Stats and best bets for this week's Euro Tour event - the Johnnie Walker Championship.
Stats and best bets for this week's Euro Tour event - the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles
The European Tour returns to the UK and one of the most picturesque locations in world golf.
Gleneagles, situated 16 miles south-west of Perth, has been a regular venue for top level professional golf for over four decades.
Originally, it was the Kings Course that hosted tournaments such as the Double Diamond International and Scottish Open during the 1970s, 80s and 90s.
Nowadays, however, all the action happens on the Centenary Course, which first hosted this event in 1999.
Designed by Jack Nicklaus and opened 20 years ago, the Centenary will stage next year's Ryder Cup.
Laid out in the lowlands of Perthshire, the Centenary Course is undulating and a good all-round test of golf.
SELECTED PLAYERS with GOOD to REASONABLE FORM at GLENEAGLES
Last Eight Years
Player: '05 / '06 / '07 / '08 / '09 / '10 / '11 / '12
Fredrik Andersson: MC / - / 5 / MC / MC / - / - / 3
Thomas Bjorn: - / 4 / - / - / MC / MC / Won / 10
Richard Bland: 8 / 52 / 64 / - / 19 / 45 / 38 / MC
Gregory Bourdy: 17 / MC / 56 / 32 / 6 / 10 / - / 15
Gary Boyd: - / - / - / - / - / 14 / 11 / 19
Christopher Doak: 33 / MC / MC / - / 19 / - / 22 / 26
Simon Dyson: 73 / 11 / - / 18 / 56 / 6 / 15 / MC
Ross Fisher: - / 28 / MC / 10 / - / 14 / MC / 32
Alastair Forsyth: 54 / 6 / 18 / MC / MC / MC / 44 / -
Mark Foster: 33 / MC / 21 / 10 / MC / 35 / 2 / 26
Stephen Gallacher: Ret / MC / 33 / 10 / - / 14 / 6 / 6
Ignacio Garrido: 84 / MC / 43 / 19 / MC / 35 / 8 / MC
Ricardo Gonzalez: - / - / 7 / 32 / 16 / 48 / Dq / 26
Anders Hansen: 46 / - / - / - / - / 35 / 31 / 15
Soren Hansen: - / 2 / 3 / 10 / 10 / 19 / MC / -
Gregory Havret: 54 / - / MC / Won / 3 / MC / MC / MC
Peter Hedblom: - / - / - / MC / Won / 26 / - / MC
David Howell: - / - / - / 3 / MC / Dq / MC / 32
Raphael Jacquelin: 8 / - / - / MC / 10 / MC / 31 / MC
Pablo Larrazabal: - / - / - / MC / 37 / MC / 2 / 32
Paul Lawrie: 26 / Dq / 38 / MC / 3 / 51 / 59 / Won
Damien McGrane: 17 / 63 / MC / MC / 14 / 7 / 31 / 51
Francesco Molinari: 6 / MC / 9 / 19 / - / 3 / 44 / 6
James Morrison: - / - / - / - / - / 65 / 21 / 19
Gary Orr: 8 / 19 / - / 29 / 5 / - / 26 / 54
John Parry: - / - / - / - / - / 26 / 22 / -
Robert Rock: MC / 11 / MC / 29 / - / 19 / MC / MC
Brett Rumford: Wd / 7 / 33 / - / MC / 2 / MC / 2
Graeme Storm: 54 / 32 / 5 / 2 / 14 / 59 / MC / MC
Paul Waring: - / - / - / 19 / - / 26 / - / 10
Marc Warren: MC / 19 / Won / MC / MC / 56 / 11 / MC
Bernd Wiesberger: - / - / - / - / 41 / - / 2 / -
SELECTED PLAYERS with POOR to MEDIOCRE FORM at GLENEAGLES
Last Eight Years
(No Top-35 Finishes from three or more starts since 2005)
Player: '05 / '06 / '07 / '08 / '09 / '10 / '11 / '12
Marcus Both: - / - / - / - / - / MC / MC / MC
Alejandro Canizares: - / - / - / MC / MC / - / 38 / MC
SSP Chowrasia: - / - / - / - / MC / MC / - / MC
David Drysdale: 62 / 47 / Ret / MC / MC / - / MC / MC
Niclas Fasth: - / - / - / - / MC / - / MC / MC
Darren Fichardt: 62 / MC / 50 / MC / - / - / - / MC
Jean-Baptiste Gonnet: - / - / MC / MC / 45 / MC / MC / MC
Scott Henderson: MC / MC / MC / - / - / - / MC / MC
Michael Hoey: - / MC / - / - / - / - / 52 / MC
Greig Hutcheon: - / - / 60 / MC / MC / - / MC / MC
Chris Kelly: MC / MC / MC / - / MC / - / - / -
Simon Khan: MC / - / MC / MC / 45 / - / MC / -
Shane Lowry: - / - / - / - / MC / MC / MC / -
Mikael Lundberg: - / - / - / MC / Dq / MC / MC / MC
Callum Macaulay: - / - / - / - / MC / MC / MC / -
Paul McKechnie: - / - / - / 44 / MC / - / 64 / MC
George Murray: MC / - / - / - / - / MC / MC / MC
David Orr: - / - / - / MC / MC / MC / - / -
David Patrick: - / MC / - / - / - / - / MC / MC
Phillip Price: - / Wd / 43 / MC / MC / 42 / MC / MC
Jeev Milkha Singh: - / - / 53 / - / - / 42 / MC / -
Lee Slattery: MC / 56 / MC / 38 / MC / - / MC / -
Miles Tunnicliff: 37 / 60 / 38 / MC / MC / 66 / 59 / MC
TOP-25 Finishers at GLENEAGLES in 2012 (Not Already Listed Above)
Maarten Lafeber: (T-3rd)
Romain Wattel: (T-3rd)
Richie Ramsay: (T-6th)
Rafael Cabrera-Bello: (T-10th)
