Weekly European Tour Tips

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Thomas Pieters – 20/1 – 2pts each-way

Andy Sullivan – 35/1 – 1.5pts each-way

Joost Luiten – 50/1 – 1pt each-way

Calum Hill – 80/1 – 1pt each-way

Matt Southgate – 110/1 – 0.75pts each-way

This week’s Scottish Open is the first Rolex Series event on the European Tour since professional golf returned following the lockdown. This means that the field this week is much stronger than at the Irish Open last week. Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick are top of the market at relatively low odds in the low teens. The Renaissance Club on the East Lothian coast is the host again this year. However, last year’s Scottish Open was a birdie-fest when the wind did not blow and Wiesberger won at 22-under par. This week will be a much tougher test in early October with cool and unsettled weather. So, players who are comfortable on coastal setups and have recent form and a links pedigree are the main focus.

Thomas Pieters is this week’s headline selection following his impressive showing at the US Open. Admittedly, he did fade away towards the end but it was a tough grind for everyone and he kept trying. Pieters became a father recently and there is a hope that this big event in his life will inspire a ‘nappy factor’-style reaction. He was T-20th here last year after an opening 64, so he looks good for an even better performance this time around.

Second pick this week is a recent winner on the UK Swing at the English Championship at Hanbury Manor. Andy Sullivan was on fire that week to finish at a scary low 27-under par. This was not a flash in the pan as he also had two top-10’s on the UK Swing. His form is clearly strong despite missing the last two cuts. He also began last year’s Scottish Open with a 64, so has course form to go with his recent win.

Joost Luiten is a player who likes to play coastal tracks. He has won on a links course at the Dutch Open and his last win was in Oman on a coastal course. He plays well at this time of the year and showed some encouraging form at the Irish Open last week.

Calum Hill also played solid at the Irish Open last week and was solid in last year’s Scottish Open with T-26th finish. He is a young gun who is starting to shape like a future winner and has strong recent form from the UK Swing. His price is nice and he should go well.

Finally, we are going to select Matt Southgate again this week. His love of links golf is well known with a 6th-place and T-12th in back-to-back Opens in 2016 and 2017. He was second at Portstewart in 2017’s Irish Open and runner-up at the Dunhill Links last year. He rallied on Sunday last week at the Irish Open, so looks overpriced this week.