters Golf Betting should remember this.

The 14-time Major winner now sits 18th in the rankings and bemoaned his putter during the final round at Pebble Beach, something that must be rectified come Augusta.

Woods said after his round: “I missed a ton of short putts today. I didn’t hit it as bad as the score indicated, that’s for sure but I missed everything.

“I could not get comfortable where I could see my lines. I couldn’t get the putter to swing. I just could not get comfortable. It was frustrating.”

Phil Mickelson won the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am to rise to 11th in the world rankings. Despite their places in the rankings, Mickelson and Woods are likely to draw the biggest crowds come the US Masters on April 4th.

Padraig Harrington has backed Tiger Woods to go on and finally break Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major titles. The Irishman, who has spent time on the course with Woods this year, believes the former world number one is returning to something like his top form and once again capable of winning the big tournaments.

When Woods claimed the US Open title in 2008, the 14th major of his career, it looked as though there would be no doubting that Nicklaus’ record of 18 would soon be surpassed. Well publicised issues since that win has now cast some serious doubt that the 36-year old will ever be able to challenge the top players again. People looking at the online betting in-play will be keeping a close eye on things.

That certainly isn’t something three-time major winner Harrington is buying into; the Irishman making it clear he sees it only being a matter of time before Woods goes on and returns to the major trail, breaking the record in the process.

“I’ve played with him and the way he hits the golf ball, there wouldn’t be very many players who wouldn’t want to hit the golf ball like him,” he said.

“I’d be still backing him to beat Jack’s record, absolutely. If he turns up and plays well, he’s going to win. He’s in the position that he knows his best game is a winning game.”

The first chance Tiger will get to challenge for a major will be when he heads to Augusta for this year’s Masters, where the American will be going all out to add a fifth title to his collection.

It has been a great weekend of golf on both sides of the Atlantic with the European and PGA Tour seeing some excellent play, and there wasn’t anyone better than Phil Mickelson, who would have been a great bwin free bet, as he shot a brilliant final round of 64 to secure victory at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in California.

Victor Chandler didn’t have Mickelson as favourite going into the final day. ‘Lefty’ who is a four-time major winner was six shots off the lead heading into the final round but six birdies and an eagle saw him finish the tournament on 17-under par, two shots clear of Charlie Wi.

Wi was in the lead as play got underway on the final day but he started to feel the pressure early on after he four-putted the opening hole for a double-bogey and never fully recovered, although three straight birdies at the end of his round showed what might have been.

Mickelson’s victory puts him in a exclusive list of 9 players to reach 40 career wins on the PGA Tour.

Tiger Woods had seemed poised to make his move as he entered the day just four shots off the lead but a dismal final round of 75 dropped him way out of contention.

Mickelson and Woods were paired together for the last round and the difference in their performances could not have been greater as Mickelson completed the 18 holes in 11 fewer shots.

A delighted Mickelson said afterwards: “I felt like my game was so close heading into the season, and yet my scores didn’t reflect how I felt I was playing.”

“I put it together this week and especially the final round and it just feels terrific. It gives me a lot of confidence but also inspires me because I believe now that what I’m doing is correct and that I’m able to play some of my best golf.”

Tiger Woods burst onto the scene at the Masters in 1997 when he became the tournament’s youngest-ever winner and, after a few years of high-profile dramas and poor form, he could be ready to get back to that level and add to his green jacket collection.

The 36-year-old has won on three other occasions at Augusta since that day – in 2001, 2002 and 2005 – but since November 2009 he has struggled both on and off the golf course. Fans of Betfair Golf will know all about his problems.

After taking a break from golf due to his high-profile personal problems Woods came back at the 2010 US Masters and ended up finishing tied for fourth place. Unfortunately after that he was hampered by injuries, but again managed a fourth-place tie at the 2011 Masters, before a leg injury he sustained there kept him out for further months.

By the end of 2011 Woods had slumped to a low of 58th in the world but he finally got back on the winning rostrum at the Chevron World Challenge and has started 2012 looking like a man who can climb the rankings and yet again compete for Major titles.  The golf betting odds reflect this.

Given Woods’ career performances at Augusta National Golf Club he will be highly-fancied come the 2012 US Masters and he could easily roll back the years and win another green jacket – especially considering he has come out of the blue to finish fourth in the last two years.

“I’m pleased at the progress I’ve made,” said Woods recently. “I just need to keep building, keep getting more consistent.

“A couple of the balls were going further than I thought they normally would, so I’ve got to kind of reassess that and try to figure that out.”

The 2012 US Masters is scheduled for April 4th-8th at Augusta National Golf Club and Woods will face a huge battle against the cream of world’s golf in what is regarded by many as the number one tournament in the calendar.

Robert Rock has had a sensational start to 2012 with his win at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship two weeks ago, against stanjames odds, and after seeing the bwin review Rock feels like he can compete with anyone after beating Tiger Woods in the desert.

Rock went head to head with 14 time major winner in the final round in Abu Dhabi, but while everyone thought the 34 year old Englishman would buckle under the pressure, he held is nerve by shooting a two-under 70 to lift the trophy while Woods carded a 72 to finish third.

Now Rock is taking confidence from that victory as he feels that very little will faze him in the future after he passed this recent test with flying colours.

“Certain occasions during my career, I’ve played with people that have really made me nervous and that was probably the most,” he said of his pairing with Woods. “I played with Nick Faldo who was a hero and so was Seve (Ballesteros).”

