THIS SEASON'S TOP AMERICAN ENTERS AAM SCOTTISH OPEN

         Jimmy Walker ... debut at Royal Aberdeen. Picture by courtesy of Getty Images (c)

LEADING US MONEY-WINNER JIMMY 

WALKER  BOUND FOR BALGOWNIE

NEWS RELEASE
Rising star Jimmy Walker will hope to follow in the footsteps of his American compatriot Phil Mickelson by taking the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open by storm this summer.

The 35-year-old, who has won a remarkable three times already this season to soar to the top of the US PGA Tour Money List, will make his debut in the prestigious event, which will take place at the superb Royal Aberdeen Golf Club from July 10-13, 2014.

Last year, Mickelson beat Branden Grace in a play-off for the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open title at Castle Stuart Golf Links, then completed a brilliant double by winning The Open Championship for the first time the following week at Muirfield, where Walker missed the cut by a shot.

Such a feat would be tough to repeat, but Walker is a man in a rich vein of form, having claimed the Frys.com Open in October, the opening event of the 2013-14 season, the Sony Open in Hawaii in January and the ATandT Pebble Beach National Pro-Am last month – victories which have propelled the Texas man to the top of the US Ryder Cup qualifying points list.

“I’m really excited about making my debut in the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open and tackling the fantastic links course at Royal Aberdeen,” said Walker, the World Number 26, who also has a sizeable lead in the FedEx Cup standings.

“We don’t get a chance to play much links golf over on the US PGA Tour, so playing the Scottish Open is a great opportunity and a new challenge I’m relishing. The tournament always has a very strong field with many of the best players in the world, so I can’t wait to test my game there.”

Having played 187 US PGA Tour events over nine years without a victory, Walker shot to prominence by winning three times from eight starts in the 2014 season to shoot up the Official World Golf Ranking.

First came the Frys.com Open triumph in the first event of the 2014 US PGA Tour schedule, where he shot weekend rounds of 62-66 to hold off Vijay Singh by two shots in California.

Less than three months later he captured the Sony Open in Hawaii with a brilliant final round 63 – which included four birdies in the last six holes – to win by one.

Four weeks after that he closed out victory in the ATandT Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, holing a five-foot putt for par on the last to win by one, having taken a six-shot lead into the final round.

Early-bird discounts are available until March 31 to see Walker, Mickelson, Rory McIlroy and a host of other world-class players in action at the 2014 Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open.  

A season ticket can be purchased for £60 in advance of the tournament, a saving of £20 on admission at the gate. Adult day tickets are currently priced at £25, rising to £35 on the gate.
Concessions (60 and over) start at £40 for a season ticket and £15 for any one-day tickets if purchased in advance. Under-16s accompanied by an adult are admitted free of charge and all car parking is also free. 

Entrance to the Pro-Am on Wednesday is £8 in advance and £15 on the day.

Full ticket information can be found at:  www.aamscottishopen.com and  www.europeantour.com/tickets or telephone Ticket Hotline:  +44 (0) 800 023 2557. Postal enquiries should be sent to: European Tour Tickets, Mirren Court Three, 123 Renfrew Court Three, Paisley, PA3 4EA.