[joepa66]

THE BARCLAYS SCOTTISH OPEN


RICHARD STERNE 50 / 1 - Sterne is currently ranked 7th on the Order of Merit, has 11 events under his belt and in his last 6 starts has 4 Top 5 finishes, and has 9 Top 25s! I'd venture to say he's on the cusp of winning. His scoring average is 70.02, his GIR is 67.24% and he's an amazing 78.57% in sand saves which equates to knowing how to get out of trouble and low scores. The season he's won the Celtic Manor Wales Open, T3rd in the BMW PGA Championship, and at one point had of his Top 5 finishes in a row by finishing T2nd in the Johnnie Walker Classic, 5th in the Volvo China Classic, and T5th in the BMW Asia Open. I had him picked to win the Smurfit Kappa last week but he withdrew before the tournament....after a week off, this week will do him some good for the The Open Championship next week.


ERNIE ELS 10 / 1 - Ranked #5 in the World of Golf Rankings! He's had great success at Loch Lomond since 2000.....has won the event in 2000 & 2003, and finished T9th in 2006 at -9 (-13 won), 11th in 2005 at -13 (-19 won), T3rd in 2004 at -13 (-15 won), and his worst finish was sandwiched in between his two wins when he finished T50th at -1 (winner was -11) in 2002. In his last 24 rounds at Loch Lomond he is 64 UNDER PAR, with a scoring average of 68.33.....has 22 rounds under par with 19 of those in the 60s. On the European Tour this year his has hit an amazing 76% of GIR and has a putting average of 1.75. His PGA stats are just as impressive making the cut 9 times in 10 starts, has 1 - 2nd and 1 - 3rd place finish, 5 Top 25s, and a 69.61 scoring average. His always takes his family to Glasgow for vacation which more than likely keeps him relaxed and a sweet swinging Ernie is a good place to store some cash.


PAUL BROADHURST 100 / 1 - Always like a long shot and Broadhurst is one of those who has been on the outs but finished strong last week at the Smurfit Kappa......he finished T25th at -4 but his last three rounds were under par and in the 60s.....maybe he's putting on the charge for The Open. His best finish of the year was a T8th with a card of -10 at the Celtic Manor Wales Open. A win here could make him forget that 71.67 scoring average and give him a real boost in the Order of Merit. It's always nice to be near home....