Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play preview

The European Tour heads to Germany this week for the third running of the Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play, England’s Anthony Wall is the defending champion.

There’s a different feel to this week’s European Tour event. The players go head to head in Bavaria as they contest the Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play at the Quellness Golf Resort at Bad Griesbach.

Defending champion Anthony Wall tees it up at Bad Griesbach, so too does tournament host Paul Lawrie. Among the star names on the start sheet are Victor Dubuisson, Nicolas Colsaerts, Alejandro Canizares and Matthew Southgate.

64 players will begin the event that will be played to a singles, straight-knockout format with the first round played on Thursday, the second on Friday, the third and fourth rounds on Saturday and the Semi Final and Finals on Sunday.

This event was the brainchild of 1999 Open champion Paul Lawrie. He saw an opportunity to host a match play event, firstly in his home city of Aberdeen and, with the assistance of Saltire Energy, he made it happen. That inaugural event at Murcar Links was won by Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat.

Last year, the event was contested at Archerfield Golf Links in East Lothian where Anthony Wall came out on top. He beat Sweden’s Alex Noren by just one hole in a thrilling final.

Alex Noren fairway bunker tips video:

This year, the competition has left Scotland to be contested in Germany at the Bad Griesbach resort in Bavaria. With five golf courses and three hotels, this is an impressive facility. The tournament this week will be contested over the Beckenbauer Golf Course.

The weather forecast looks mixed and rain could be a feature over the weekend.

Venue: Golf Resort Bad Griesbach, Bad Griesbach, Germany Date: Aug 17-20 Course stats: par 71, 7,188 yards Purse: €1,000,000 Defending Champion: Anthony Wall (beat Alex Noren 1-up)

TV Coverage: Thursday 17 – Sky Sports Golf from 11.30am Friday 18 – Sky Sports Golf from 11am Saturday 19 – Sky Sports Golf from 10am Sunday 20 – Sky Sports Golf from 9am

Player Watch: Richard Bland – The experienced Englishman will be playing his 418th European Tour event and he’s yet to win one. But he’s been on good form this season and has already notched up a tied second in the BMW International Open. He played solidly in The Open Championship at Birkdale. This event will provide a great chance for Bland to break his duck and get a win on the board.

Nicolas Colsaerts – The Belgian bomber has shown glimpses this year of the form that saw him make the 2012 Ryder Cup team. He’s a power player and when he gets on a roll, he’s hard to stop. His game is well suited to match play.

Matthew Southgate – He’s currently 20th on the Race to Dubai standings following an excellent tied sixth place in The Open Championship and a runner’s up placing in the Irish Open. He’s one of the European Tour’s form players.

Key Hole: 18th. This is a treacherous finishing hole of almost 470 yards. The drive is tricky as it must travel far enough to prevent the second being blocked by trees on the corner of the right to left dog-leg. Any drive pulled left could be in trouble. The approach is a daunting one to a green with water lurking short and right. If matches go to the death, nerves will be frayed on this one.