Up next on the big-stage golf circuit is the Genesis Scottish Open at the Renaissance Club (par 70, 7,237 yards, fescue greens) in North Berwick, Scotland. It features a field of 156 golfers, with half being PGA TOUR players and the other half being DP World TOUR players. After the first two rounds, there will be a top-65-and-ties cut line.
Below, I have featured some head-to-head tournament matchup bets to consider for the Genesis Scottish Open.
Top Genesis Scottish Open Matchup Picks
Adam Scott over Sepp Straka (-110)
While Straka has had a much better season than Scott, the latter is the clear choice over the former this week. First off, Straka has struggled at the Renaissance Club, missing the cut in both his attempts at this links course. Scott on the other hand missed the cut in his first start at the Renaissance Club two years ago, but then, the Aussie nearly won at the par 70 last season, finishing runner-up to Robert MacIntyre by one stroke. Scott has shot under par in five of his six rounds at the Renaissance Club—including a six-under 64 during the third round last year—while Straka has only shot under par once in his four rounds at the Scotland venue.
Scott’s game is simply better built for links golf than Straka and Scott also has an advantage in current from over Straka. Both these players last competed at the Travelers Championship and at TPC River Highlands, Scott T30th, while Straka finished T45th.
Both these player’s second-to-last start came at the U.S. Open and once again, Scott outperformed Straka. Scott handled the the challenging conditions at Oakmont CC well and finished T12th, whereas Straka finished +11 and missed the cut by four shots. All signs point to Scott finishing higher than Straka this week and Scott needs to be backed to win this matchup.
Ryan Fox over Daniel Berger (-115)
As a former DP World TOUR regular, Fox has plenty of experience at the Renaissance Club. The professional out New Zealand has competed at every Genesis Scottish Open at the Renaissance Club and he has advanced to the weekend in four of these six starts, including a T12 two years ago. Berger, however, has never competed at the Renaissance Club before.
Fox’s game is also in much better shape than Berger’s. Both these players last two starts came at the U.S. Open and Travelers Championship, and Fox thrived at these events, finishing inside the top 20 in each start, while Berger finished outside the top-40 at both tournaments. Fox has notably won twice in his last six starts, while Berger has only recorded one top-15 finish in his past six starts. When we compare this field’s last 24 rounds, Fox ranks second only to Scottie Scheffler in total strokes gained, while Berger ranks 49th.
Lastly, Fox’s +6000 odds to win the Genesis Scottish Open on DraftKings Sportsbook are much better than Berger at +8000. Considering this dramatic difference in outright odds, Fox should be much more favorited than -115 to win this matchup over Berger. I’d call Fox a must-bet at this price.
