Coltart may be worth a flutter

When the going gets tough, the tough get going - and it doesn't come much tougher than The Oxfordshire (weatherwise and coursewise) where this week's European Tour event, the Benson and Hedges International Open, takes place.

There are two previous winners of the title over this course in the field: Ireland's Darren Clarke, who is the defending champion, and Germany's Bernhard Langer. Neither have set the world on fire so far this season and this is reflected in the generous odds about them. Clarke is a 25 to 1 shot to successfully defend his crown, while Langer is a shorter-priced 20 to 1.

Colin Montgomerie, not surprisingly, is installed as the favourite as he resumes tournament play in Europe. But the 8 to 1 odds aren't too appetising and, as has been the case so far this season, better value comes further down the field and another Scot, Andrew Coltart, seems well priced at 40 to 1. An each-way wager on Coltart may not be too far off the mark, while Paul McGinley's decent form (apart from the missed cut in Italy) suggests his odds of 50 to 1 also merits an each-way cut.

8-1 - Colin Montgomerie (Scotland).

12-1 - Lee Westwood (England).

16-1 - Retief Goosen (South Africa), Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain).

20-1 - Bernhard Langer (Germany), Jose Maria Olazabal (Spain), Ian Woosnam (Wales).

25-1 - Per Ulrik Johansson (Sweden), Eduardo Romero (Argentina), Darren Clarke (N Ireland), Patrik Sjoland (Sweden), Greg Turner (New Zealand).

33-1 - Thomas Bjorn (Denmark), Phil Price (Wales), Santiago Luna (Spain).

40-1 - Mark McNulty (Zimbabwe), Andrew Coltart (Scotland), Ignacio Garrido (Spain), Alex Cejka (Germany).

50-1 - Paul McGinley (Ireland), David Howell (England), Paul Lawrie (Scotland), Peter O'Malley (Australia), Bob May (USA).

Selected other - 66-1 - Padraig Harrington (Ireland).

Prices supplied by Ladbrokes Ireland.