It’s the ladies turn to cross the pond and play a few weeks of links golf. Starting with the ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open at Dundonald Links. The defending champion is Lottie Woad. The purse is $2 million; for comparison the purse for the next major, the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Lythan & St Annes Golf Course is $10 Million. All the big stars will play the Scottish open not for the purse but for preparation for the Women’s Open.

If you like to watch links golf then you will be up early for just a few hours of coverage on Thursday and Friday. The weekend is a bit more reasonable. Here is how to watch in the USA on television:

Thursday and Friday: Golf Channel 4:30 – 8:30 a.m

Saturday: CNBC 8:00 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Sunday: CNBC 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

As much as I like women’s golf, I will not be up at 4:30 am; however, 6 am to 8:30 is a time I can manage since I am an early riser. Not to beat a dead horse but the delegation to CNBC for women’s golf is not surprising but a bit disappointing. They also will provide live stream on the golf channel app.

The pairings came out and three of my favorite players are paired together: Nelly Korda, Charley Hull, and Lottie Woad. That is an excellent decision by the competition committee. My only concern is that they will not be in the broadcast window on Thursday but I am hoping they will be since they are a “featured group.”

So the Scottish Open will be a nice primer for the women heading to the open next week. I don’t really have a favorite to win the Scottish Open. In the past it has not been a big star but usually a well-known name. For example in 2024 Lauren Coughlin won and in 2023 Celine Boutier won.

Final Tip – if you don’t or can’t watch the coverage the recaps on YouTube are always a great way to see the highlights.