Scottish Open 2013: Golfers to Watch in Open Championship Tuneup Tournament

As the entire PGA Tour continues its tuneup for The Open Championship next week at Muirfield, the strange practice of the entire golf world splitting almost in half has again commenced.

Every year, the PGA has its annual tuneup finale with the John Deere Classic. It's a relatively prestigious non-major, one that boasts a solid set of mid-tier tour veterans—most of whom are American. 

Across the pond, though, the European Tour has its own John Deere-level tournament in the Scottish Open, which will get underway Thursday morning. Like its American counterpart, the Scottish Open fails to land most of the game's biggest names but boasts a very good group of players—most of whom are European.

There are exceptions to this rule, of course, as some players from the United States head over early to get their sleep schedules in order. Phil Mickelson and Michael Thompson are two notable names who decided to head to Scotland a week ahead of time. This year's event will take place at the Castle Stuart Golf Links. It boasts a decent amount of similarities to Muirfield, which could give the guys participating overseas a leg up on their stateside opposition.

Who are the most notable names in the Scottish Open field? Here is a look at a few notables to watch as we get ready for the early morning tee times. 

Phil Mickelson (Tee Time: 3:35 a.m. ET)

"Lefty" emerged from almost a full month in hiding last week at Greenbrier. It did not go well. Playing in his first event after his record fifth second-place finish at the U.S. Open, Phil Mickelson was completely unable to find his rhythm. He shot an opening-round 74, burying him too far beneath the cut line to recover. 

While Mickelson bounced back with a second-round 68, the damage was done. He was sent packing after two rounds, finishing the relatively easy tournament in a tie for 110th place. The ouster was Mickelson's third early cut of the 2013 PGA Tour season, which is already as many as he had all last year—the withdrawal at the Memorial notwithstanding.

Now Mickelson enters a two-week period of playing events on his biggest historical weakness—links courses. Throughout his career, Mickelson has never been able to find a proper rhythm overseas. The greatest Open Championship performance of his career was at Royal St. George's, which was relatively more conducive to his strengths.

To wit: Last season, Mickelson was cut at Greenbrier. He was then subsequently sent packing two weeks later at Royal Lytham. Part of the overarching reason that Mickelson is even making this trip to Scotland is to avoid a similar fate. The 43-year-old spoke with Steve Douglas of the Associated Press on Wednesday about his struggles—past and present—on links courses.

"It's still a challenge for me, still not something I grew up doing, still something I'm trying to learn as I continue through my career," Mickelson said. "So I'm always cautiously optimistic." 

Mickelson tees off in just a couple of hours, doing so alongside familiar faces in Padraig Harrington and Stephen Gallacher, a longtime European pro. As always is the case when someone as famous as Mickelson heads overseas for a secondary tournament, he should see throngs of people in his gallery.

That's no different than any other event, but it will be interesting how he handles Castle Stuart while still trying to maintain his jovial disposition.

Ernie Els (Tee Time: 8:15 a.m. ET)

Like Mickelson, Ernie Els has also gone off the radar after a strong performance at the U.S. Open. Els was in contention throughout the week at Merion Golf Club but was unable to overcome a disappointing middle two rounds to come out on top. He finished in a tie for fourth at five over, which isn't bad for a 43-year-old man whose results stateside had been sporadic at best of late.

Els then parlayed that strong performance at the East Course into a dominant win at the BMW International Open a week later before shuttering himself for a couple of weeks prior to the Scottish Open. 

A two-time winner in this event, Els is among the favorites heading into Thursday's opening round. His links game has always been top of the mark—even for a player who is already considered one of the best of his generation. He's also the defending British Open champion, meaning he's undoubtedly eager to get right back into links golf and make a run for his fifth major title.

"If I can win it a third time [this] week, it would be the perfect platform for my defense of the Open," Els said, per Douglas (via PGA.com).

Whether Els will be able to pull that off is another question. He's only won the Scottish open twice, both times at Loch Lomond, a parkland course. That doesn't necessarily take him out of the running or anything, especially considering his propensity for contention at courses styled in this fashion.

Either way, Els will be happy sticking in the thick of the leaderboard throughout. His first Open Championship triumph came at Muirfield, which has to be playing in the back of his mind heading into this two-week slog. He's playing on courses and in a style he's comfortable with while in good form.

If there were ever a time for Els to hit the jets and give us memories of his glory days, we'll see it over these next two weeks.

Nicolas Colsaerts (Tee Time: 3:15 a.m. ET)

If you've ever wanted to see the human embodiment of inconsistency, look no further than the 2013 season of Nicolas Colsaerts. The 30-year-old Belgian has entered 14 tournaments this season. He's missed the cut in six of those events.

In the others, though, Colsaerts has found a way to stick around in contention. He played masterfully this year at Merion, with only a four-over third round keeping him from making a push for the top of the leaderboard. Colsaerts also had top-10 finishes at the Zurich Classic and the Match Play Championship this year, which means little for links play but bodes well for his potential when he's on top of his game.

It's a more salient point to note Colsaerts' history of solid performances on links courses. He finished seventh in last year's British Open, which was just his second appearance at the event in his career. Colsaerts was cut in his previous attempt in 2004.

But as the European Tour stalwart's career has entered its midphase, he's become an underrated presence on these courses. Colsaerts finished third at the Scottish Open in 2011 and was hanging around the leaders last year before faltering over the weekend.

It's hard to guarantee anything with this man. He's as inconsistent as they come as a player, which is a trait shared by many men like him who smack the ball with such power off the tee. You could tell me Colsaerts finishes anywhere from first to last at the Scottish Open, and I wouldn't bat an eyelash.

He's a train wreck or a tantalizing contender. It's hard to see a middle ground here. And that's exactly why your eyes should be fixated on his three-man group—you never know what's going to happen.

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