Genworth Stats Pack - Preview Report

Thomas Björn has competed in this event five times before, winning in 2011. His most recent form has dipped a little, but he enjoyed an incredible stretch of form through June and early July, which included back to back runner-up finishes and three other strong results. Looking at his Genworth Statistics since the beginning of May, the 42 year old Great Dane ranks 28th for Greens in Regulation and 5th for Putts per GIR (the combination of the two suggest some accurate approach play), which has enabled him to make lots of Birdies per Round and achieve a Stroke Average ranking of 9th for the period. The 13 time European Tour winner starts as one of the favourites.

Champion of 2007 Marc Warren arrives in good form off the back of a 12th place finish at the US PGA Championship. At that event he ranked high in most of the statistics categories, including 9th for Greens in Regulation, so confidence should be high as he competes on home soil this week. Looking at his Genworth Statistics since the beginning of May, the 32 year old Scottish golfer has played a tough schedule of events, so a strong set of numbers is all the more impressive. A good driving week may be all that is needed to produce a third European Tour title.

Defending champion Paul Lawrie is performing steadily this year with only three missed cuts, but having achieved just one top ten finish he is still waiting to fire on all cylinders. His Genworth Statistics since the middle of May are distorted due to a very tough schedule of events, so take note that his actual performances are much better than his rankings suggest. The eight time European Tour winner currently sits in 52nd position on the Race to Dubai, so a good week should solifiy his top 60 position moving towards The Final Series.

The same as Paul Lawrie, Rafa Cabrera-Bello has played a very tough schedule of events since the middle of May, which has distorted his Genworth Statistics over that period. Do not be fooled though, the 29 year old Spanish golfer is showing some excellent form of late, with a 5th place finish in Ireland, a 21st place finish at The Open Championship and a 29th place finish most recently at the US PGA Championship. With a 10th also here last year the two time European Tour winner will be hoping for a big week.

Francesco Molinari has finished inside the top 10 on four previous occasions in this event (a decent record from seven starts). Looking at his Genworth Statistics since the middle of May, the 30 year old Italian golfer ranks 10th for Driving Accuracy, 32nd for Greens in Regulation and 35th for overall Stroke Average (very impressive considering the tough schedule of events that he has played). Confidence should be high for the three time European Tour winner off the back of some good results in the recent big events. He will start as one of the favourites.

Stephen Gallacher has competed in this event on 13 previous occasions with a best of 5th back in 2003, but it should be noted that he has finished inside the top 10 the last two years. The 38 year old Scottish golfer has performed steadily since the middle of May without any big results, but his Genworth Statistics rankings are slightly distorted due to the tough schedule of events over the period. The two time European Tour winner is enjoying a lucrative year, currently ranking 19th on the Race to Dubai.

Since his return from injury in the Spring, Danny Willett has surpassed many people’s expectations, with some very solid performances including a 15th place finish at The Open Championship. Looking at his Genworth Statistics since the middle of May, the 25 year old Englishman is hitting a good number of Greens in Regulation and his short game looks sharp, all leading to consistent scoring across the different hole types and an overall Stroke Average ranking of 26th. A good driving week may put him right in the mix.

Bernd Wiesberger competes in this event for the third time this week (having finished runner-up last year) and he arrives off the back of a string of good results in June / July, although the last few weeks have not quite gone to plan. Looking at his Genworth Statistics since the middle of May, the 27 year old Austrian golfer is driving it long off the tee, hitting lots of Greens in Regulation and looking sharp on and around the greens, all leading to a ranking of 2nd for Birdies per Round and 5th for overall Stroke Average.

Up to the week of the Scottish Open, JB Hansen had only made four cuts all year, with a best of 30th in Sweden. But what a difference a few tournaments can make. With a 3rd place finish in Scotland and a 4th place finish in Russia, the 23 year old Danish golfer (who celebrated his 23rd birthday on Sunday) has jumped to 69th on the Race to Dubai, and he is now challenging to make the top 60 for The Final Series. With Genworth Statistics rankings of 17th for Greens in Regulation, 11th for Putts per GIR and 4th for Birdies per Round since the middle of May, there is every chance.

It has been an uncharacteristic year of stuggles for six time European Tour winner Simon Dyson. But through playing week on week, he seems to have worked himself into some form, with finishes of 5th / 12th / 9th from his last three events. Looking at his Genworth Statistics since the middle of May, the 35 year old Englishman is averaging 71.2% for Greens in Regulation and 70.96 for Stroke Average. The same as JB Hansen, Simon will now be pushing for The Final Series top 60.