Women’s Scottish Open Tips: 110/1 shot one of five for Dundonald Links

Next week, we finish off the LPGA major season with the AIG Women’s Open at the Old Course, but first it’s to Dundonald Links for the Women's Scottish Open.

Our star golf tipster Jamie Worsley is in red-hot form at the moment with four winners in the last four weeks. Here are his Women's Scottish Open tips, which range from 18/1 to a massive 110/1...

Lydia Ko’s already magnificent career received another boost last week, as she added an Olympic gold medal to her long list of achievements. Completing the set after gaining a silver and bronze in the previous two Olympic Games.

It was a win that finally stamped Ko’s place in the LPGA Hall of Fame, and she showed those elite qualities in her final round at Le Golf National, battling well after seeing a five-shot lead reduced to one – largely due to a double bogey on her 13^th hole – to birdie the last and beat Germany’s Esther Henseleit by two strokes.

Ko will again be in action this week as the LPGA now heads to Scotland. They’ll finish out major season next week at the Old Course at St Andrews in the AIG Women’s Open, though first it’s to the country’s west coast and Dundonald Links, for the Women’s Scottish Open.

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

The Women’s Scottish Open was first played on the LET (Ladies European Tour) from 1986-88 and then again from 1994-95. It returned to the schedule in 2007 after 12 years away and excluding 2009, it has taken place every year since, becoming co-sanctioned with the LPGA in 2017.

Catriona Matthew remains the only player to have recorded multiple victories in the event, with her two wins coming in 2011 and 2013.

Last five winners:

• 2023 – Winner: Celine Boutier (-15); runner-up: Hyo Joo Kim (-13)
• 2022 – Winner: Ayaka Furue (-21); runner-up: Celine Boutier (-18)
• 2021 – Winner: Ryann O’Toole (-17); runners-up: Lydia Ko, Atthaya Thitikul (-14)
• 2020 – Winner: Stacy Lewis (-5, playoff); runners-up: Cheyenne Knight, Azahara Munoz, Emily Kristine Pedersen (-5)
• 2019 – Winner: M.J Hur (-20); runners-up: Moriya Jutanugarn, Jeongeun Lee6 (-16)

Last year’s renewal was a memorable one for France’s Celine Boutier, as she followed up her major championship breakthrough the previous week in the Evian Championship with a victory here in the Women’s Scottish Open, after finishing in the runner-up spot in 2022. Boutier returns this week and would be the first player to successfully defend the title if finishing on top of the leaderboard on Sunday

THE COURSE

Several different courses have hosted this event, and this will be the sixth time that Dundonald Links has had the honour, having previously hosted in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2022 and 2023.

This modern links course opened for play in 2005 and is situated on the west coast of Scotland in Ayrshire, just 10 minutes up the road from Royal Troon. It was designed by American architect, Kyle Phillips, who is perhaps best known for designing Kingsbarns - host of the 2017 Women’s Open, which was won by I.K Kim.

Dundonald will again play as a par 72 and measures 6563 yards. It comprises of 10x par 4s (344-420 yards), 4x par 5s (515-541 yards) and 4x par 3s (123-172 yards).

Like many exposed links/links-like courses, the difficulty of the test varies greatly depending on conditions. We’ve seen winning scores from Mi Hyang Lee’s -6 in 2017 to Ayaka Furue shooting -21 to win in 2022, with the course averaging a winning score of -11.8 across the five editions of the Women’s Scottish Open staged here.

The course features all aspects that you’d expect to find on traditional links courses, from the sandy, firm ground to the deep pot bunkers and gorse bushes that litter the course, often proving an instant penalty for those who find them. Whilst there is a burn that weaves its way through the property and comes into play on several holes.

The undulating fairways are generous and predominantly doglegged. Bunkers strategically protect them and typical of this type of golf, players can find brutal lies in the native rough.

The large greens are a poa/bentgrass/fescue mix and despite being a slow 10.5 on the stimpmeter, it’s these surfaces and their surrounds where the test truly lies at Dundonald. The raised green complexes are severely sloped in places, with steep run-offs around the perimeter sending the ball cascading off the green into all kinds of trouble, with some especially deep greenside bunkers.

With many of these greens positioned at an angle to the fairways and shallow/narrow in shape, they can tuck some tough pins that will require a high level of approach play to conquer.

As mentioned, the burn comes into play on a handful of holes and is a prominent element of the closing 518-yard par 5 18^th. This risk/reward hole requires players to hit a tee-shot into a relatively narrow final fairway, on which the landing area is pinched by a strategically placed bunker on the right-hand side. Find the short grass and they will then be tasked with a decision about whether to attack the large yet narrow and angled closing green in two. The burn hugs it tightly on the right-hand side and with two deep bunkers long, there is no easy bail out.

It provides us with an exciting finish and means anything can still happen as the main contenders stand on the 18^th tee on Sunday.

THE WEATHER

We should be in for some true links conditions this week if the forecast comes to fruition.

Showers are predicted to fall preceding the event and every day during, though it’s the winds that will cause players the most concern. The opening round looks the gentlest but by no means easy, with an 11mph breeze accompanied by gusts of up to 25mph throughout the day.

