With a week to go before the Open Championship, the European Tour will make its way to Scotland this week for the Scottish Open. The middle leg of three straight weeks of links golf will work as an excellent final tune-up for those preparing for next week’s major tournament. The Scottish Open has preceded the Open Championship for many years. This year, it will return to the Gullane Golf Club in East Lothian, which last hosted this event back in 2015. We took the time to break down the field for this week’s tournament to identify the most likely contenders. Here is a closer look at the best bets to win the Scottish Open. Odds are courtesy of BetDSI.
Event Details
Event: Scottish Open
Category: European
Date: July 12th-15th, 2018
Location: Gullane Golf Club, East Lothian, Scotland
Previous links form should be a good indicator for this week’s event based on the unique outlooks for these types of tournaments. Six of the last eight winners of this tournament warmed up by playing a links tournament the week before. That could mean that anybody that played at Ballyliffin last week could have an added advantage. It won’t be the absolute most important factor but links experience could play a role.
Last Five Winners
2017: Rafael Cabrera-Bello -13
2016: Alexander Noren -14
2015: Rickie Fowler -12
2014: Justin Rose -16
2013: Phil Mickelson -17
What To Know About The Course
The Gullane Golf Club features a straightforward links course without many blind shots. Looking back to 2015, the first five home had an average Driving Distance rankings of 40.5 and an average Driving Accuracy of 54.2, which means numbers off the tee likely won’t have a significant impact. Meanwhile, the first three home in 2015 ranked fifth, first and second for Scrambling, which gives us a pretty good indication of what players will need to do to succeed. Strong Scrambling and Putting numbers should be strong indicators for potential success this week at the Scottish Open.
The Field
A quick look at the sports betting odds for this event highlights the importance of a strong history at the Scottish Open. Justin Rose won this tournament in 2014. Rickie Fowler won this tournament in 2015. Rose and Fowler are the co-favorites to win the Scottish Open at +1000 odds. Patrick Reed, Tyrrell Hatton and Russell Knox round out the list of sports betting favorites to win. Meanwhile, there are a number of other familiar names on the board including Hideki Matsuyama at +1600 odds and Matt Kuchar at +2500 odds. Phil Mickelson, who won here in 2013, is in the mix at +2500 odds to win here again in 2018.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Russell Knox over Hideki Matsuyama
This pick is more about finding a decent betting matchup for a potential outright winner in Knox than it is about bashing Matsuyama. While Matsuyama could have a decent outing in his final tune-up for the Open Championship, we like Knox to challenge for the victory and finish ahead of Matsuyama at decent odds in the head-to-head sports betting matchup. Knox is coming off a big win last week and he finished second to Alex Noren two weeks ago, so clearly he is in outstanding form. Knox has demonstrated time and again that he can maintain a high level of play over a run of consecutive tournaments so we have no problem trusting him as a smart pick in Scotland this week.
Top-Five Pick: Justin Rose
If you are searching for the most likely outright winner or top-five finish, Rose should be the smart pick. His links form hasn’t been the most consistent but when he is on, he is on. Rose won this tournament back in 2014. He’s also in excellent form including winning the Fort Werth Invitational, finishing sixth at the Memorial tournament and placing 10th at the U.S. Open. Rose should continue to roll this week as a good bet to place in the top-five at the very least at the Scottish Open.
Odds To Win Scottish Open
Justin Rose +850
Rickie Fowler +850
Tyrrell Hatton +1650
Patrick Reed +1650
Hideki Matsuyama +1850
Russell Knox +2050
Andy Sullivan +2050
Matt Kuchar +2050
Ian Poulter +2050
Phil Mickelson +2550
Rafa Cabrera Bello +2550
Louis Oosthuizen +2550
Chris Wood +4050
Thomas Pieters +4550
Alexander Bjork +4550
Matthew Fitzpatrick +4550
Ryan Fox +4550
Paul Dunne +5050
Martin Kaymer +5050
Peter Uihlein +5050
Jorge Campillo +5050
Lee Westwood +5500
Charley Hoffman +5500
Ross Fisher +5500
Dylan Frittelli +6550
Julian Suri +6550
Haotong Li +6550
Kiradech Aphibarnrat +6550
Graeme McDowell +7550
Adrian Otaegui +8550
