Tournament host Paul Lawrie helped randomly select the line-up for Thursday’s opening round of the Aberdeen Asset Management Paul Lawrie Match Play at Archerfield Golf Links. A full list of the 32 matches is listed below, but here is a look at five of the best first round ties.
Matt Fitzpatrick vs Thomas Bjorn
Possibly the best of the first round match-ups sees 21 year old Matt Fitzpatrick face off against 45 year old Thomas Bjorn. Fitzpatrick is on track to qualify for his first Ryder Cup appearance later this year whilst Bjorn has made three appearances as a player and three as a vice captain. Fitzpatrick has cemented himself as a top 50 player in the world with wins at the British Masters last year and Nordea Masters this season. Bjorn, on the other hand, has struggled to regain the form that saw him qualify for the Ryder Cup in 2014 but top 20 finishes in Abu Dhabi and Spain this year showed that the Great Dane can certainly still compete on Tour.
Paul Lawrie vs Lucas Bjerregaard
In another experience versus youth tie, tournament host Paul Lawrie takes on the big-hitting Lucas Bjerregaard. Lawrie has in excess of 500 more European Tour starts than the young Dane, but Bjerregaard has Lawrie by more than 20 yards off the tee this season. The Scot will hope to relive his form from the inaugural edition last year, when Lawrie beat 24 year old Romain Wattel 5&4 in the opening round. Bjerregaard made a name for himself last year with five top ten finishes in his last nine appearances of the season, including a well-contested runner-up finish to Justin Rose in Hong Kong.
Chris Wood vs Brett Rumford
Another top-class tie sees three-time European Tour champion Chris Wood face-off against five-time winner Brett Rumford. The Englishman, who captured his most recent title at the high-profile BMW PGA Championship back in May, has been suffering with a neck injury of late but will have a match play point to prove ahead of his probable debut in Darren Clarke's European Ryder Cup side later this year. Rumford, meanwhile, will be looking to get his season back on track against the big Bristolian as the Australian, who bagged consecutive top ten finishes earlier in the season, comes into the week on the back of six missed cuts in succession. With one of the best short games in golf, though, the 39 year old Perth native will present a tough challenge for anyone on his day.
Scott Jamieson vs Alex Noren
This match will no doubt draw one of the largest crowds of the day on Thursday. Local lad Scott Jamieson finished in the top 25 last week in Thailand and arrives back home to take on the winner of this year’s Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open. Noren, who beat Dustin Johnson 6&4 in his last match play event back in 2013, has enjoyed a remarkable return to form after a series of wrist injuries over the last few years. Both men have very different Race to Dubai ambitions at this stage of the season with Noren currently inside the top 15 and Jamieson some way off the pace in his bid to retain a Tour card at 138th as it stands.
Kristoffer Broberg vs Matthew Southgate
After winning his maiden European Tour title in stunning fashion at the BMW Masters in China at the tail-end of 2015, Kristoffer Broberg made his EurAsia Cup debut in January of this year, claiming two points from three matches including a 5&4 thumping of Shingo Katayama in the Sunday singles. But in first-round opponent Matthew Southgate, the Swede will know he has a fearsome competitor with undoubted mental toughness. Southgate recently finished tied 12th in The Open Championship at Royal Troon, almost exactly one year on from surgery for testicular cancer, with the qualifying school graduate's inspirational tale of recovery one of the feel-good stories of the year in golf.
Here's a look at the full list of match ups and tee times.
8:00 – John Parry vs Haydn Porteous
08:10 – David Horsey vs Sébastien Gros
08:20 – Alvaro Quiros vs James Morrison
08:30 – Graeme Storm vs Tommy Fleetwood
08:40 – Simon Khan vs Pablo Larrazábal
08:50 – Oliver Fisher vs Peter Uihlein
09:00 – Morten Madsen vs Johan Carlsson
09:10 – Robert Rock vs Gary Stal
09:25 – Marc Warren vs Jorge Campillo
09:35 – Magnus Carlsson vs Chase Koepka
09:45 – Kristoffer Broberg vs Matthew Southgate
09:55 – David Drysdale vs Michael Hoey
10:05 – David Howell vs Richie Ramsay
10:15 – Roope Kakko vs Gregory Havret
10:25 – Chris Paisley vs Benjamin Hebert
10:35 – David Lipsky vs Prom Meesawat
12:30 – Richard Green vs Lee Slattery
12:40 – Paul Lawrie vs Lucas Bjerregaard
12:50 – Callum Shinkwin vs Eduardo De La Riva
13:00 – Mike Lorenzo-Vera vs Alejandro Canizares
13:10 – Jin Jeong vs Mikko Illonen
13:20 – Edoardo Molinari vs Max Kieffer
13:30 – Oliver Wilson vs Nacho Elvira
13:40 – Craig Lee vs Raphaël Jacquelin
13:55 – Joakim Lagergren vs Richard Bland
14:05 – Anthony Wall vs Robert Dinwiddie
14:15 – Thomas Bjorn vs Matthew Fitzpatrick
14:25 – Matt Ford vs Pelle Edberg
14:35 – Brett Rumford vs Chris Wood
14:45 – Gareth Wright vs Daniel Brooks
14:55 – Scott Jamieson vs Alex Noren
15:05 – Stephen Gallacher vs Renato Paratore
Click the image below for the full tournament bracket
