So far, I have picked the winner of both Men's and Women's tournaments at all 3 Grand Slam events this season, so one more effort like that will be much appreciated.
Below is my breakdown of both the Men's and Women's events at the US Open which begins on August 27th and let us hope for a profitable couple of weeks.
Men's Tournament
First Quarter
The Number 1 seed for the tournament is Roger Federer and it is no surprise that he is one of the favourites to win this whole event, especially after his efforts over the last two months where he has won titles at Wimbledon and Cincinnati while also picking up the Silver Medal from the Olympic Games.
Federer gets to play himself into the tournament here in New York as the first two Rounds could not be any simpler for him before he meets, most likely, Fernando Verdasco. The Spaniard would have been a threat a couple of seasons ago, but he has been inconsistent at best, has a poor record against Federer and it would be a huge surprise to me if he was to beat the Swiss man considering the current form of both.
It does get awkward at that stage as he could potentially play Mardy Fish, but the American is not fully healthy having recently returned to the store and Federer would be the big favourite again.
The other half of the Quarter contains Tomas Berdych, someone that would usually be considered a dark horse on this surface. Berdych did reach the Final at Winston Salem last week, but his overall form has been inconsistent at best with early defeats at Wimbledon, the Olympics and at both Toronto and Cincinnati.
He may have played himself into some form, but Berdych immediately has to play David Goffin, an up and coming player that could cause problems, before likely clashes against Denis Istomin and Sam Querrey.
That looks a tough draw just to get to the Fourth Round and I wouldn't be surprised if he is beaten before that stage. That may leave the way for someone like Querrey to go deep in his home Grand Slam, but either way this Quarter looks Federer's for the taking.
Prediction: Can't look beyond Roger Federer who has been given as straight-forward a route to the Semi Final as he would perhaps have asked for in a Grand Slam
Second Quarter
The big question ahead of the US Open draw was which side of the draw would Andy Murray land on, a question that gained significance in the knowledge that Rafael Nadal would be missing the final Grand Slam of the season.
As it turns out, Andy Murray will be in the Second Quarter and has to be one of the big favourites to win the tournament considering he has always said that the US Open is his favourite surface and the fact that he is one of the form players coming into Flushing Meadows.
Murray, like Federer, can't have too many complaints about the first couple of matches has to go through, but it then does become significantly tougher for him than the World Number 1. He will likely meet Feliciano Lopez in the Third Round, although Murray should be too strong for him, and then would potentially play Milos Raonic in the Fourth Round.
Raonic is a huge danger, especially with the serve he possesses, and I think he would have a real chance of knocking off Murray here and announcing himself on the Grand Slam level. However, it could be tough for him to do it in a best of five set match as Murray is one of the better returners in the game, but I honestly think this is closer than a lot of 'experts' may think it would be.
Even getting through that match wouldn't be the end of the tough matches for Murray with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga the other top seeded player in this section of the draw.
Tsonga had a decent week in Winston Salem last week and he did reach the Semi Final at Wimbledon and the Quarter Final at the Olympics, while his draw looks a little more manageable than even Murray's in the top half of the section. Back to back matches against Raonic and Tsonga could really drain Murray and that is my biggest concern for him if he is to win this tournament as a Semi Final with Roger Federer may see a role reversal of their Olympic clash with Federer being the fresher player.
There is also every chance that either Raonic or Tsonga could knock Murray off and that is why the short odds on the British Number 1 look one to avoid.
Prediction: Tough section to pick- if Andy Murray beats Milos Raonic in the Fourth Round, I would think he will do enough to get to the Semi Final, otherwise I think Jo-Wilfried Tsonga takes his place in the Semi Final
Third Quarter
Rafael Nadal's absence from Flushing Meadows meant there was always a chance that one of the Quarters would be an open one where a surprise Semi Finalist would emerge. That has been the case this year in the Third Quarter.
David Ferrer, Janko Tipsarevic, John Isner and Richard Gasquet are the top seeds in this section, but the latter three of those are not the most reliable while David Ferrer has been given a really tough opener against Kevin Anderson.
However, I do think Ferrer's style will make life awkward for the big-serving South African, while Anderson has also lost 4 straight matches, not the best preparation for the US Open. If Ferrer can get through that First Round clash, he has a number of players in his section over whom he has solid previous head to head records like Gasquet, Tommy Haas and Mikhail Youzhny and the former US Open Semi Finalist may just be able to make enough hay to get through to another one.
One player that should be heavily backed in the other half of this Quarter is John Isner, the winner last week in Winston Salem, and one who has been given a tough but negotiable path through to the Quarter Final.
Isner opens against Xavier Malisse and also potentially could face Philip Kohlschreiber in the Third Round, two players that are very capable on their day. However, I think Isner would fancy his chances on 7/10 days against both and I would expect the confidence from winning a tournament last week will drive him on.
