Weekly Preview: Genesis Scottish Open

Weekly Preview: Genesis Scottish Open

This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.

Genesis Scottish Open

The Renaissance Club
North Berwick, Scotland

The PGA and DP World Tours head to Scotland for another edition of the Genesis Scottish Open.

It's been just one year since the Scottish Open entered the PGA Tour schedule and it's safe to say it was a good addition. In years past, the lead up to the Open Championship on the PGA Tour was the equivalent of an opposite field event, with mostly non-Open participants in the field because the travel required in a small amount of time to get to the open from say the John Deere Classic, just wasn't worth it. Now we have an event which is near the site of the Open Championship, which means all the stars that are in Europe already, have a place to get ready for the Open. This has led to a stellar field, which this year includes almost all the top players in the world. The interesting thing about this event though is the purse, which is the equivalent of a non-elevated event in the states. I'm sure that doesn't matter much to the players at this point though as most of them have banked so much money this year, money is now a secondary concern. The main goal this week is to get accustomed -- or reacclimated in some cases -- to links-style golf.

All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook as of 7:20 PM ET Wednesday.

LAST YEAR

Xander Schauffele shot a final-round 70 on his way to a

Genesis Scottish Open

The Renaissance Club
North Berwick, Scotland

The PGA and DP World Tours head to Scotland for another edition of the Genesis Scottish Open.

It's been just one year since the Scottish Open entered the PGA Tour schedule and it's safe to say it was a good addition. In years past, the lead up to the Open Championship on the PGA Tour was the equivalent of an opposite field event, with mostly non-Open participants in the field because the travel required in a small amount of time to get to the open from say the John Deere Classic, just wasn't worth it. Now we have an event which is near the site of the Open Championship, which means all the stars that are in Europe already, have a place to get ready for the Open. This has led to a stellar field, which this year includes almost all the top players in the world. The interesting thing about this event though is the purse, which is the equivalent of a non-elevated event in the states. I'm sure that doesn't matter much to the players at this point though as most of them have banked so much money this year, money is now a secondary concern. The main goal this week is to get accustomed -- or reacclimated in some cases -- to links-style golf.

All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook as of 7:20 PM ET Wednesday.

LAST YEAR

Xander Schauffele shot a final-round 70 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Kurt Kitayama.

FAVORITES

Scottie Scheffler (13-2)

No surprise here as Scheffler is easily the best player in the world right now. The fact that he hasn't been able to close lately is a bit of a concern, but when you are putting yourself in position to win each and every week, the wins are going to follow. Scheffler did miss the cut here this past year, so that's a little concerning as well, but there's no reason to think that he won't be a factor again this week. With that said, I'm not buying in at this price, it's too low considering all the factors.

Rory McIlroy (17-2)

Now that we're back in Europe, we should pay some extra attention to McIlroy. The problem this week is that he's never really fared well at this event. McIlroy has missed the cut here in three of seven starts and he's yet to post a top-10. Perhaps McIlroy uses this event as a tune-up for the Open, or maybe he just doesn't like this venue, but whatever the case, there's no reason to go in on him at this price.

Xander Schauffele (14-1)

He's the defending champion and we're on the same track as this past year, so there's certainly a reason to think he'll play well this week, but I wonder if Schauffele might be starting to get consumed by the chase for his first major. Golfers always want to play well when they tee it up, but sometimes their focus can be elsewhere. Considering Schauffele already conquered this challenge, perhaps he gets caught looking ahead to next week.

THE NEXT TIER

Matt Fitzpatrick (22-1)

Another guy that's assuredly looking forward to next week, but in Fitzpatrick's case, he's more at ease because he already has a major. As for this week, if his track record is any indication, he's in for a good week. Fitzpatrick finished T6 here this past year and T2 the year prior. He's yet to miss a cut at this venue on the current course.

Shane Lowry (29-1)

I hate to take the cliched road and put this many Euro's on the list, but if I'm to go that route, I'd rather do it this week vs. next week as we know the European players are more invested in the Scottish Open than are the players from the states, or at least I'm assuming they are. Anyhow, Lowry hasn't played this event since the venue change five years ago, but prior to that, he generally fared well at this event, which leads me to believe he's fully invested this week.

