Monday, July 13, 2026
GolfStats Insider Daily Briefing
Two fresh champions crowned Sunday, and Open week finally lands at Royal Birkdale. Here is what actually moves your card.
Top 3 Stories
1. Tom Kim ends a three-year drought at the Scottish Open, and the timing could not be better
Tom Kim played bogey-free down the stretch at The Renaissance Club and closed with a 6-under 64 to win the Genesis Scottish Open at 17-under 263, two clear of Min Woo Lee. It is his first PGA Tour title since the fall of 2023, snapping nearly three winless years for a player who spent this season outside the world top 100. "I got to taste a lot of that humble pie," Kim said, calling his approach into the 72nd "one of the best shots I've hit in my career." The win also books his ticket into this week's Open. Source: Golf News Net, Golf Channel.
2. Haeran Ryu wins the Evian in a playoff to make it back-to-back majors
Haeran Ryu closed out the Amundi Evian Championship with a birdie on the first playoff hole to beat Brooke Henderson after both finished regulation at 19-under 265. It is Ryu's second consecutive major in three weeks, following her KPMG Women's PGA title, and it came a day after she fired a third-round 60, the lowest score in major championship history. Akie Iwai stalled with closing pars to finish at 18-under, one out of the playoff. Source: Golf Channel.
3. The year's final major arrives: The Open at Royal Birkdale
The 154th Open runs Thursday through Sunday at Royal Birkdale in Southport, a 7,223-yard par 70 that plays as the flattest and least tricked-up track on the rota. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler opens as the +590 favorite ahead of Rory McIlroy at +760, with the field completing a Last Chance Qualifier at Birkdale today for the final spot. The remodel since 2017 added a new par-3 15th and a rebuilt short par-4 5th, but the demand is unchanged: hit fairways, control your irons in the wind, and stay patient. Source: PGA Tour, DraftKings.
Player Movement & Status
- Tom Kim is into the Open field off his Scottish Open win, arriving at Birkdale with a trophy and his best form in three years. Source: Golf Channel.
- Min Woo Lee was runner-up at the Scottish Open, two back at 15-under, and heads into the Open trending up after a tidy closing 67. Source: Golf News Net.
- Steven Fisk won the ISCO Championship in a playoff over Taylor Pendrith, both at 16-under, for his second PGA Tour title after a cup-change finish on the third extra hole. Source: Golf News Net.
- Marcus Helligkilde withdrew from today's Open Last Chance Qualifier, with amateur Frazer Jones taking his place in the 12-man field chasing the final Birkdale spot. Source: Golfmagic.
This Week's Tournament Read
The 154th Open Championship, Royal Birkdale, Southport, England. A 7,223-yard par 70 with low fairways threading through 20-to-40-foot dunes; it is the truest ball-striking test on the rota, favoring controlled tee shots (often a fairway metal or long iron) over bombing. The forecast is warm and dry early in the week with gusty east winds, then cooler with rain threatening by the weekend, so wind management and dry, fast-running turf will define scoring. Source: PGA Tour, The Open.
Trending up:
- Tom Kim: just won on links turf and is striping it under pressure.
- Matt Fitzpatrick: T3 at the Scottish, three wins in 2026, and a home-soil accuracy profile that fits Birkdale.
- Robert MacIntyre: also T3 in Scotland, a Scot who thrives when the wind blows.
Trending down:
- Bryson DeChambeau: a positional accuracy links neutralizes his biggest edge, distance, and his Open record has been streaky (house analysis).
- Wyndham Clark: form has cooled and links accuracy has never been his comfort zone (house analysis).
Golf Betting Odds, Tournament Watch
The Open Championship, pre-tournament (Round 1 Thursday). Outright "to win" favorites, top 10 by shortest price:
- Scottie Scheffler: +590
- Rory McIlroy: +760
- Jon Rahm: +1550
- Matt Fitzpatrick: +2100
- Tommy Fleetwood: +2100
- Xander Schauffele: +2200
- Chris Gotterup: +2800
- Cameron Young: +2800
- Ludvig Aberg: +3100
- Collin Morikawa: +3100
Movement: This is the first Birkdale board of the week. Scheffler holds clear favoritism at +590 despite missing the cut at the Scottish Open, while Tom Kim has shortened to roughly +6400 on the back of Sunday's win. No major sharp swings yet with the field still arriving.
Odds via DraftKings (current as of July 12, 2026; VegasInsider board unavailable at run time; prices vary by book).
These odds are a snapshot and will differ from the price you actually get at bet placement.
Key Stats
- Driving Accuracy (fairways hit): narrow, fescue-lined corridors and strategic bunkering neutralize distance and put a premium on finding the short grass off the tee.
- SG: Approach, long and mid irons: Birkdale is an exacting approach test where controlling trajectory and spin into gusty east winds separates the field.
- Bogey Avoidance: penal rough and pot bunkers turn one loose swing into a dropped shot, so the patient grinders who limit mistakes over 72 holes usually survive.
- SG: Around the Green: when you do miss on a firm links, creative recovery from fescue and greenside bunkers is the difference between par saves and doubles.
Comp Courses
- The Renaissance Club (Genesis Scottish Open): the most direct read, a links tune-up played this past week; Tom Kim won, with Fitzpatrick and MacIntyre sharing third, so last week's form is a live signal for Birkdale.
- Recent Open rota links (Royal Troon, Royal Liverpool): the same accuracy-and-ball-striking demands in the wind reward the proven links horses who keep showing up on major leaderboards.
- Harbour Town (RBC Heritage): a positional, accuracy-over-distance track where shot-shapers thrive; players who cash there tend to fit courses that ask for control rather than speed.
Under the Radar
The favorite is beatable at a short price. Scottie Scheffler is the +590 chalk and the defending champion, but he just missed the cut at the Scottish Open, his first missed cut since August 2022 and the end of a 78-event streak that was 51 tournaments longer than anyone else's. His iron play wobbled the week before a course that punishes stray approaches. At that number you are getting no discount for a rare form question, so the sharper plays may be the derivatives: top-5 or top-10 without Scheffler, and head-to-head matchups against him. Source: PGA Tour.
A ball-striker hiding in plain sight. Collin Morikawa sits at +3100, longer than his profile deserves on a course that is all about controlled iron play and fairways hit. He is a former Open champion whose flighted ball flight is tailor-made for firm, windy links, and at that price he is a strong outright and top-10 anchor if you want a proven major winner outside the single-digit favorites (house analysis). Source: DraftKings.
Monday is where a champion's week quietly begins, so set your reads early and let the year's final major come to you.
GolfStats Insider Daily Briefing | GolfStats.com
