Steve Palmer's Dunhill Links Championship predictions, free golf betting tips

Racing Post

03 October 2023

When to bet on the Dunhill Links Championship?

The Dunhill Links Championship takes place from Thursday, October 5 to Sunday, October 8, so you’ll want to place your bets well ahead of schedule.

Make sure to place your bets on the 2023 Dunhill Links Championship by 9am Thursday.

It’s also worth noting that Paddy Power are offering a £40 free bet that you can grab here ahead of the event.

Where can I watch the Dunhill Links Championship?

Live on Sky Sports Golf from Midday on Thursday

Steve Palmer's Dunhill Links Championship predictions

Ewen Ferguson
1.5pts each-way 66-1 bet365

Eddie Pepperell
1pt each-way 100-1 Hills

Grant Forrest
1pt each-way 70-1Coral, Ladbrokes

Alex Fitzpatrick
1pt each-way 66-1 Coral, Ladbrokes

Matthew Jordan
0.5pt each-way 125-1 Coral, Ladbrokes

Steve's original tip, Richie Ramsay, was a non-runner in the Dunhill Links Championship golf. Stakes should be returned.

You can also bet on the Dunhill Links Championship here and get £40 in golf free bets from Paddy Power

Steve Palmer's Dunhill Links Championship preview

Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Fitzpatrick and Robert MacIntyre are returning Ryder Cup heroes this week, teeing up in the Dunhill Links, while Team Europe vice-captains Thomas Bjorn and Nicolas Colsaerts are also competing at the Home of Golf.

After an exhausting Ryder Cup week, some hearty celebrations on Sunday night, followed by the trek home from Italy, Fleetwood, Fitzpatrick and MacIntyre may struggle for energy and concentration. Long rounds with amateur partners in some challenging weather seems far from ideal in the wake of Cup glory in sunny Rome.

Steve Palmer's top tip

Richie Ramsay 80-1 (non-runner)

The Ryder Cup performance of MacIntyre can inspire three of his compatriots to big things in the months to come – Scotsmen were delighted that Bobby Mac went unbeaten through his three matches and a feelgood factor has swept over the country's golfers.

Richie Ramsay loves links golf, having won his fourth DP World Tour title at Hillside in the Cazoo Classic last year. He was second in the 2017 Irish Open at a links track and his record in the Dunhill is solid, featuring fourth place in 2009, second in 2014 and tenth in 2019.

The forecast winds will only encourage Ramsay, who has built a career on accuracy, and he has excelled on suitable tracks this season, finishing seventh in the Soudal Open, fifth in the Scandinavian Mixed and third in the Made In HimmerLand.

In his last two starts, Ramsay has finished 28th in the BMW PGA at Wentworth and 20th in the French Open. The former US Amateur champion seems well capable of putting his name on the Dunhill leaderboard.

Next best bet

Ewen Ferguson 66-1

Sharing the lead going into the final round of the French Open the week before last, Ewen Ferguson suffered a horror start, putting into the water at the first hole. The greens had sped up as the week wore on, catching the Scot out, then he went pin-chasing at the par-three second and suffered more aqua anguish. Having dropped five shots in his first four holes, Ferguson did well to stay calm, playing well from there to finish tenth.

Ferguson, the same age as MacIntyre and well capable of qualifying for future Ryder Cups, is a strong links golfer. He won the 2013 Boys Amateur Championship at Royal Liverpool and was 17th in the 2021 Dunhill. His maiden DPWT title came in windy Qatar.

Other selections

Eddie Pepperell 100-1
Grant Forrest 70-1
Alex Fitzpatrick 66-1
Matthew Jordan 125-1

Eddie Pepperell watched the Ryder Cup at home last week and the 32-year-old will know he is still young enough to have hope of one day representing Europe. Recent form has been encouraging, including third place in the World Invitational and eighth in the European Masters, and missed cuts in Ireland and at Wentworth were by just a shot. He carded a Friday 68 in the BMW PGA, covering the back nine in six under par, finding his A-game.

Pepperell's links record is fantastic, including a playoff loss in the 2015 Irish Open, second place in the 2018 Scottish Open, sixth spot in the 2018 Open at Carnoustie, and second in the 2022 Hero Open at Fairmont St Andrews. He was seventh in the 2017 Dunhill, 15th in 2019 and 17th in 2021.

Grant Forrest, three years older than MacIntyre, is another Scotsman who will be dreaming of making a Ryder Cup side. Forrest lives in East Lothian and has always been an excellent links golfer, winning the Scottish Amateur on links terrain in 2012, then finishing runner-up in the 2015 Amateur Championship at Carnoustie.

