Scottish Open 2019 will kickstart another big year for golf in Scotland

Catriona Matthew will lead Team Europe in The 2019 Solheim Cup at Gleneagles in September. Picture: Getty Images

Following on from the men’s event at Renaissance, the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open will be played at the same venue from 8-11 August, with a combined field of LPGA and LET players meaning it is the strongest event held in Europe outside the majors.

Former world No 1 Ariya Jutanugarn will return to defend the title she won last year, while the Americans and Europeans in the field will be hoping to cement their place in their respective Solheim Cup teams for the biennial US v Europe showdown taking place at Gleneagles from 9-15 September.

With the qualifying  process for Team Europe finishing when the last putt is holed at the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open, team captain Catriona Matthew will be keeping a close eye on the performance of the Europeans in the field as she plans to announce her four wild card picks the following day at Gleneagles.

Elsewhere across Scotland, the country will also play host to the Scottish Senior Open at Craigielaw in East Lothian from 16-18 August while the annual celebrity-laden Alfred Dunhill Links Championship will return to the famous links of St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns from 26-29 September.

Paul Bush, Director of Events at VisitScotland, which supports both the men’s and ladies Scottish Opens as joint title sponsor alongside Aberdeen Standard Investments, said: “It is another outstanding year for golf events in Scotland with our national men’s and ladies opens  going from strength to strength in terms of the quality of field and international media coverage. And of course, we’re also looking forward  to hosting the biggest event in women’s golf at Gleneagles in September when The 2019 Solheim Cup returns to Scotland with home favourite Catriona Matthew at the helm of Team Europe.

“These great events reinforce Scotland’s international reputation as the Home of Golf and we hope to see the Scottish golfing public out in force to support. As well as the opportunity to see top-class sporting action, golf events are also a terrific family day out with activities for a range of ages so I’m looking forward to seeing a diverse range of spectators enjoying the action across the board.”

This year’s Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open represents the eighth successive year of a strong partnership between Aberdeen Standard Investments and The Scottish Government as title sponsors of the Scottish Open, with VisitScotland managing the country’s investment on behalf of the government.

With golf tourism providing an annual benefit in excess of £286 million to Scotland’s economy, the country’s investment in golf events is a key strand of its marketing strategy, cementing its global reputation as the Home of Golf.

Bush added: “As well as providing world-class sporting action for golf fans across the country to enjoy, major events like the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open and The 2019 Solheim Cup also provide an unrivalled shop window to the world, being screened in hundreds of millions of homes worldwide, encouraging potential visitors to come and experience Scotland and significantly contribute to our visitor economy.

“The European Tour and the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open in particular has also led the way in delivering against other key government objectives by introducing sustainability initiatives such as reducing plastic waste, promoting a healthy and active lifestyle through involvement in sport and supporting educational initiatives such as the innovative Making Maths Count programme.”