Wyndham Clark (34-1)

Clark's odds have dropped a bit since they opened, and that's probably due to the public expecting a prolonged hangover from his U.S. Open, but I'm not so sure that Clark will get complacent. Maybe Clark has some Scheffler in him and he just needed a spark? If that's the case, we should see a good effort this week as he posted a T16 here this past year and I dare say he's got a little more confidence this time around.

LONG SHOTS

Ludvig Aberg (50-1)

Aberg continues to play well and put himself in position to win, but as most young players do, he's been falling off late in the week. That will change with experience however and one of these weeks he'll close with style. Wouldn't it be nice to get him at this price when he gets that first win?

Kurt Kitayama (80-1)

I realize he hasn't played his best golf lately, but these are interesting odds for a guy having a breakout season and who finished runner-up here last year. The number seems a little high in my book. Kitayama posted a big win earlier in the season and he hasn't exactly been complacent since. He didn't take off quite yet, but he didn't disappear either. You don't often get odds like this on a guy who knows how to win against strong fields.

ONE-AND-DONE LEAGUES

Highly-chosen Pick: Matt Fitzpatrick - This is a bit of a toss-up as I can see the OAD players on Schauffele this week as well, but as I mentioned above, I don't particularly like Schauffele this week. Fitzpatrick checks all the boxes this week, so he's going to be very popular, but he's still the play as long as you have someone of quality to use next week as well.

Moderately-chosen Pick: Shane Lowry - As is often the case when we are playing in Europe, the OAD players are going to lean towards the Europeans and that makes perfect sense. To be honest, I think outside of Schauffele and Fitzpatrick the selections will be all over the map, so take whoever you like and don't worry about that aspect this week.

Lightly-chosen Pick: Ludvig Aberg - Aberg is certainly on the radar of most OAD players at this point, but I dare say that most OAD players aren't ready to use him against a field like this. Keep in mind though that even though the field is stacked this week, the purse is relatively small, so you aren't really taking a big risk using him here. That and there just aren't that many spots left to use him as he'll likely be left out of the playoffs.

Buyer Beware: Xander Schauffele - I've already made the case here, so I won't go too much deeper, but I'll just reiterate that I think Schauffele is reaching a boiling point when it comes to the majors. He might not be there yet, but he's getting there and pretty soon it will be tough to stay in the moment when a major is right around the corner.

This Week: Ludvig Aberg - A few reasons for this pick. First, as you might imagine, I've used just about everyone listed above and my options are limited. Second, Aberg gives me a chance to gain some ground this week as I don't expect him to be on many teams. Third, as mentioned above, there aren't many spots left to use Aberg unless he picks up a win soon, so I might as well give him a shot here.