Peter Whiteford: (T-10th)
Craig Lee: (14th)
Thorbjorn Olesen: (T-15th)
Jorge Campillo: (T-19th)
Richard Finch: (T-19th)
LOWEST 15 STROKE AVERAGES at GLENEAGLES
(Last Four Years - 2009/12)
Average (Rounds)
70.08: Stephen Gallacher (12)
70.42: Gregory Bourdy (12)
70.58: Francesco Molinari (12)
70.63: Romain Wattel (8)
70.67: Gary Boyd (12)
70.75: Paul Waring (8)
70.75: Bernd Wiesberger (8)
70.83: Brett Rumford (12)
70.88: Paul Lawrie (16)
71.00: Christopher Doak (12)
71.07: Mark Foster (14)
71.13: Joel Sjoholm (8)
71.14: Pablo Larrazabal (14)
71.25: Anders Hansen (12)
71.25: Gary Orr (12)
Min. No. of Rounds = 8
LOWEST ROUNDS over the CENTENARY COURSE at GLENEAGLES
62: Martin Erlandsson (2009)
63: Pierre Fulke (2000)
63: Adam Scott (2002)
63: Romain Wattel (2012)
64: Six times
Gleneagles (Centenary Course): Par 72; 7,060 yards
Winning Totals (Last Three Years):
2012: 272 (Paul Lawrie)
2011: 277 (Thomas Bjorn)
2010: 278 (Edoardo Molinari)
Conclusion
It's a shame some of the likely members of Europe's 2014 Ryder Cup haven't made the trip to Scotland although the clash in dates with the opening FedEx Cup event was always going to keep them away.
However, it could be a golden chance for some of those on the fringes to impress Paul McGinley.
One of those could be local man Marc Warren.
A Scot playing in a Ryder Cup on Scottish soil would be a dream scenario in lots of ways and given the way Warren played in the recent US PGA it's not out of the question - if not by direct qualification but possibly as a wildcard pick.
Warren closed the US PGA with three rounds in the 60s and that elevated him to an excellent 12th place - 28 places higher than Tiger Woods by the way.
True, he hasn't won since 2007 but the last victory come at this very venue and it's a course on which he says he's very comfortable.
And despite the lack of a recent win he's put himself in position numerous times and it was only a few months ago that he made a play-off in elite company at Wentworth.
At his best the former Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year is a class act so take him at 28/1.
England's John Parry felt he should have won on his last trip north of the border when he finished fifth in the Scottish Open at Castle Stuart.
Before that he'd played well in two events in June, finishing a very decent tied 28th in the US Open before scoring a top 10 in the BMW International Open in Germany.
Parry has finished fifth and fourth (Challenge Tour) on his last two starts in Scotland while he was also third in the 2010 Alfred Dunhill Links. In two starts in this event he's finished tied 22nd (2011) and tied 26th (2010) so all in all he looks a value bet at 66/1 to secure his second European Tour victory.
Three-time European Tour winner Gregory Bourdy is a real fan of this track and has finished 15th, 10th and 6th in his last three visits. Scroll up to the best average scores over the last four years and you'll see his name second in the rankings with 70.42.
The Frenchman hasn't missed a cut since March and played well in The Open at Muirfield (he shot the fifth best round on Friday) before fading on the final day.
If his putter can just get a little warmer (he topped the putting stats on these greens in 2009 which bodes well) then he can get right in the mix at 50/1.
At the front end of the market, Francesco Molinari has some smart course form but 12/1 is very short while defending champion Paul Lawrie (25/1) has managed just one top 10 all season and that was back in January.
Spain's Rafa Cabrera-Bello (top 30 in both of the last two majors and 10th here last year) has some decent credentials but the final vote goes to Simon Dyson.
The Yorkshireman has come back to form with finishes of 9th, 12th and 5th in his last three starts and he has four top 20s here in his last six visits.
Also a winner of the Alfred Dunhill Links in Scotland in 2009, he's worth a punt at 28/1.
Best bets
1.5pts e.w. Marc Warren at 28/1 (1/4 1,2,3,4,5)
1pt e.w. John Parry at 66/1 (1/4 1,2,3,4,5)
1pt e.w. Gregory Bourdy at 50/1 (1/4 1,2,3,4,5)
1.5pts e.w. Simon Dyson at 28/1 (1/4 1,2,3,4,5)
