The best on the LPGA Tour will make their way to the Kingsbarns Golf Links in Fife, Scotland for the Ricoh Women’s British Open this week. It will mark the LPGA’s second week in a row in Scotland but the stakes will be even higher for the fourth of the five major championship events on the schedule. Ariya Jutanugarn returns as the defending champion after she won her first major title here a year ago when she finished three strokes better than Mo Martin and Mirim Lee.
Details
Event: Ricoh Women’s British Open
Category: LPGA
Date: August 3-6
Location: Kingsbarns Golf Links, Kingsbarns, Fife, Scotland
Jutanugarn has been a shadow of her former self this season including a brutal stretch heading in to the Ricoh Women’s British Open. The former world No. 1 hasn’t placed higher than 44th in any of her previous four starts including missed cuts at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the U.S. Women’s Open. It should be no surprise that she isn’t among the sports betting favorites to win outright this week as she attempts to successfully defend her title.
Past Five Winners
2016: Ariya Jutanugarn -16
2015: Inbee Park -12
2014: Mo Martin -1
2013: Stacy Lewis -8
2012: Jiyai Shin -9
What To Know About The Course
Six former winners are set to join the defending champion Jutanugarn at this major tournament but that doesn’t mean much in terms of experience here as the Ricoh Women’s British Open takes place at the Kingsbarn this season. Jutanugarn recorded her victory last year at the Woburn Golf and Country Club in Buckinghamshire, England so that won’t mean much this week in Scotland. Scrambling and putting statistics will be extremely important this week. The golfers that make the most of their opportunities on the greens should have an excellent shot to win.
The Field
It’s hard to believe that a former world No. 1 and the defending champion at a major tournament is listed at +4500 odds to repeat but that is the case with a couple of sportsbooks including BET365 and sportingbet. There is no denying that Jutanugarn has been terrible this season but she could actually be a decent value this eek at such long odds. Meanwhile, Lexi Thompson and So Yeon Ryu will have the honor of being considered co-favorites to win the Ricoh Women’s British Open this year at +1000 odds. Sung Hyun Park is in the mix at +1200 odds, followed by Inbee Park at +1600 and Sei Young Kim at +2200 odds. Amy Yang, Min Jee Lee and Shanshan Feng round out the list of the top sports betting options for this week’s major tournament.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Ariya Jutanugarn over Michelle Wie
Jutanugarn has looked awful at times this year. However, this week could represent the perfect opportunity for her to get back on track with a strong performance. Jutanugarn has the talent but she needs to put together a complete four-round performance in order to play to her potential. Meanwhile, Wie has been pretty good dating back to the ShopRite LPGA Classic but she hasn’t finished higher than 20th in any of her last three starts. Another finish outside of the top-20 could be enough to open the door for Jutanugarn to finish ahead of Wie in the head-to-head sports betting matchup. It’s a bit risky, but there is decent value betting on Jutanugarn this week.
Top-Five Pick: So Yeon Ryu
Ryu has looked absolutely dominant at times over the past couple of months and she is definitely worth backing this week. Ryu registered a strong result in Scotland last week when she proved she could handle the winds and play in the tough conditions and she should be able to build on that performance this week. Always a threat to win outright, Ryu should be a quality top-five pick for the Ricoh Women’s British Open this week.
Odds To Win 2017 British Open
Lexi Thompson +1015
So Yeon Ryu +1050
Sung Hyun Park +1150
Inbee Park +1550
Sei Young Kim +1850
Min Jee Lee +1850
Amy Yang +2050
Shanshan Feng +2250
Stacy Lewis +2250
Cristie Kerr +2550
In Gee Chun +2550
Carlota Ciganda +2550
In Kyung Kim +2850
Brooke M Henderson +3050
Lydia Ko +3050
Michelle Wie +3250
Mi Jung Hur +3550
Suzann Pettersen +3550
Anna Nordqvist +3550
Moriya Jutanugarn +4050
Ariya Jutanugarn +4050
Mi Hyang Lee +4050
Gerina Piller +4050
Mirim Lee +4550
Ha Na Jang +4550
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