Niall Lyons previews the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and picks out four tips.
Alfred Dunhill Links ChampionshipSee All Odds
This is a difficult event to land as plenty of the field has links form, but that is undoubtedly where to concentrate. If links form in Ireland or Scotland is missing then it's perhaps worth concentrating on Qatar and Portugal where an abundance of links specialists have made it into the winner's enclosure. Look down the list of winners here and it's difficult to point out one who didn't have links pedigree. Even Victor Perez, who had recently moved to Scotland before his victory there had appeal. With the pro am format and 3 different courses there undoubtedly remains an ounce of luck to landing the winner here and we'll need the weather to fall right on each day for optimum scoring conditions for our selections.
In 2023 Matt Fitzpatrick overcame the hangover from Rome to win here. MacIntyre repeated that feat two years later. The big names have in fact dominated this event down the last decade and from 2021 through 2023 we have a trio of major winners securing victory here in the shape of Willett, Fox and Fitzpatrick. Upsets can happen and numerous big priced golfers have gone close, but ruling out the top of the market because there's a fair deal of luck involved seems like an outdated process
Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Tips
| Player | Bet | Odds | Stake | Terms | Bookmaker | Bet Here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robert MacIntyre | Win Only | 15.5 | 3pts WIN | — | Betfair Exchange | Click Here |
| Brandon Stone | Each-way | 90/1 | 1.5pts E/W | 1/5 odds, 8 places | Ladbrokes, Coral | Click Here |
| Scott Jamieson | Each-way | 200/1 | 1pt E/W | 1/5 odds, 8 places | Ladbrokes, Coral | Click Here |
| Wade Ormsby | Each-way | 600/1 | 0.5pt E/W | 1/5 odds, 10 places | Sky Bet, Paddy Power | Click Here |
Robert MacIntyre at 15.5 (WIN)
Tyrrell Hatton is a difficult one to stroke off the list but at the prices I couldn't help but feel Robert MacIntyre was the better option. Hatton's record here is ridiculous to say the least but the Scot is managing to accumulate a large amount of links form also which in my opinion should bring him much closer to Fleetwood in the betting on current form. I don't think I'd be busting to back Fleetwood in the 16/1 range give his current run and I'm bullish about MacIntyre making a run at this. 14th at the Irish Open then 10th at Wentworth is a sign that his game is in decent shape. He gained shots in all departments of the game across those two events all be it he will need to spike one or two areas if he is to win here. Bob has a win, runner up and 3rd placed finish at the Renaissance, 6th and 7th at Royal Portrush, 8th at St Georges, 5th at Royal County Down and of course a victory here last year. In a career not near the length of Hatton's, MacIntyre is slowly catching up with up with the Englishman in terms of links pedigree. He's in better form also and I believe there is a strong argument for him to be second favourite here this week. Will need an ounce of luck with the draw of course.
Brandon Stone at 90/1 (Eight Places)
It's not a week where I want to get too heavily involved so I'll finish with three outsiders, the first of whom is Brandon Stone. The South African fired in all departments last week in France and generally has been hitting the ball pretty well in the last month or so. He was interviewed on Sunday after his final round and he sounded really chipper about the near future. 13th in Denmark, 23rd in Crans and then 7th last week is a really decent return in some pretty deep fields. A former winner of the Scottish Open at Gullane as well as a top 10 and 20 here show he's more than capable on these layouts. You get the impression he's a dangerous operator this week given his performance in France and I don't often get as excited as this backing triple figure pokes. He has a lively chance given the conditions of his game so don't sleep on this price.
Scott Jamieson at 200/1 (Eight Places)
Scott Jamieson looks one of the outsiders worth chancing having won recently at the Trump course in Aberdeenshire. Conditions were quite rough there during the final round and he really held his own and played one of the most impressive final rounds I've seen in a while. He has missed 3 cuts since then finished 50th last week in France. It is worth noting that he had played much worse in the lead in to this event last year having missed 7 of his last 8 cuts then managed a top 5 finish. This time around he isn't posting anywhere near as bad numbers and having won only five starts ago on links looks a shade overpriced to go in again. He also has a couple of top 5s in Qatar posted so everything points towards him being a lively triple figure outsider.
Wade Ormsby at 600/1 (Ten Places)
I'll have a dart at 500/1 poke Wade Ormsby. Now on the wrong side of 45 the Aussie has been hopping back and forth between the Asian Tour and the LIV tour whenever he has been granted starts there. He never made much of a splash there but has hoovered up a handful of Asian Tour events down the years. He went close indeed last week in Taiwan finishing runner up, a couple of shots ahead of the likes of Jazz Janewattananond and Gavin Green. Glancing at his links form is not so shabby with two top 20s at the renaissance as well as top 20s in Doha, Lahinch and Portstewart. Clearly playing decent golf last week it seems a no brainer to chance him on a week where numerous longshots will get into the mix.