That is scheduled to rise on Friday, with that breeze raised to 21mph and gusts potentially hitting 40mph. Whilst not quite as strong over the weekend, the winds will persist, with gusts of up to 31mph currently on the cards.

With that, it looks likely to be a testing week in Ayrshire, where patience will be a necessity.

KEY STATS

• SG: Putting (poa/bent)
• SG: Around-the-Greens
• Scrambling

The windy conditions should make everything difficult this week, but it is almost certain to lower greens-in-regulation percentages, which leads me to siding with the strongest short-game players in the field

This would’ve paid dividends last year in another difficult edition. Winner, Celine Boutier ranked 1^st on the greens there, as well as 4^th in scrambling and 15^th around-the-greens. Hyo Joo Kim in 2^nd was just as strong with this part of her game, ranking 2^nd in putting, 1^st in scrambling and 16^th ATG.

We also saw how important the putter was in more scoreable conditions in 2022, as the top-2, Ayaka Furue and Celine Boutier, ranked 1^st and 2^nd respectively on the greens.

• SG: Approach
• Greens-in-Regulation

Strong iron play into these large greens will too be key in this week’s blustery conditions.

Celine Boutier hit a tonne of greens last year, ranking 4^th in greens-in-regulation, whilst three of her closest challengers ranked inside the top-20. We also had Ruoning Yin in 3^rd and Maja Stark in 4^th ranking 3^rd and 4^th in approach respectively.

Three of the top-4 ranked 10^th in GIR in 2022, including winner, Ayaka Furue. In addition, 3^rd-place finishers, Hyo Joo Kim and Cheyenne Knight, ranked 4^th and 8^th in approach.

• Par 4 Scoring

Finally, it’s the par 4s that have proven the most important to score well on in the last two years.

Celine Boutier ranked 4^th in par 4 scoring in 2023, with three of the next four on the leaderboard ranked inside the top-5.

Ayaka Furue led the field in par 4 scoring in 2022, with Hyo Joo Kim and Cheyenne Knight in 3^rd ranking 2^nd and 3^rd on these holes respectively.

CORRELATING EVENTS

We should first look towards other links/links-like courses when looking at comp events this week. This includes previous editions of the Women’s Scottish Open away from Dundonald Links, which took place at Dumbarnie Links (2021), The Renaissance Club (2020, 2019) and Gullane GC (2018).

Additionally, we can also check out past editions of the Women’s Open, which have taken place on similar courses almost every year since 2009. This excludes the 2016 and 2019 renewals, which were staged at Woburn’s parkland Marquess Course.

Over to the U.S now and two events/courses which share some of the same characteristics are the Shoprite LPGA Classic (Seaview – Bay Course) and the Mizuho Americas Open (Liberty National Golf Club). Each of these two courses are located by the coast and are open and exposed, making them susceptible to wind. They’re both well bunkered and have fescue/native grasses offering protection from the rough.

The Shoprite Classic has some interesting comp form, with Celine Boutier a past winner there, whilst Ayaka Furue and Hyo Joo Kim have each finished runner-up.

I also wondered if The Ascendant LPGA (Old American Golf Club) could provide us with further clues. This fairly exposed course can get very windy and is heavily bunkered. Celine Boutier has twice finished inside the top-10 there, whilst top-3 Dundonald finishers, Hyo Joo Kim and Cheyenne Knight, are past champions.

THE FIELD

We have a strong field heading to Scotland this week as players look to get some much-needed prep in before our final major of the season. World #2, Lilia Vu is the top-ranked player in the field and one of 16 from inside the top-25, which includes the new Olympic champion, Lydia Ko and each of our last two winners at Dundonald Links, Celine Boutier and Ayaka Furue.

There are a further four former winners in attendance, in the shape of Ryann O’Toole (2021), Stacy Lewis (2020), Ariya Jutanugarn (2018) and Mi Hyang Lee (2017).

This co-sanctioned event also brings with it a strong field of players from the Ladies European Tour, including current numbers 1, 2 and 3 on the 2024 Order of Merit, Bronte Law, Manon de Roey and Chiara Tamburlini.

Women's Scottish Open Odds

*Please click on the link above to be taken to the main Women's Scottish Open market on betfred.com (or app) for all the live betting prices on this tournament.

SELECTIONS

Market leaders: Ayaka Furue 11/1, Lilia Vu 14/1, Ally Ewing 16/1, Brooke Henderson 18/1, Hyo Joo Kim 18/1, Jin Young Ko 20/1, Linn Grant 20/1, Rose Zhang 20/1

You can make a case for any number from the top of the betting this week, though with her superb record here and possessing one of the strongest short games on tour, I’m taking Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim to come out on top at Dundonald Links.

2.5 pts Hyo Joo Kim each-way (1/4 - 5 places) - 18/1 

Last week, Kim added another solid performance to her consistent series of results in 2024, finishing 25^th in the Olympics. This was her fifth top-25 in six starts since winning the Aramco Series – Korea, and followed finishes of 12^th, 12^th and 16^th in the previous three majors.

