2023 Genesis Scottish Open
The Renaissance Club
Hello, DFS Army! It’s your golf expert Josh Thomas, aka DFSUpNorth, back with another comprehensive course preview. This time, we’re hopping across the pond to the historic land of Scotland for the 2023 Genesis Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club. We’ll dive into the key strokes gained statistics, examine the influences on course design, and explore the rich history of this remarkable course.
The Scottish Open is traditionally held the week before The Open Championship, making it a popular event for many top international players looking to acclimate to UK conditions and fine-tune their links-style play before the year’s third major.
Co-sanctioned events such as the Scottish Open are significant because they offer world ranking points, PGA Tour FedEx Cup points, and European Tour Race to Dubai points. They also typically feature a stronger and more diverse field, making them particularly interesting from a DFS perspective and traditionally can provide a bit of an edge if we dig into the DP world tour players that are teeing it up against the best of the best from the PGA Tour.
The Course:
The Renaissance Club, situated in East Lothian, Scotland, is a relatively young course in a land steeped in ancient golf history. Opened in 2008, it was designed by renowned architect Tom Doak, who is known for crafting courses that blend seamlessly with their natural surroundings. The course plays as a par-71, stretching out to about 7,300 yards.
The Scottish Open arrived at The Renaissance Club in 2019. Over the years, it has been known for its testing weather conditions and has required players to display the full range of their shot-making abilities.
The Renaissance Club is a product of Tom Doak’s architectural genius. His minimalist design philosophy emphasizes the natural features of the land, and that’s evident at The Renaissance Club, which beautifully incorporates the surrounding gorse and fescue grasses, deep bunkers, and existing dunes.
Doak has designed several other top-rated courses worldwide, including Pacific Dunes in Oregon, Barnbougle Dunes in Tasmania, and Cape Kidnappers in New Zealand. Like these courses, The Renaissance Club is known for its large, undulating greens and strategic bunkering, requiring both thoughtful strategy and skilled execution.
Strokes Gained: Key Statistics
Navigating The Renaissance Club successfully hinges on a few crucial areas:
- Strokes Gained: Approach (SG:APP) – With its deep bunkers and complex green structures, precise iron play is critical.
- Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee (SG:OTT) – Due to the length of the course and the frequent coastal winds, players who can control their drives gain an edge.
- Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green (SG:ARG) – Scotland’s traditional links-style courses, like The Renaissance Club, often require creative short game due to the undulating terrain and unpredictable weather.
Since The Renaissance Club only began hosting the Scottish Open in 2019, we have a relatively small sample of tournament data. Nevertheless, the winners thus far have demonstrated strong approach play and a deft touch around the greens.
For example, in 2020, Aaron Rai captured his first European Tour victory here, demonstrating excellent ball striking and approach play throughout the week. Similarly, Bernd Wiesberger won the inaugural event at The Renaissance Club in 2019, showing superb control in challenging weather conditions.
Key Holes to Watch
- The 10th hole is a long par-5 that presents a risk-reward opportunity for the longer hitters. However, with water in play, it can easily lead to big numbers for the overly aggressive.
- The 15th hole, known as “Hoylake,” is a short, drivable par-4. Despite its length, it is heavily bunkered and requires precision off the tee.
- The 18th hole is a solid par-5 finishing hole. With water down the left and strategic bunkering, it requires three well-executed shots for a chance at birdie.
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Tournament Set-up:
The Renaissance Club
Par: 35-35—70
Yardage: 7,237
Architect (year): Tom Doak (2008)
72-HOLE RECORD: 262, Bernd Wiesberger (2019)
18-HOLE RECORD: 61, Bernd Wiesberger (Round 2, 2019)
The conditions here can vary WIDELY year to year. Xander Schauffele won this event last year with a total score of -7. Note that we don’t have lots of data being that this is an event held overseas without the normal access to course info.
Links to DFS Army Tools
- PGA Research Station – Every single stat you could want for this week’s event!
- PGA Cheatsheets – Notes on all the viable players in the field
- PGA Domination Station – One-click Optimized Lineups in Seconds
Golfers coming in 🔥🔥🔥
Rickie Fowler: 52.78 SGT
Scottie Scheffler: 48.38 SGT
Rory McIlroy: 46.02 SGT
Viktor Hovland: 30.38 SGT
Aaron Rai: 29.53 SGT
NOTE: Does not account for SG this past week, but it won’t change anything above.
Golfers with 🔥🔥🔥 Genesis Scottish Open History
Kurt Kityama: 11.61 SGT
Tom Kim: 10.6 SGT
Matt Fitzpatrick: 8.61 SGT
Brandon Wu: 8.61 SGT
Rasmus Hojgaard: 7.61 SGT
Alex Smalley: 7.61 SGT
NOTE: This only includes last years results
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Weather:
The weather in Scotland is known for its unpredictability, which can dramatically impact play. Keeping an eye on the forecast and understanding how changing conditions can affect the course and players’ performance is crucial when setting your DFS lineups.
Final Thoughts:
As we wrap up our detailed preview of the 2023 Genesis Scottish Open, I hope these insights into The Renaissance Clubs course layout, historical data points, and key strokes gained statistics have been helpful. Remember, golf is a game of skill, strategy, and sometimes a little bit of luck. While we can’t predict the future, we can use the wealth of data at our disposal to make informed decisions.
Thank you for joining me in this deep dive into the 2023 Genesis Scottish Open, here’s to a successful week of DFS! I will break it all down for our VIPs with my weekly PGA Cheatsheets! This is DFSUpNorth, Josh Thomas, signing off. Best of luck to everyone in their DFS contests this week. Let’s get those green screens!
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