“After you do that, you are not scared of any groups you get.”

Seemingly coming from nowhere, Rock has somewhat belatedly burst onto the scene, and the victory has given him a new found status on the European Tour and that’s evident in this week’s Dubai Desert Classic where he’s been paired with US Open champion Rory McIlroy and defending champion Alvaro Quiros in Thursday’s opening round.

“I’m up against two great players in that group,” Rock said. “The whole field is full of potential winners. The European Tour is very, very strong. I think my victory in Abu Dhabi proved that to some extent, that somebody down the lower ends of the world rankings can win a tournament.”

Looking back to his Abu Dhabi triumph – only his second European Tour win – Rock said: “It doesn’t get much better than that for me.”

“To make it better, it would need to be the same sort of scenario in a major championship. The chances of actually getting the pairings right for that are slim … I think I will have a chance to win other tournaments but that one will definitely be a lasting memory.”

It is fair to say that it hasn’t really been a meteoric rise to prominence for Robert Rock, but after making steady progress throughout his career, the Englishman has now got a great victory under his belt against bwin betting odds, which could open a lot of doors and take his career to the next level.

While Rock has had steady finishes on the leader boards for some time now, it was only when he won the Italian Open last year which allowed him to qualify for the US Open as a club pro where he really came into to the light.

He played well in the US Open, but he would never have thought that he would be seeing off four of the worlds best players and Tiger Woods in Abu Dhabi. Playing alongside that world class field and simply competing with them would have given him a boost, so god only knows how confident he must now be feeling after beating them.

Tiger Woods might not be the player he once was, but he was a popular betvictor bet for the win at the weekend, and he is one of the best golfers ever to play the game. To go into the last round with Tiger is a huge deal but Rock held is nerve. He played better than Woods on that final day and dealt with the challenge which is why he won. He kept his head and composure and even finished with two birdies. A win that was thoroughly deserved and he should be proud of it which Im sure he will be.

The victory will surely act as springboard for him for the future. He has a great chance of now pushing into the top 50 and become a familiar feature in the Majors and WGC’s.

He will surely also be looking at the Ryder Cup too. There are five spots available from the Order of Merit and five from the world rankings, so he’s got a lot of work to do to get in. He can’t just win one tournament and get into the team, but you have to be confident after the week he just had and he certainly has the ability to be there.

It’s a great start to the year for him and I hope it can continue for him because the sky is the limit!

It was a tournament that teed off with all eyes on Tiger Woods, Rory Mcilroy and Luke Donald who were the favourites with the bwin free bet, but it was Englishman Robert Rock who claimed the biggest win of his career when lifting the Abu Dhabi Championship trophy on Sunday.

The Englishman fought off the challenges of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy with a closing round of 70 to clinch victory by a single shot.

The Stan James Review shows it was a nervous finish for Rock who fortunately overcame a slip up on the 18th hole where he was forced to take a penalty drop, but he eventually made the six shots he needed to lift the trophy.

“I can’t believe I’ve done that today – such an amazing feeling,” said the modest Midlander. “I was very happy to be playing with Tiger Woods today, and that’s a special honour in itself.

“I really surprised myself, early on I was very, very nervous, but hit some good shots and started thinking ‘why not’.

“I’ve worked hard on my game but didn’t think this would happen.”

Rock started the tournament as the worlds number 117, with the win surely to see him shoot up the rankings. He started the last day with Tiger Woods who finished a shot behind Rock, and he outplayed Woods for most of the final round.

The two went into the final day tied for the lead, but Woods gave Rock a huge boost with back to back bogeys at the fourth and fifth to give Rock an early lead.

Rock continued to deal with the pressure and nerves as he kept a cool head on a number of occasions to sink the important puts to keep him ahead of the chasing pack which included Woods and Mcilroy.

“I just wanted to keep hitting good shots, making good swings and giving myself putts for birdies,” added the new champion. “I was expecting some pressure so I was glad to make some decent swings – until the 18th tee.

“It’s an amazing tournament to win, I’ve not done that well here before either so I’m amazed I’ve been able to do that this week.”

Another great win for a British golfer, as the rest of the world are struggling to keep up.

Europe’s Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal has revealed he will name his team a day later than usual, in order to allow those US-based Europeans to make their final cases for selection. The players that secure their place in the side through their ranking points will already be know, however, it’s the wildcard picks that are mind with the delayed decision.

The announcement traditionally takes place following the European Tour’s final counting tournament, the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles, which commences on August 26th. Those looking for golf betting tips will be keeping a close eye on things.

The later announcement will hopefully avoid any awkward moment similar to 2010 when Paul Casey and Justin Rose were left out of the team before their tournaments finished in the States and they had a chance to mount a final claim.

Europe’s captain Olazabal revealed the news, admitting the 2010 issue had been a factor in the decision. Those following the betting should bear this in mind.

“We are going to wait to see what happens in the States before deciding,” he said.

“The scenario last time was delicate for the players in the States. It was not a comfortable situation for anybody.

“I would like to have an eye on the players who are hot at that time. If the guy is on the verge of winning [in the US], it means he is on the top of his game. It would be a good idea to have thought about him.”

The Barclays Tournament in New York will be those US-based European’s final chances to prove they are worthy of a wildcard pick from the captain. Olazabal’s announcement proves those players will be very much in contention, which can only strengthen Europe’s chances of retaining the trophy in the States later this year.