Forrest's maiden DPWT title came at Fairmont St Andrews in the 2021 Hero Open. He was third in the 2022 Cazoo Classic won by Ramsay, then tenth in the Dunhill last year. In July, Forrest was 11th in the Scottish Open at the Renaissance Club, and he has banked healthy cheques all year – including third place in the Irish Open a month ago.

Alex Fitzpatrick was cheering on his brother Matt in Rome last week and there seems every chance the Fitzpatricks will play Ryder Cup golf together one day. Alex, 24, could become as good as his brother, and the Dunhill is a wonderful opportunity for him to show off that talent.

The Fitzpatricks are from the north of England, so links golf is second nature, and Alex came through an Open qualifier at West Lancashire in the summer. On his Open debut at Royal Liverpool, Alex finished 17th, beating his brother by four shots, then he won on the Challenge Tour at the start of August and was fifth in the European Masters. He was 28th on his Dunhill debut last year when ranked outside the world's top 1,000, but is up to 136th for his return.

Add a final Brit with Matthew Jordan – a links master who grew up playing at Royal Liverpool. He qualified for the Open in the summer, then finished tenth at his home track, thrilling the members. The amazing Open effort showed how adept he is at links golf. He won the St Andrews Links Trophy in 2017, the Lytham Trophy by nine shots in 2018, then was fifth in the Dunhill in 2019.

Jordan has won on the Challenge Tour and is one of the best links golfers on the DPWT. He played well in the second round of the French Open last time out, missing the cut by a shot.

Courses guide for the Dunhill Links Championship

Courses St Andrews and Kingsbarns, Fife, Scotland, and Carnoustie, Angus, Scotland
Prize money $5m ($833,500 to the winner)
Lengths St Andrews 7,318 yards; Carnoustie 7,394 yards; Kingsbarns 7,227 yards
Pars All 72
Field 168 The cut Top 60 and ties qualify for round four
Highest-ranked players in field (world ranking in brackets) Matt Fitzpatrick (8), Tommy Fleetwood (13), Ryan Fox (32), Billy Horschel (49), Adrian Meronk (51)
Course records- 72 holesof Dunhill Links Championship 264 Tyrrell Hatton (2017) 18 holes – St Andrews 61 Ross Fisher (2017), Romain Langasque (2022); Carnoustie 64 Colin Montgomerie (1995 Scottish Open), Peter O'Malley (2007), Paul Lawrie (2007), Richard Green (2007 Open), Steve Stricker (2007 Open), Shane Lowry (2013), Alex Noren (2016), Tapio Pulkkanen (2018), Tyrrell Hatton (2021); Kingsbarns 60 Branden Grace (2012), Peter Uihlein (2013)
Course winners taking part (St Andrews) Padraig Harrington (twice), Stephen Gallacher, Louis Oosthuizen, David Howell, Oliver Wilson, Thorbjorn Olesen, Victor Perez, Ryan Fox
When to bet By 9am on Thursday
When to watch Live on Sky Sports Golf from 12pm on Thursday
Courses type Links
Course overview This Pro-Am features two rounds at St Andrews and one each at Carnoustie and Kingsbarns. There is a round at each of the three links before a cut is made and the leaders tee up on Sunday at St Andrews. The host course, with its generous fairways and a few driveable par fours, is easy in calm conditions. But St Andrews can be much tougher in strong winds. It staged the Open in 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2022. Carnoustie is by far the most difficult course – the long, demanding monster brought many players to their knees in the 1999, 2007 and 2018 Opens. Kingsbarns is the shortest venue and the only one with four par-fives, so big-hitters have an opportunity to make hay. All three tracks are set up much easier than usual to give the amateurs a chance
Story of last year Ryan Fox edged Alex Noren and Callum Shinkwin by a shot
Weather forecast Luck of the draw could play a significant role on a breezy week. Wind is expected every day, with the most coming on Friday and Saturday. Light rain is forecast on Thursday and Friday. Temperatures should range from 12C to 19C
Type of player suited to the challenge Those with banks of links experience from the British and Irish amateur scene, the Open and this event (which was first staged in 2001) will be best prepared. Links masters possess a range of shots to handle the wind and quirky terrain. A sound temperament is required to deal with the amateur element of this event, with rounds taking an age to complete
Key attribute Touch

Steve Palmer's Dunhill Links Championship key stat

Five of the last nine Dunhill Links have been won by an Englishman

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