The Scottish Open is the next event up on the PGA Tour and it’s time to look closely at the field. Betting favourites at bet365 have emerged as we move closer to the beginning of the tournament, creating interesting wagering scenarios featuring not only the favourites, but underdogs and dark horses as well.
This year’s event will be played at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick, Scotland. Each of the first three Genesis Scottish Opens at The Renaissance Club required a playoff, and it almost happened again in 2022, with Xander Schauffele defeating Kurt Kitayama by just one stroke.
Scottish Open to be won in a playoff
Scoring at the Genesis Scottish Open has been wildly unpredictable in the past with winning scores ranging from 22-under par to seven-under par. If the coastal winds pick up, this course can be extremely challenging. But if the winds are calm, players will be able to attack and shoot low scores.
Read on to find out more about the Scottish Open. You will have a better idea of who to tail, who to fade, and a couple of names that could wind up making noise when all is said and done. Let’s get into the nitty-gritty of the Scottish Open as the golf world prepares for the upcoming British Open later this month.
Noteworthy Canadians in the field
The Canadian contingent is a bit smaller than it has been in recent events. Names like Adam Hadwin, Adam Svensson, Taylor Pendrith, and Mike Weir will not be playing at the Scottish Open. Instead, the hopes of Canada hinge on three names: Corey Conners, Nick Taylor, and Mackenzie Hughes.
Corey Conners (+5500): When talking about the best Canadians on the Tour, it begins and ends with Conners. He has had a fantastic 2023 season so far, with a win and five top-20 finishes over his last 10 outings. Though Conners has missed the cut in big spots like the Masters and U.S. Open, he has thrived in the secondary events. He has a win as well, taking home the Texas Open back at the end of May. Conners is coming off a nice ninth-place finish at the Travelers Championship just a few weeks ago.
Nick Taylor (+16000): Taylor is interesting in that he has been almost the epitome of boom or bust. Without a doubt, his biggest moment of the season came with a win at the RBC Canadian Open back at the beginning of June. He also has a pair of top-15 finishes to brag about. That said, he has missed the cut in six of his last 10 outings. Digging even deeper, five of those missed cuts have come in his last six events with the only exception being his RBC Canadian Open win. If he can put together his best game, Taylor is a threat. But for much of the season, that is not something he has been able to do.
Mackenzie Hughes (+25000): Hughes is undoubtedly the biggest underdog of the three Canadians in the field. He has failed to make the cut in seven of 10 events this year, including four of the last five. When he did make the cut, he has been all over the place. He finished 29th at the Masters, 49th at the U.S. Open, and an impressive 14th at the Byron Nelson back in May. Making the cut will be the goal for Hughes here.
Corey Conners to finish 47th or better
Outright odds
| Player | Odds |
| Scottie Scheffler | +700 |
| Rory McIlroy | +900 |
| Xander Schauffele | +1400 |
| Patrick Cantlay | +1400 |
| Rickie Fowler | +1600 |
| Viktor Hovland | +1800 |
| Tyrrell Hatton | +1800 |
| Tommy Fleetwood | +2000 |
| Jordan Spieth | +2200 |
| Matt Fitzpatrick | +2200 |
| Shane Lowry | +3000 |
| Min Woo Lee | +3300 |
| Max Homa | +3500 |
| Justin Thomas | +4000 |
| Justin Rose | +4000 |
All odds courtesy of 
Three players to back
There are a few names that stand a cut above the rest. Some names are clear favourites in the Scottish Open for a reason, so let’s take a look at who you should be tailing when it comes time to make a bet.
Scottie Scheffler (+700): Scheffler is the favourite for the Scottish Open and for good reason as he has been as good as can be in 2023. He continues to lead the Tour in several ball-striking categories like strokes gained on approach, off the tee, tee to green, and total strokes gained. He’s clearly the best golfer in the world at the moment. Though he missed the cut in his first appearance in the Scottish Open in 2022, this is a different golfer. Aside from a missed cut at WGC-Match Play, Scheffler has been a beast. He has finished in the top five in six straight events and won the PLAYERS Championship back in March. It is just a matter of time before he wins again.
