Graeme McDowEll, a former winner, has followed Ernie Els in deciding not to contest the Scottish Open, claiming that the event has "lost its prestige" at Castle Stuart and stating the hope that the move to Royal Aberdeen next year will return the event to its former glory.
McDowell, among the favourites for the Irish Open which starts today, has opted to familiarise himself with Muirfield, venue for the Open Championship the following week, rather than contest the Scottish Open.
The views of the former US Open winner will not impress organisers of the Castle Stuart event. McDowell has contested the Scottish Open eight times since 2003 and won it five years later at Loch Lomond, a triumph that helped him to secure a first Ryder Cup cap later than year.
McDowell's decision comes just a few days after Els, the reigning Open champion and a two-time former winner of the Scottish Open, indicated he will practise at Muirfield instead of playing at Castle Stuart.
"No disrespect to the Scottish Open; I won it in 2008 – but it's lost its prestige," said McDowell. "Aberdeen Asset Management have come in and are trying to boost it but Castle Stuart hasn't been a strong-enough course these past couple of years. Let's get the Scottish Open on a phenomenal links course, with a great purse and a world-class field."
He continued: "I'm not going to sit here and be a hypocrite, though, as I am playing the minimum [number of events] on the European Tour this year for the first time in my career. Then again, it's tough to compete against the PGA Tour where I'm playing 16 to 17 [events] and where we are playing for $6-7m week-in, week-out. The European Tour is struggling and we know that; as players we are trying to come up with a strategy to combat it."
McDowell said he joined a group of some 16 players at the players' awards dinner last month in London to informally discuss the plight of the European Tour. "I am not going to name names; it was just a bit of an unofficial sit down and brain dump, really.
"It [involved] most of the guys who are dual European and PGA Tour members, and we were trying to come up with better dates in the schedule where we can attract the top players, and strategies where guys can come back and support the national Opens, but working out the schedule around the four majors and the four WGCs."
This week's Irish Open field features 10 Scots, headed by the Ryder Cup man Paul Lawrie and Glasgow's Scott Jamieson who qualified for a first tilt at an Open Championship earlier in the week.Bathgate's Stephen Gallacher, the Dubai Desert Classic winner, will be out to impress as he plays the first two rounds in the company of Paul McGinley, the 2014 Ryder Cup captain.
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