2026 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Preview

James Punt has a bonus golf tip for you this week, check out his 2026 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship golf betting preview below.

2026 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

The start of the golf season really kicks off with the Masters, and in my head, for golf in Northern Europe at least, ends with the Dunhill Links Championship.

It is the big, end of season jolly in St. Andrews. A Pro-Am event with top pros playing with celebrities of dubious standing, sports stars, family members and very wealthy businessmen. Don’t worry, Donald Trump is not playing.

The guests and players get well looked after, wined and dined and get to play on three top links courses. The Old Course at St. Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns. The celebs all dress up like they are going to the North Pole, and there will be more cashmere jumpers than you can shake a stick at. There will be some atrocious golf swings (Piers Morgan) and some US Billionaire businessman will sink a 100ft putt at some stage. Majestic.

Big Pot

There is a big prize fund for the pros, with the winner taking home $816k and a total prize pool of $5 million. But it is also a bit of a hit and giggle format. It famously takes around 5-6 hours to play 18 holes, so it is hard for the pros to keep their head in the game, as they would at a ‘normal’ event. Some of the pros get it, they enjoy playing with the celebrities and having a laugh.

The ones that can do that, and play their game, tend to do well, and they keep on coming back. One of those is Tyrell Hatton. The angriest man in golf. He is a three-time winner of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. In his last nine visits to this event his form figures are 1/1/2/15/2/7/1/2. Only once outside of the top 7. Marvelous.

Family Affair

He plays with his Dad, who is also his coach. And they finished second in the pro-am part of the event a couple of years ago. Hatton loves it, it is his most enjoyable tournament of the year, and it pays well. He says the slow pace of play and the fun side to it relaxes him. Maybe being more relaxed helps him play better golf, who would have thought?

The new dad is bringing the family with him this weekend and he should be in fine fettle. His recent form isn’t great, T27th at Wentworth was his last outing, but tournament form is the key here.

To close out the season, I will have a bet on Hatton to have another productive weekend in St. Andrews.

2026 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Tip: 1 point e/w Tyrell Hatton @ 13.00 with Ladbrokes (e/w 1-8 1/5 the odds)

If you fancy considering a player at bigger odds, there are worse bets than Joakim Lagergren at around 41.00. The Swede has had four top 4 finishes here and he has been playing some decent stuff recently with form figures of 9/11/MC/10. He has also got Lager in his surname, and I like Lager. Magnificent.

-JamesPunt