Rory McIlroy (+900): McIlroy is just behind Scheffler in odds and has been playing some of his best golf lately. He has five straight finishes in the top nine, including a runner-up finish at the U.S. Open. McIlroy is no stranger to winning on Tour with 23 career wins. With two average performances at The Renaissance Club in the past, Rory will be looking to rebound in a big way. Look for him to be in the mix on the final day of the event.
Rickie Fowler (+1800): Fowler has been playing his best golf in recent tournaments, coming off an exciting playoff win at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. In his last 11 starts, he has finished in the top 17 in all but one of those tournaments. Fowler is a former Scottish Open champion, having won the event back in 2015. Of course, the event was then held at the Gullane Golf Club rather than The Renaissance Club. No matter where it’s played, Fowler has become a top name on the Tour that bears watching. He’s also been temporarily boosted to +1800 odds from +1600 to win the tournament at bet365.
Bet Boost: Rickie Fowler to win the Scottish Open
Three players to fade
Just like there are emerging favourites heading into the event, there are players that you’ll want to stay away from if you can help it. Some of them are fairly obvious, some not, but you can wind up saving yourself from disappointment with these three players, in particular.
Max Homa (+3500): Homa is one of the more confusing players on Tour. He has slowly but surely brought himself up the rankings in recent years and seemed poised to have a truly breakout year in 2023. If anything, it has been a major regression and proof that consistency on the Tour is difficult to achieve. Homa has done well at times. He finished eighth at the Wells Fargo and ninth at the Schwab Challenge. He has also missed the cut entirely in five of his last 10 events, including the RBC Heritage, U.S. Open, and Travelers Championship. He’s also got two finishes of 43rd or worse. Until he can consistently figure things out, stay far away.
Xander Schauffele (+1400): Schauffele seems like one of the obvious players to back in the 2023 Scottish Open given that he won the event just a year ago. He’s also been quite consistent so far this season, finishing in the top 25 in a very solid 14 of 17 PGA Tour starts this season. Solid as that may be, he hasn’t won yet this year. Not only that, his last four starts haven’t exactly gone well. His best finish has been T-18 and a lot of his recent struggles have to do with accuracy off the tee. He’s 100th in driving accuracy percentage and 128th in proximity on approach shots. He’s obviously been there and done that, but it would be a tall task to expect him to repeat as Scottish Open Champion.
Viktor Hovland (+1800): This one might seem confusing when you look at his track record in 2023. Hovland has been at his best in the biggest tournaments this season, finishing in the top 20 in all three of the majors so far this year. That said, he has yet to make a serious push to win aside from a victory at the Memorial Tournament. He’s a very sound, solid player but doesn’t seem like he’s quite there yet when it comes to being a persistent threat to win.
Three dark horses to consider
Identifying dark horses is a tough proposition. These are the names that have played well but don’t necessarily seem like good bets to win. Here are three names that you should definitely be considering.
Tyrrell Hatton (+1800): Hatton has been playing arguably his best golf this season. He has five top-five finishes to back that up and has consistently found himself among the leaders when the final day of tournaments roll around. He’s also a solid ball striker, ranking ninth in strokes gained tee to green on Tour this year.
Tommy Fleetwood (+2000): The Englishman continues to be a name to watch. Despite coming up short of getting a win, he has put himself in contention for much of the season. He’s had a great 18 months, with four top-five finishes to his name. At +2400, he could be a great value play here at the Scottish Open.
Wyndham Clark (+4000): Despite winning the U.S. Open and Wells Fargo, Clark is an underdog coming into the Scottish Open. He has a pair of top-six finishes outside of those wins and has placed between 12th and 29th in every other event, save the PGA Championship (where he missed the cut). Clark is the epitome of a dark horse except he might have a very real chance to win.
