Luke Donald to defend his title at the Scottish Open
Once again the biggest names in the world of golf are going to collide for the Scottish Open. This year the venue for this prestigious event is Castle Stuart Golf Links. The event starts from the 12th of July and as it is a 4 day event, it will
end on the 15th of July.
Last year the event had to be reduced to 54 holes due to rain and in the end Luke Donald came out victorious on the Castle Stuart. He ended the tournament with a marvelous 19-under par and was 4 strokes clear of the second position.
This year a few changes have been made to the course, to make sure that the tournament is not cut short again. Some extra bunkers have been added to toughen up the course.
This year Luke Donald will be looking to defend his title of the Scottish Open. Till now he has had 13 professional wins. Out of these 13 wins, 7 came from the European Tour. By any standards he has a pretty decent record on the European Tour.
Donald has been playing quite consistently in the past few years. Currently, he is on the number one spot in the world golf ranking.
He has been on the number one spot for 52 weeks, over 4 spells. In this year’s Scottish Open, the 34-year-old will be celebrating the completion of one year of him being on top of the table.
Being the number one golfer on the planet, there is some extra pressure on the English Professional golfer. Unfortunately for him, he has not been able to bag any major titles as yet.
The closest he has ever gone was a third spot. He has been able to end a major on the 3rd spot twice, in the 2005 Masters and in the 2006 PGA Championship.
For this reason, he is the best player never to win a major. Now he will have to deal with this pressure on the fabulous Castle Stuart.
He has admitted that this puts extra pressure on him, he said, “I’ve realised it for a while. I’ve understood that for probably a couple of years. I know it’s a difference in myself. I get a little bit more agitated, a little bit more anxious”.
“That would prove to me that it’s not just a physical problem. It’s more about getting into that moment of not trying to press too hard, not trying to force the issue. It’s just about being a little more relaxed and letting it happen,” he added.
The other top contenders for the Open are last year’s number 3rd finisher Angel Cabrera, Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington and Louis Oosthuizen.
Meanwhile, the home crowd favourites for the tournament are Paul Lawrie, Martin Laird, Colin Montgomerie and Sandy Lyle. These players have a slight edge as the crowd would be on their side.
The course is ready now for the players to fight for glory. It is going to be a magnificent event in which the players are going to give their best.
Who will win the title? Who will pick up the trophy at the Castle Stuart Golf Links? Nothing can be said right now. Only time will tell.
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