It was a positive to see her find something in approach in France, especially during the final round. This is an area in which she’d predominantly struggled this year and I’m hoping she can keep that improvement going this week.

In contrast, her short game has looked in exceptional shape all season, ranking 3^rd around-the-greens, 7^th in scrambling and 14^th in putting, whilst she’s also one of the stronger par 4 scorers on tour, ranking 11^th.

Kim putts these greens at Dundonald Links well and it’s helped her amass a strong run of results at the course, finishing 23^rd on debut in 2017 and following with finishes of 2^nd and 3^rd in the last two years. As a winner of The Ascendant LPGA and possessing a runner-up finish in the Shoprite Classic, she has some taking comp form, which strengthens her case this week.

1.5 pts Patty Tavatanakit each way (1/4 - 5 places) - 33/1

Patty Tavatanakit has played well on each of her two previous visits to this course and with her current form strong, she can be among the main contenders in Scotland.

It’s been almost six months since Tavatanakit recorded the second of her back-to-back victories at the start of the year in Thailand, though she has continued to play well. She enters this week having missed just one of her previous eights cuts and has hit the top-10 twice, most recently when finishing 3^rd in the Evian Championship two starts ago.

She was 29^th last week in Paris, where she was a little off with her ball-striking. I’m hoping this is a mere blip, as she’s hit the ball well this year and when combined with her excellent short game, ranking 5^th around the greens and 29^th in scrambling, her tee-to-green game looks in a good place to handle this challenge.

Patty finished 29^th on her debut here in 2022, though improved in the tougher conditions last year, finishing 6^th. Top-10 finishes in the Women’s Open, Shoprite Classic and Mizuho Americas Open make for positive reading and means she has plenty in her favour to go well this week.

1.25 pts Narin An each way (1/4 - 5 places) - 40/1 

Narin An ticks almost every box and can finally earn that LPGA breakthrough that she has been trending towards in Scotland.

An had an up-and-down start to the season, missing three of her first eight cuts but recorded a 3^rd-place finish in the T-Mobile Match Play. However, she’s found greater consistency over her last nine events, missing zero cuts and gaining three top-6 finishes, the latest of which came when runner-up in the Portland Classic on her most recent start.

There, the Korean shone with her approach play, ranking 3^rd and her irons have indeed been an asset throughout the season, ranking 7^th in approach on the LPGA. She complements this with a sharpness around the greens, ranking 4^th in scrambling and 15^th ATG, whilst she also sits inside the top-10 in par 4 scoring. Making her an eye-catching statistical fit for Dundonald Links.

An has played here twice before, finishing 11^th in 2022 and 44^th last year. Her 6^th-place finish in this year’s Shoprite Classic bodes well for her chances and combined with her recent form, indicates that she can go even better this time around.

1 pt Jin Hee Im each way (1/4 - 5 places) - 80/1

Jin Hee Im has little experience of links golf, though with her strengths lying within her short game and iron play, she has the skillset to cope with this week’s demands.

Im’s rookie season on the LPGA has offered plenty of promise so far, missing only three cuts in 13 starts and recording six top-25 finishes, two of which were top-10s, when finishing 4^th in the LA Championship and 8^th in the Chevron Championship. She finished 25^th on her last LPGA start in the CPKC Women’s Open and comes here after a positive spin on the KLPGA (Korean LPGA) two weeks ago, finishing 10^th.

Her biggest asset this season has been her iron play, for which she ranks 25^th in approach and 27^th in GIR. She’s also shown consistency on/around the greens, ranking 18^th in scrambling, 31^st around-the-greens and 43^rd in putting.

Im is a six-time KLPGA winner, with four of those victories coming last year. She has the ability to make a name for herself at this level and with this likely difficult challenge playing into her hands, she looks a large price to perform well.

0.75 pts Ashleigh Buhai each way (1/4 - 5 places) - 110/1

Ashleigh Buhai is a former Women’s Open champion and after returning to action with an encouraging 13^th-place finish last week in the Olympics, these triple-figure odds look good value.

This year hasn’t quite had the fireworks of previous years for Buhai, but she’s still been playing perfectly solidly, missing just two cuts out of 15 and hitting the top-25 on six occasions.

The latest of these came when 13^th last week in France, a result which came after a four-week break following her withdrawal from the Evian Championship. This was due to a broken toe that she sustained at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship three weeks previous.

The South African hit the ball excellently in France, ranking 2^nd in driving accuracy and 3^rd in GIR. She combined this with a strong short-game display, ranking 6^th around-the-greens and 24^th in putting. All areas in which we’re largely accustomed to seeing her perform well in.

This statistical profile means that Buhai should enjoy this brand of golf, which she proved when taking the 2022 Women’s Open at Muirfield. In addition, she also won the Shoprite LPGA Classic last year. With this, it’s perhaps a surprise that she’s missed the cut on her last three visits to Dundonald, but we’re more than compensated for that with this hefty price and I fancy her to outplay those odds this week.

You can find all Jamie's latest Golf Betting Tips over on our dedicated golf Insights hub.