2023 Scottish Open: PGA Tour Golf Picks, Predictions, and Tee Times
The usual suspects sit atop the Scottish Open odds, led by Scottie Scheffler, who is perched as +549 chalk. Rory McIlroy follows at +800, while Xander Schauffele is pegged as a +1400 to make it two in a row at this event.
But faced with the challenge of playing at Rennaisance Club in North Berwick, Scotland, which one reviewer recently described as being designed more “for punishment rather than pleasure”, and with rainy weather in the forecast, golf betting fans would be wise to search for value further down the odds board.
Here’s a look at some of the best bets to consider ahead of Thursday’s opening tee off at the 2023 Scottish Open.
Alexander Bjork Top 20 Finish
Sweden’s Alexander Bjork arrives in Scotland as one of the hottest players on the DP World Tour after posting top ten finishes in six of his past seven tournament appearances, capped by his fourth-place performance last weekend at Made in HimmerLand.
Currently tops in the DP World Tour in stroke average and third in strokes gained, Bjork’s priority this weekend will focus on preparing for the Open Championship, where he has failed to make the cut in four previous appearances. However, given his recent form, and past success at this event, where he has cracked the top 20 on three occasions, Bjork should not be overlooked as a +350 bet to once again finish among the top 20 and is worth a value bet with +749 to extend his recent run of top ten finishes.
Justin Rose Ready for Rain
A past winner at the Scottish Open, Justin Rose returns to the Renaissance Club well rested after taking a break following the US Open. While a tough opening round doomed the 42-year-old Englshman to miss the cut at the US Open, he has otherwise displayed vintage form of late, finishing in top 25 in six of his previous seven outings including top ten finishes at the PLAYERS Championship, PGA Championship, and RBC Canadian Open.
Currently ranked 10th on the PGA Tour in scoring average, and 31st in accuracy off the tee, Rose’s experience both on this course and playing in typical Scottish weather should serve him well on a windy, rain-soaked course this weekend. In addition to sporting solid +187 odds to crack the top 20.
Rose also offers value as a +110 to outpace the two golfers he is paired with on Thursday, Billy Horschel and Victor Perez, both of whom have produced mixed results in recent outings.
Min Woo Lee vs. Max Homa
Suggesting this season has been a disappointment for Max Homa would be a massive understatement. Expected to emerge as a major tournament contender after posting an early-season win at the Farmers Insurance Open, Homa has steadily faded as the campaign has progressed, missing the cut in four of eight outings including the US Open at The Los Angeles Country Championship, where he holds the course record.
Having already qualified for the Open Championship takes a lot of pressure of Homa. However, his recent struggles with accuracy of the tee and hitting greens in regulation should make sports bettors nervous about backing him. Indeed, Homa offers little value as a -111 bet in a tournament matchup with 2021 Scottish Open winner Min Woo Lee, and is worth looking at as a +180 wager to miss the cut.
