Adam Scott, the former Masters champion, has given this July’s Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open at Dundonald Links an early lift by confirming that he will play in the domestic showpiece for the first time since 2009.
The 36-year-old Australian, who is competing in this week’s WGC Mexico Championship, has added the Scottish Open to his schedule as he changes his usual preparation for the Open Championship, which is staged the following week.
Since last competing in the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond eight years ago, Scott has preferred to use the week of the event to practice at the actual venue of the Open itself. This season, he will hone his links game in the cut-and-thrust of competition at Ayrshire before travelling down to Royal Birkdale.
“I haven’t played a Scottish Open for a long while and I am looking forward to heading back to Dundonald, as I went there about 10 years and just played the course for fun," said Scott. “The last few years I have spent the entire week playing the Open venue just getting myself acclimatised and getting used to playing links shots. But then this year, and with a second baby due in August, my schedule is a little different so the thought of going over to play a few practice rounds at Birkdale and then playing the Scottish Open ahead of the Open sounds good to me.”
Meanwhile, Rickie Fowler, who the Scottish Open at Gullane in 2015, has returned to the world’s top-10 following his win in the Honda Classic on Sunday. The 28-year-old American carded a one-over-par 71 to finish four shots clear of the chasing pack on 12-under and claim a fourth PGA Tour title and his first in 18 months. Fowler moved up for 14th into ninth on the updated global pecking order.
Elsewhere, the R&A and the USGA are preparing to unveil the “biggest change for our generation” in the rules of golf tomorrow.
Among some of the changes set to be announced in an effort to “simplify the code by which the game is played” are reducing the lost ball search time from five to three minutes, allowing spike mark repairs on the greens and allowing dropping from any height.
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