GLOBAL television exposure of the Scottish Open was worth £53 million.

A European Tour report on the competition won by Phil Mickelson, above, also reveals that it was the first regular European Tour event to be shown live on a major United States TV broadcast network following a deal with NBC which complemented coverage on the Golf Channel. It was beamed to more than 500 million households around the world.

Fraser Cromarty, sales and marketing director at Castle Stuart Golf Links, near Inverness, which hosted the July event, said: "We know that golfers are already planning visits after seeing our wonderful location."