The Scottish Open has been a stable of the golf world since 1972. Players have often used it as a warmup for The Open Championship. But since 2022, it has been featured on the PGA Tour schedule as an agreement with the European Tour. The Renaissance Club has hosted the tournament since 2019. We’ll look at the top Scottish Open DFS plays to give you the value pick in each salary range.
The Renaissance Club was designed by top modern architect Tom Doak back in 2008. Doak’s combination of classical links elements along with modern design philosophies has made the course very popular and a very unique track amongst the very old courses often played around the UK. Like many links courses, its toughness is usually determined by the weather. It plays as a Par 71 at around 7,300 yards.
Our model this week is looking at SG: Approach, Opportunities Gained, SG: Off the Tee, SG: Around the Green, Birdies or Better Gained, SG: Par 5, and Driving Distance.
Top Value: $9,000+: Collin Morikawa – $10,300
Collin Morikawa is playing some of the best golf in the world right now. He now has eight consecutive finishes of 16th or better dating all the way back to the Masters. Four of those finishes were in the top four, three of those starts were major championships, and four more of them were elevated events. Point being, he’s been consistently contending in the game’s biggest events.
All facets of Morikawa’s game are currently clicking. That includes the putter, which is usually the only club in his bag that holds him back. He’s a former winner of The Open, which means he’ll be plenty comfortable on a links course in the UK. His ball striking ability will always play well over here. I slightly prefer Morikawa’s price over taking Rory McIlroy for $1,600 more. He ranks 4th in my model.
Scottish Open DFS Top Value: $8,000-$8,900: Sungjae Im – $8,500
Sungjae Im hits a hybrid at the John Deere Classic.
If you don’t count major championships, Sungjae Im continues to be in some fantastic form dating back to late April. The form in those tournaments is 12th, 3rd, 8th, 9th, 4th, 12th. His driver is still very steady, but more importantly, both the irons and putter seem to be finding some great form. Those irons used to be what made Im such a promising young player, but they had been letting him down of late.
Im has now gained 8.3 strokes on approach in his last two starts. He’s also a fantastic player in windy conditions if the forecast changes at all. Another thing to consider is Im has no issue traveling and playing in different environments. This feels like the most solid pick in this range even if he may not have the upside for a victory. Im ranks 12th in my model.
Top Value: $7,000-$7,900: Keith Mitchell – $7,300
Mitchell hasn’t had a ton of success in links golf yet, but a 36th here in 2022 is at least a bit form on this course to lean on. But the difference with this version of Killa’ Keith is he’s become one of the best iron players on the planet. Considering he also prefers playing in winds and on difficult courses, I don’t see why Mitchell can’t find success in the UK this month.
The short game and putter haven’t been as bad lately, which led to solid finishes in Canada and at the John Deere last week. These slow and large greens can also be a good spot for someone who doesn’t do as much of his work with the short game. With his ball striking, Mitchell could have a nice shot here. He ranks 2nd in my model.
Scottish Open DFS Top Value: $6,000-$6,900: Jordan Smith – $6,600
It’s been an inconsistent year for Jordan Smith on the European Tour. With some of the talent that left, it’s disappointing since he should be right at the front of the Race to Dubai. But a T2 last week in Germany has him in form heading to a tournament he loves. Smith has gone 24th and 12th in the Scottish Open since it moved to the improved field.
He’s one of the best ball strikers on the European Tour, and it’s even translated to solid finishes in majors and split fields in the last couple years. The Key for Smith will always be the putter. But we don’t need him to win here. At this price, his steady ball striking should lead to another decent finish in Scotland. He ranks 17th in my model.
Scottish Open DFS Top Value: $5,000-$5,900: Antoine Rozner – $5,600
Antoine Rozner hits an iron at the Italian Open.
We’re going to go with another European Tour player here at the bottom that likely isn’t getting the respect they deserve on more familiar turf. Rozner has started to get things going as of late as he also tries to make a run in the Race to Dubai for a PGA Tour card. He’s a fantastic links player who, like Smith, is a great ball striker that can struggle on the greens.
That’s the type of player we’re going after this week. Rozner was 5th in Italy in his last start and looked really good until a rough back nine on Sunday. He finished 20th in The Open last year and just shouldn’t be priced this low on a course that like this with his current form. Rozner ranks 26th in my model.
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Scottish Open DFS Plays: Value Picks For Each Salary Range