Nexo Championship: The Punter's Preview

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Nexo Championship tournament history

Prior to last year, the only previous edition of what's now called the Nexo Championship was staged back in 2020 at Fairmont St Andrews.

The tournament was then known as the Scottish Championship and it was won by Adrian Otaegui, who beat Matt Wallace by four strokes in 23-under-par.

For the second year in-a-row, the Nexo Championship will be played at the Trump International Golf Links, where Grant Forrest won by four strokes 12 months ago.

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Venue 

Trump International Golf Links, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

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Course details

Par 72 -7,439 yards

Trump International was designed by renowned links specialist, Martin Hawtree, and it opened as recently as July 2012.

Set on the east coast of Scotland, just north of Aberdeen, Trump International is a spectacular links layout framed by dunes.

The fairways are mix of bentgrass and fescue and the rough is thick marram grass that is extremely tough to play from.

The front nine plays out and in south of the clubhouse and the back nine plays out and in north of it and there are numerous elevated bentgrass greens that will repel weak approach shots.

There are numerous videos online that capture the feel of this magnificent modern links classic, but the one below gives the best feel of the overall course.

In addition to last year's renewal of this event, Trump International hosted the Tartan Tour's Tour Championship, won by Calum Fyfe, in October 2024 and it's also hosted the last four editions of the Legends Tour's flagship event - the PGA Seniors Championship.

The most recent of which was won by Darren Fichardt two weeks ago, 12 months after he'd lost to Bo Van Pelt in a playoff.

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Weather Forecast

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TV coverage

Live on Sky Sports all four days beginning at 12:30 UK time on Thursday.

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Senior PGA winners at Trump International

2023 - Peter Baker -12
2024 - Robert Coles -4
2025 - Bo Van Pelt -3 (playoff)
2026 - Darren Fichardt -8 

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2025 Nexo Championship stats

(Key: DD - Driving Distance; DA - Driving Accuracy; GIR - Greens in Regulation; SC - Scrambling; PA - Putting Average)

Grant Forrest -8 DD 7, DA 37, GIR 6, SCR 3, PA 11
Joe Dean -4 DD 43, DA 37, GIR 4, SCR 30, PA 24
Jacob Skov Olesen -3 DD 55, DA 49, GIR 28, SCR 43, PA 9
John Parry -3 DD 30, DA 2, GIR 6, SCR 10, PA 20
Kristoffer Reitan -3 DD 21, DA 8, GIR 6, SCR 3, PA 32

(Key: SG-T - Strokes Gained: Off the Tee; SG-A - Strokes Gained: Approach; SG-ATG - Strokes Gained: Around the Tee; SG-T2G - Strokes Gained: Tee to Green; SG-P - Strokes Gained: Putting)

Grant Forrest -8 - SG:T: 9, SG:A: 2, SG:ATG: 23, SG:T2G: 2, SG:P: 13
Joe Dean -4 - SG:T: 18, SG:A: 27, SG:ATG: 4, SG:T2G: 4, SG:P: 24
Jacob Skov Olesen -3 - SG:T: 34, SG:A: 17, SG:ATG: 16, SG:T2G: 13, SG:P: 11
John Parry -3 - SG:T: 3, SG:A: 29, SG:ATG: 40, SG:T2G: 14, SG:P: 9
Kristoffer Reitan -3 - SG:T: 2, SG:A: 7, SG:ATG: 62, SG:T2G: 8, SG:P: 19

It's never a great idea to put too much faith in just one year's statistics but for what it's worth, length nor accuracy off the tee was important last year and holing everything on the greens wasn't vital either.

With five of the top six ranking tied six or better for Greens In Regulation and the first two home ranking second and fourth for Strokes Gained: Tee-to Green, approach play appears to be the key to success at Trump International.

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Look to the strong links exponents to shine again

Grant Forrest has only won two events, this one and the now defunct Hero Open which was staged at the same course that Adrian Otaegui won the inaugural edition of this event - Fairmont St Andrews.

In addition to his two links wins, Forrest has finished inside the top 10 in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and at the Yas Links in Abu Dhabi.

He was also fifth in the Irish Open at Royal County Down two years ago, third in the English Open at Hillside and he has an abundance of form around desert layouts that play very linksy

Darren Fichardt, who won the Seniors event here recently, is a renowned links specialist and the 1999 Open Champion, Paul Lawrie, really should have won the Senior PGA here two years ago.

Look to the inaugural edition of this event, the Scottish Open over the last 15 years, the 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2024 editions of the Irish Open, the 2019 British Masters and the English Open in 2022 at Hillside Links, the Open Championship, and the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship for clues.

Links golf is quite unique, and those events have all been staged on links courses.

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Lawrie the only 54-hole leader to lose at Trump International

Having led by a stroke at halfway, Grant won by four after being a 2.166/5 chance when leading by three after 54 holes and Fichardt was four clear with 18 to play at the Seniors PGA earlier this month when he won by five.

Peter Baker cruised to a six-stroke win here four years ago but Lawrie would have traded at long odds-on three years ago when he led by four after three rounds if it had been a DP World Tour event and Fichardt got into a playoff on Sunday last year despite trailing by three strokes on the back nine.

Bo Van Pelt was a stroke in front after three rounds before winning in extra time last year so four of the five 72 hole course winners to date have been in front with 18 to play.

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