Tipsarevic is likely to be his opponent in the Fourth Round and he would be capable of knocking off the American as long as he is fully recovered from a virus he had last week. Tipsy reached the Quarter Final here last season before running out of gas against Novak Djokovic, and he is someone that is capable of upping his game to knock off a player like Isner.
Prediction: A tough section with a number of players that are capable on their day, but I think David Ferrer will be the man to get through to the Semi Final as long as he can avoid the upset against Kevin Anderson in the First Round
Fourth Quarter
Unsurprisingly, Novak Djokovic's price to win the US Open hardened after the draw made last Thursday with both his nearest rivals in the other half of the draw.
Djokovic is the defending Champion here in New York and he could not have hand picked a much easier start to his defence with little or no threat in the first three Rounds. Even the likes of Stanislas Wawrinka and Alexandr Dolgopolov, two potential Fourth Round rivals, are far too inconsistent for the Serb and I think it would be a huge surprise Djokovic not getting through to the Quarter Final without dropping more than a couple of sets.
Djokovic won the Masters event in Toronto and also reached the Final in Cincinnati and should be the form player in this section, especially considering Juan Martin Del Potro has wrist issues again and is the biggest threat in the other half of this Quarter.
Andy Roddick is another player that won't leave Djokovic restless and I don't see too many issues for the Serb in this draw.
Prediction: Novak Djokovic... There are too many issues with Juan Martin Del Potro's health to see a surprise result and the World Number 2 is in the best form of all the players in the Quarter
Winner and Outright Picks
With the way the draw has panned out, it is hard to see anyone but Novak Djokovic getting through to the Final in the bottom half of the draw and making his third straight Final in Flushing Meadows.
I also think Roger Federer is going to make his second Grand Slam Final of the season as I believe he will be the freshest player in his half of the draw when it gets to the Semi Final stage and that should give him an edge whether he plays Andy Murray, Milos Raonic or Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
With the Men's Final moved until Monday, I also think the advantage Djokovic may have had by having an 'easier' Semi Final has been negated a little bit and Roger Federer does seem to 'have his number'.
With that in mind, the 3.75 on Federer looks a good price to me and I will take that as my main pick from the Men's draw.
I will also back David Ferrer to reach his second Semi Final at the US Open at 3.50- he does look the best player in the section and should be able to get through to that stage as long as he can get through his tough First Round match. He has a solid record against all the other players in this section and has previous experience of reaching the last four here, while it took an inspired effort from Andy Murray to prevent him reaching the last four at Wimbledon on his least favourite surface.
John Isner and Janko Tipsarevic could cause issues for one another before that clash with Ferrer so I'll back the Spaniard in the Third Quarter.
Women's Tournament
First Quarter
The Number 1 seed in the Women's draw may be Victoria Azarenka, but it is Serena Williams that will have all the attention coming into the tournament.
Azarenka leads the draw and looks set to reach the Fourth Round here with the competition she has in front of her as well reaching the Semi Final at Wimbledon and winning a Bronze Medal at the Olympics. However, my biggest concern for her is she had to pull out of Montreal with a knee injury and I am not sure how well she has recovered.
If Azarenka is fully fit, the draw would pose no problems ahead of the Quarter Final, but that is a big IF at the moment.
At the Quarter Final stage, the likes of Na Li, Kim Clijsters and Sam Stosur (the defending Champion) could all be lying in wait and this does have the feel of a tough section.
Li has reached the Final in Montreal and won the tournament in Cincinnati during this shortened Summer hard court swing in North America, but she could face Clijsters in the Third Round, a player that has a strong head to head record against Li and also an impressive 3 time winner here at Flushing Meadows.
Sam Stosur has an easier path to the Fourth Round where should face the winner of the Li-Clijsters match and I think the Australian will get there despite poor recent form. It's funny to see that Stosur has won all 6 previous meetings against Li but lost all 5 previous matches with Clijsters.
Prediction: The injury concern for Victoria Azarenka is the only issue that is bothering me else I would tip her to be too consistent for this section. However, Kim Clijsters, in her final Grand Slam, may just be the person to come out of it.
Second Quarter
This Quarter is dominated by the presence of Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova, two of the favourites to win the tournament and I also believe it will be the Quarter that provides one of the Finalists this year.
Maria Sharapova has not played a match since being completely trampled by Serena Williams in the Gold Medal match at the Olympics as the Russian won just ONE game. She pulled out of both big events in Montreal and Cincinnati since the Olympics, but she will be able to get her feet underneath herself in this event as the draw presents some 'easy' matches to get her going.
A potential Fourth Round match with either Nadia Petrova or Lucie Safarova could be awkward, but Sharapova has been very good in 2012 and I think she will be too consistent and mentally tough for those players to make her way through to the Quarter Final.
