Alfred Dunhill Championship preview: Odds, predictions & course information

The DP World Tour season continues this week with the Alfred Dunhill Championship from South Africa, where Dean Burmester is looking to complete a spectacular hat-trick.

What	Alfred Dunhill Championship
Where	Leopard Creek, Malelane, South Africa
When	04:20, Thursday 7th December, 2023
How to watch	bet365's Live Golf Tracker and Sky Sports Main Event and Golf
Odds	Dean Burmester 7/1, Christiaan Bezuidenhout 12/1, Louis Oosthuizen 14/1, Branden Grace 14/1, Thriston Lawrence 16/1, Erik van Rooyen 16/1

Dean Burmester will be the centre of attention at Leopard Creek when the Alfred Dunhill Championship starts on Thursday.

In the previous fortnight, Burmester has won the Joburg Open and the South African Open, so this week he is hunting an incredible hat-trick of titles in his homeland.

The power-packed South African closed with a 64 for a three-shot success in the Joburg Open, then won by the same margin in the South African Open after conjuring a wonderful weekend of birdies.

Burmester was ill at the start of the South African Open, vomiting on the golf course on Friday, going into the weekend nine shots off the lead. His health improved at the weekend, though, and so did his scores, with closing rounds of 65 and 68 meaning he won his national title for the first time.

Burmester can be backed at 7/1 to lift another trophy on Sunday. In terms of form and confidence, the favourite is difficult to oppose, but his record at Leopard Creek may see punters searching for alternatives.

Burmester has played in the Alfred Dunhill at Leopard Creek 10 times previously, missing seven cuts. His best result came last year - a share of seventh - but this week's venue clearly does not fit his eye like the one's he has faced in the last two weeks.

Fellow LIV Golf defectors Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace are joining Burmester in the Alfred Dunhill field. Both players can be backed at 14/1.

Standard each-way terms of a quarter the odds the first five places are available for the Alfred Dunhill Championship, along with alternatives like a fifth the odds, the first eight, and a seventh the odds, the first ten. 

Course details

The Gary Player designed Leopard Creek opened in 1996 and hosted the Tour Championship on the Sunshine Tour from 2001 to 2004. 

The more prestigious Alfred Dunhill moved to Leopard Creek for the 2005 season and has remained there ever since. 

There was no Alfred Dunhill in 2017 as the course was undergoing extensive renovations. Scoring has been tougher since the changes. 

The course is located on the southern edge of Kruger National Park, with wild animals like elephants and rhinos in close attendance. The course hosted the African Amateur in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022 and this year.

Three to follow

Christiaan Bezuidenhout

The 12/1 about Christiaan Bezuidenhout will appeal to many punters, given his suitability to the Leopard Creek assignment. He won the 2020 Alfred Dunhill by four shots.

Bezuidenhout has had two decent warm-up spins in the Joburg Open and South African Open, seemingly peaking for Leopard Creek. He finished sixth in a PGA Tour event in September and could be the man to end Burmester's hot streak.

Jayden Schaper

The 25/1 about Jayden Schaper has been popular. The South African youngster made a bold bid for his national title last week, finishing fifth, following a strong effort in the Joburg Open.

Swinging well, putting well, and getting more comfortable in contention for DP World Tour glory, Schaper could be ready to make his breakthrough on Sunday. He finished second at Leopard Creek as a 19-year-old in the 2020 Alfred Dunhill.

Ryan van Velzen

Last week's South African Open was a huge stepping stone in the career of Ryan van Velzen, who announced himself as one of his country's best prospects by finishing tied second behind a rampant Burmester.

Van Velzen gets another opportunity to impress in the Alfred Dunhill. He turned pro in 2021 and appears to have all the tools to make it in the game. He can be backed at 100/1 for Alfred Dunhill glory.