Previous Results

TournamentGolferResultEarningsRunning Total
John Deere ClassicSepp Straka1$1,332,000$12,629,707
Rocket Mortgage ClassicChris KirkT14$160,000$11,297,707
Travelers ChampionshipHarris EnglishT60$44,600$11,137,707
U.S. OpenBrooks KoepkaT17$284,167$11,093,107
RBC Canadian OpenTommy Fleetwood2$981,000$10,808,940
The Memorial Tournament pres. by WorkdayCollin MorikawaWD$0$9,827,940
Charles Schwab ChallengeJustin RoseT12$178,350$9,827,940
PGA ChampionshipTony FinauT72$26,500$9,649,590
AT&T Byron NelsonAdam ScottT8$277,875$9,623,090
Wells Fargo ChampionshipMatt FitzpatrickT35$99,600$9,345,215
Mexico OpenBrandon Wu3$531,300$9,245,615
Zurich Classic of New OrleansBilly HorschelT11$93,633$8,714,315
RBC HeritageCameron YoungT51$49,133$8,620,682
Masters TournamentScottie SchefflerT10$432,000$8,571,549
Valero Texas OpenMatt KucharT3$525,100$8,139,549
WGC-Dell Technologies Match PlayTyrrell HattonT59$76,500$7,614,449
Valspar ChampionshipAdam HadwinMC$0$7,537,949
THE PLAYERS ChampionshipXander SchauffeleT19$275,000$7,537,949
Arnold Palmer Invitational pres. by MastercardKeith MitchellT24$163,000$7,262,949
The Honda ClassicShane LowryT5$288,120$7,099,949
The Genesis InvitationalMax Homa2$2,180,000$6,811,829
WM Phoenix OpenJon Rahm3$1,380,000$4,631,829
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-AmJoel DahmenT41$31,950$3,251,829
Farmers Insurance OpenJason DayT7$282,750$3,219,879
The American ExpressSungjae ImT18$110,000$2,9327,129
Sony Open in HawaiiCorey ConnersT12$138,908$2,827,129
Sentry Tournament of ChampionsRussell HenleyT30$208,500$2,688,221
The RSM ClassicMackenzie HughesMC$0$2,479,721
Cadence Bank Houston OpenTaylor MontgomeryT57$19,236$2,479,721
World Wide Technology Championship at MayakobaTom HogeMC$0$2,460,485
Butterfield Bermuda ChampionshipSeamus Power1$1,170,000$2,460,485
THE CJ CUP in South CarolinaRickie FowlerT34$54,180$1,290,485
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIPMaverick McNealyT12$222,310$1,236,305
Shriners Children's OpenMatthew NeSmithT2$712,000$1,013,995
Sanderson Farms ChampionshipDenny McCarthyT39$31,995$301,995
Fortinet ChampionshipSahith TheegalaT6$270,000$270,000

FANDUEL PICKS

Upper Range: Matt Fitzpatrick ($10,800)
Middle Range: Ludvig Aberg ($9,900)
Lower Range: Thomas Detry ($8,700)

SURVIVOR LEAGUES

This Week: Thomas Detry - These are the things you can do when your streak is small -- get a little creative. Detry isn't someone that I'd normally peg for this type of contest, but his track record here makes the perfect pick. Detry has played this course at this event five times and has not missed a cut. He finished top-10 here in his past two starts, so he obviously has an affinity for this track.

Previous Results

TournamentGolferStreak
John Deere ClassicZach Johnson1
Rocket Mortgage ClassicTom Kim0
Travelers ChampionshipBrian Harman4
U.S. OpenBrooks Koepka3
RBC Canadian OpenCorey Conners2
The Memorial Tournament pres. by WorkdaySahith Theegala1
Charles Schwab ChallengeJordan Spieth0
PGA ChampionshipXander Schauffele14
AT&T Byron NelsonK.H. Lee13
Wells Fargo ChampionshipRickie Fowler12
Mexico OpenJon Rahm11
Zurich Classic of New OrleansPatrick Cantlay10
RBC HeritageCameron Young9
Masters TournamentScottie Scheffler8
Valero Texas OpenMatt Kuchar7
Valspar ChampionshipSam Burns6
THE PLAYERS ChampionshipJustin Thomas5
Arnold Palmer Invitational pres. by MastercardTyrrell Hatton4
The Honda ClassicShane Lowry3
The Genesis InvitationalAdam Scott2
WM Phoenix OpenHideki Matsuyama1
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-AmMaverick McNealy0
Farmers Insurance OpenLuke List3
The American ExpressAndrew Putnam2
Sony Open in HawaiiHarris English1
The RSM ClassicJason Day0
Cadence Bank Houston OpenRussell Henley0
World Wide Technology Championship at MayakobaBilly Horschel4
Butterfield Bermuda ChampionshipRussell Knox3
Shriners Children's OpenMatthew NeSmith2
Sanderson Farms ChampionshipDenny McCarthy1
Fortinet ChampionshipChez Reavie0

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Greg Vara
Vara is the lead golf writer at RotoWire. He was named the FSWA Golf Writer of the Year in 2005 and 2013. He also picks college football games against the spread in his "College Capper" article.
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