Picks: Alexander Bjork Top 20 finish (+350); Justin Rose Top 20 (+187); Min Woo Lee (-111) tournament matchup vs Max Homa
| 2023 Genesis Scottish Open Round 1 tee times (All times ET) |
|---|
| Tee No. 1 |
| 2:15 a.m. – David Law, Aaron Baddeley, Matthew Baldwin |
| 2:26 a.m. – Will Gordon, Joakim Lagergren, Zander Lombard |
| 2:37 a.m. – Jorge Campillo, Harrison Endycott, Matthew Jordan |
| 2:48 a.m. – J.T. Poston, Dale Whitnell, Callum Shinkwin |
| 2:59 a.m. – Oliver Wilson, Kevin Yu, Kalle Samooja |
| 3:10 a.m. – Garrick Higgo, Rafa Cabrera Bello, Simon Forsström |
| 3:21 a.m. – K.H. Lee, Ockie Strydom, Daniel Gavins |
| 3:32 a.m. – Cam Davis, Thorbjørn Olesen, Adrian Otaegui |
| 3:43 a.m. – C.T. Pan, Scott Jamieson, Sean Crocker |
| 3:54 a.m. – Dylan Frittelli, Wil Besseling, Joost Luiten |
| 4:05 a.m. – Taylor Montgomery, Paul Waring, Nick Bachem |
| 4:16 a.m. – Eric Cole, Shubhankar Sharma, Hurly Long |
| 4:27 a.m. – David Lingmerth, Marcel Schneider, Yoseop Seo |
| 7:30 a.m. – Charley Hoffman, Padraig Harrington, Daniel Hillier |
| 7:41 a.m. – Callum Tarren, Julien Brun, Tom McKibbin |
| 7:52 a.m. – Keith Mitchell, Danny Willett, Rasmus Hojgaard |
| 8:03 a.m. – Max Homa, Adam Scott, Yannik Paul |
| 8:14 a.m. – Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland, Shane Lowry |
| 8:25 a.m. – Rickie Fowler, Wyndham Clark, Tyrrell Hatton |
| 8:36 a.m. – Justin Rose, Billy Horschel, Victor Perez |
| 8:47 a.m. – Kurt Kitayama, Tom Kim, Grant Forrest |
| 8:58 a.m. – Davis Riley, Gary Woodland, Guido Migliozzi |
| 9:09 a.m. – Corey Conners, Tom Hoge, Ryan Fox |
| 9:20 a.m. – Matt Wallace, Mackenzie Hughes, Nicolai Hojgaard |
| 9:31 a.m. – Ben Griffin, Matthew Southgate, Marcus Armitage |
| 9:42 a.m. – S.H. Kim, Maximilian Kieffer, Ashun Wu |
| Tee No. 10 |
| 2:15 a.m. – Andrew Putnam, Ludvig Aberg, Nicolas Colsaerts |
| 2:26 a.m. – Lucas Herbert, Thomas Detry, Richie Ramsay |
| 2:37 a.m. – Francesco Molinari, Luke Donald, Aaron Rai |
| 2:48 a.m. – Matt Fitzpatrick, Patrick Cantlay, Adrian Meronk |
| 2:59 a.m. – Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas |
| 3:10 a.m. – Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre |
| 3:21 a.m. – Sam Burns, Seamus Power, Min Woo Lee |
| 3:32 a.m. – Nick Taylor, Edoardo Molinari, Pablo Larrazabal |
| 3:43 a.m. – Sungjae Im, Thriston Lawrence, Ewen Ferguson |
| 3:54 a.m. – Brian Harman, Sahith Theegala, Marcel Siem |
| 4:05 a.m. – Michael Kim, Dylan Wu, Oliver Bekker |
| 4:16 a.m. – Ben Martin, Alex Smalley, Bio Kim |
| 4:27 a.m. – Byeong Hun An, Robby Shelton, Tapio Pulkkanen |
| 7:30 a.m. – Ben Taylor, Gavin Green, Matthieu Pavon |
| 7:41 a.m. – Brandon Wu, Romain Langasque, Nicolai Von Dellingshausen |
| 7:52 a.m. – Lee Hodges, Jordan Smith, Antoine Rozner |
| 8:03 a.m. – Luke List, Harry Hall, Adri Arnaus |
| 8:14 a.m. – Austin Eckroat, Jamie Donaldson, Haotong Li |
| 8:25 a.m. – Erik van Rooyen, Ross Fisher, Calum Hill |
| 8:36 a.m. – Scott Stallings, Alex Noren, Alexander Björk |
| 8:47 a.m. – Jimmy Walker, Patrick Rodgers, Connor Syme |
| 8:58 a.m. – Troy Merritt, Richard Mansell, Dan Bradbury |
| 9:09 a.m. – Joseph Bramlett, Justin Walters, Yeongsu Kim |
| 9:20 a.m. – Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Doug Ghim, Sami Valimaki |
| 9:31 a.m. – Sam Ryder, Eddie Pepperell, Sebastian Soderberg |
| 9:42 a.m. – Zac Blair, Fabrizio Zanotti, Chase Hanna |