Petra Kvitova has had a really productive hard court swing in North America, winning the events at Montreal and New Haven and finishing as Runner Up in Cincinnati. She is displaying some of the form that took her to the Wimbledon title in 2011 and looks a real danger player in the draw.
The amount of tennis she has played over the last three weeks would be a concern, but the draw means she won't have to expend a lot of energy in the first couple of Rounds and her confidence should be high.
Yanina Wickmayer, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Marion Bartoli are tough opponents from the Third Round onwards, but Kvitova's recent form as well as the fact she has beaten the latter two in events in the last three weeks and she should set up a special Quarter Final.
Prediction: I think we will see the big Quarter Final between Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova and it is a tough match to call. Sharapova has won 3 in a row against Kvitova, but the latter has been in special form over the last three weeks and may just snap that streak
Third Quarter
The first name everyone, including 127 Women who are going to take part in this tournament, would have looked for in the draw is Serena Williams and this is the Quarter she has landed in.
Williams has won tournaments at Wimbledon, Stanford and the Gold Medal at the Olympics before her winning run was snapped in Cincinnati, but the American remains the player to beat, especially if she is serving as well as she was during her time in London.
Maria Kirilenko may cause some problems for Serena before the Quarter Final, but there doesn't seem a lot in this section that can do that and I think Williams will be too powerful for the Russian and will get past.
Caroline Wozniacki and Ana Ivanovic are 'names' in the other half of this section, but neither has shown me enough to think they will be able to get near Williams in any potential match.
Prediction: Serena Williams
Fourth Quarter
I mentioned Serena Williams had been on a long winning run until it was snapped in Cincinnati and the player to do so was Angelique Kerber.
Kerber actually went on to finish as Runner Up in Cincinnati and now returns to Flushing Meadows where she announced herself to the rest of the WTA Tour with a run to the Semi Final where she was beaten in three sets by Sam Stosur, the eventual winner.
The German could be a dark horse for this tournament, but she has to pick up form immediately as she has a potential Second Round match against Venus Williams on the slate. Venus had not been in great form as she deals with a syndrome that can sap energy, but she did reach the Semi Final in Cincinnati recently and clearly can still perform with the best on her day.
Venus also pushed Kerber to two tight sets at the London Olympics recently so could be a real threat to the latter here.
The winner of that Second Round match may actually feel pretty good about their chances of making it through to the Semi Final as they won't have too many issues to reach the Quarter Final with the likes of Sara Errani as a high seeded player that enjoys much more success on the slower clay courts than the faster hard courts.
Agnieska Radwanska is a potential Quarter Final opponent for Kerber or Williams, but she had to pull out with an injury last week in New Haven and has to be ruled out with some serious doubts about her ability to compete.
After Radwanska, there aren't too many big names in the bottom half of this section.
Prediction: The winner of Angelique Kerber-Venus Williams will likely go on to win this Quarter... Tough one to call, but I guess I would favour Kerber, but only just
Winner and Outright Picks
The bottom half of the draw looks one for Serena Williams to dominate and I would favour her to reverse her loss to Angelique Kerber from Cincinnati, especially after having 5 wins under her belt.
Kerber may also have already been knocked out by big sister Venus Williams, but every way you look at this, you have to favour Serena.
Secretly, I am sure Serena is very pleased to see almost every other threat in the draw in the opposite half of the draw and I have to take Serena, at very short odds, to win this tournament.
However, I also think it is worth adding Angelique Kerber to the staking plan and having a very small interest on her winning the tournament at 26.00 as she has previous form on this surface and her recent win over Serena Williams will surely have given her some confidence.
The top half of the draw looks the toughest one to call and there are a couple of doubts over some of the leading contenders which makes it all the more tougher to call.
In saying that, I think the layers shouldn't under-estimate Petra Kvitova considering the way she has been playing over the last three weeks.
Kvitova is a special player when she is confident and she has the ability to take the racquet out of her opponents hands and 13.00 on her to win the tournament looks a little disrespectful to me and I will have another small interest in her.
Outright Picks: Roger Federer @ 3.75 Boyle Sports (4 Units)
David Ferrer to win Third Quarter @ 3.50 Bet Fred (1 Unit)
Serena Williams @ 2.00 Paddy Power (6 Units)
Angelique Kerber @ 26.00 Bet Victor (0.5 Units E/W)
Angelique Kerber @ 26.00 Bet Victor (0.5 Units E/W)
Petra Kvitova @ 13.00 Bet Victor (1 Unit E/W)
Season 2012: + 43.25 Units (761 Units Staked, 5.68% Yield)
Season 2011: + 82.02 Units
Season 2012: + 43.25 Units (761 Units Staked, 5.68% Yield)
Season 2011: + 82.02 Units
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