Scottish Open top 10 power rankings

An elite field is assembled at Dundonald Links for the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open

The Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open is the third straight European Tour Rolex Series event and the final tune-up for The Open.

An elite field is assembled with the hopes of using this event as a springboard into next week’s Open Championship. Four of the world’s top 10, including past two tournament champs, No. 9 Alex Noren and No. 10 Rickie Fowler, are teeing it up.

Rory McIlroy enters this week as the highest-ranked in the world at No. 4, but will he even be as high in my rankings? Two missed cuts in his last three starts and a deference away from links courses is reason for pause. If anyone can turn it back on in a hurry, though, it’s Rory.

Those further down the totem pole without a tee time at Royal Birkdale next week are not out of luck: The three highest finishers inside the top 10 not already qualified will earn entry into the Open.

The tournament is in its 37th edition, but dates back to 1935 for its first running. Dundonald Links in Troon, South Ayrshire, gets its first crack at hosting this year. Dundonald hosted the 2015 and 2016 Ladies Scottish Open. The 7,100-yard, par-72 track is a Kyle Phillips design that opened in 2003.

The purse remains the same from 2016 at €3.25 million (~$3.75 million) with €693,754 and its equivalent in Race to Dubai points to the winner.

Who will have a chance to be the next Scottish Open/Open Championship back-to-back winner since Phil Mickelson in 2013? Read on to see: