Winston-Salem Open Betting: Young the pick of the big prices in wide open contest

Donald Young is a big price with a good draw this week

The last chance for the ATP Tour players to grab some competitive court time ahead of the US Open comes on week 34 at the Winston-Salem Open in North Carolina, where Sean Calvert selects the best bets...

Incredibly for the second straight week one of my outright picks was taken down by Julien Benneteau in Cincy when a woeful Stan Wawrinka beat himself in the last eight with the final at his mercy.

My other selection was unlucky too when John Isner didn't take two match points against Andy Murray that would have seen him into the quarter finals, with an admittedly tougher draw.

The big man's serve is lethal in Cincy though and he may have been tough to stop as he will be this week, where he's unbeaten after two title-winning runs in Winston-Salem in 2011 and 2012.

Isner is our number one seed this week and again conditions clearly suit him, with the Decoturf outdoor hard courts generally playing quick and bouncing high here, which Isner loves.

The tournament, which is played on the campus of Wake Forest University, aims to mimic conditions in New York, with the same balls (Wilson Extra Duty US Open) in use here rather than the Penn balls in operation in Cincy.

Isner has been drawn in a top half packed with potential title winners, including Tommy Robredo (if he plays) Lukas Rosol, Benoit Paire, Robin Haase, Andreas Seppi, Yen Hsun Lu, Robby Ginepri and Marcel Granollers.

But the massive figure of Isner looms large upon all of them and it's tough to see any of them really being able to cope with Isner in these conditions.

The bottom half of the draw is therefore much more interesting and with number two seed Kevin Anderson likely to be suffering from a crisis of confidence after an amazing choke in Toronto followed by a beating by Isner in Cincy he can be opposed.

Sam Querrey is very capable of winning this still on his best form, but it's so hard to see him having the desire to do so after spending the last year or so shuffling around the court, looking miserable and doing that annoying racquet twirl rather than knuckling down to his tennis.

On his day he should be a contender here, but others are preferred and the shortlist in the bottom half of the draw includes Donald Young, Benjamin Becker, Steve Johnson, and Jarkko Nieminen.

Other possibles include defending champion Jurgen Melzer, Jerzy Janowicz, Leo Mayer, and maybe Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

Melzer will do well to retain his title after an injury plagued campaign, while Janowicz flattered to deceive last week in Cincy by losing to Benneteau after beating Dimitrov.

I actually think - and I could end up looking very silly here - that Young and Johnson are the best options at around 41.0n/a and 34.033/1 respectively.

The Don is drawn in the section with the woefully out of form Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, who managed to lose to James Ward last week before Wardy went on to be thrashed by Benneteau.

Young has been showing some form lately, making the semi finals of Washington DC and playing Dimitrov tough in Toronto before sitting out Cincy and he comes here rested and hopefully keen to do well.

Johnson has also played some very good tennis in the US Open Series this summer, with wins over Isner, Ernests Gulbis, Ivo Karlovic and Paire this swing.

Indeed, he should have beaten Milos Raonic in Cincy, but blinked when a mini break up at *4-3 in the final set tie break, and he looks a big contender in the Anderson section.

Becker has also been playing some decent stuff this summer and he could go well in the Mayer section, but this event isn't about form all the time, as Melzer showed last year.

The Austrian came here after three straight first round losses in Kitzbuhel, Montreal and Cincy and he hadn't even won a set since Wimbledon, but marched to the title here as betting underdog in all five of his matches.

So, the fact that Nieminen hasn't played since losing in round two in Kitzbuhel shouldn't count him out and it wouldn't surprise me if he emulated fellow leftie Melzer's run of 12 months ago.

It's hard to see Isner being beaten in the top half, but I would personally question Robredo's level of commitment this week after a good run in Cincy and with other seeds in that section looking vulnerable there could be an opportunity.

The likes of Seppi, Granollers and Pablo Andujar look very opposable and Lu isn't likely to put much of a showing in pre-New York either, so the big prices on the likes of Ginepri or Martin Klizan appeal as back-to-lays too.

Another angle worth considering is that the in-form David Goffin will almost certainly qualify and it might be worth seeing where the Belgian goes in the draw before making a final decision.

In conclusion, I expect Isner to be a very tough nut to crack and favourite backers should get a great run for their money with him, but this is a week before a major and I'd rather take my chances on any or all of Young, Johnson and Nieminen as back to lays.

Recommended Bets (all back to lay)
Back Young at 41n/a
Back Johnson at 3433/1
Back Nieminen at 41n/a