British Open Predictions, 2009 Edition

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Who’s winning this thing, what’s Faldo going to shoot and other questions, answered (or at least cleverly guessed at) by your tireless scribes.

See what we think inside, and, maybe, take a look into your own crystal ball and tell us what you see.

Winner, Score

Erik
Tiger Woods, 272 (-8). C’mon, the guy’s the favorite for a reason. He’s playing good golf, has a good plan of action in mind, and very few other people know the course either, putting him on ostensibly level ground.

Ben
As with every British Open he has competed in since 1997, Tiger Woods is the best bet to win. I am selecting Tiger at 274 (-6).

Donald
Sergio Garcia, 272 (-9). Turnberry is one of the world’s top courses, but the greens aren’t the trickiest around. This is a course where ball-striking from tee to green can outweigh putting prowess, which makes it an ideal place for Sergio to get the major monkey off his back.

Alan
Tiger played well at his tournament a couple of weeks ago and I think that ends up being a springboard for a “Tiger Run” where he wins the rest of the events he enters (if of course, he can keep it in the fairway). At Turnberry, he’ll use his driver if needed but has proven he can win without it. If he has another driving week like at the Memorial or the AT&T, it’s a cakewalk for him this week. I see Tiger shooting a score of 271 (-9) to add yet another Claret Jug to his trophy warehouse.

T.M.
Tiger Woods at 273 (-7). I would love to pick someone that would get the British crowd excited like Paul Casey, Ian Poulter, or even Rory McIlroy but I am just having a hard time believing that Tiger is going to go the entire year without winning a major. The PGA is such a crap shoot so I think that this is probably his best chance to win.

George
Tiger Woods, 274 (-6). I know picking Woods is really too easy. But it’s been a full year now since his last major victory. He might claim this one on will alone. He needs to drive the ball well and get the putter on track early to do so. He may go with all long irons and fairway woods off the tee at Turnberry. If he’s on, watch out. But if he falters out of the gate, there will be a crew of fresh (mostly) young faces ready to step in.

And (not so young) Double-D is still trying to get all the way back. He showed up for awhile at the ’08 Open Championship and was there until the end at this year’s U.S. Open. Maybe, just maybe, we’ll get the Duval-Woods matchup that everyone was talking about (briefly) in 1999.

Didn’t Expect to See Him on the Leaderboard

Erik
Ben Curtis could show up again. He’s quietly played decent golf in spurts, and always seems to play the tougher courses well.

Ben
Perhaps less unexpected than at Bethpage, but I think Duval will appear on the first page, at least for a time.

Donald
J.B. Holmes. If current conditions hold and Turnberry plays fast and hard, I bet one of the young American bashers can pull a John Daly and overpower the course, at least for a couple days. If Holmes isn’t the man, maybe Bubba Watson, or the original John Daly his ownself.

Alan
Two picks for this one. American: Davis Love III, who has had a pretty good year thus far. International: Justin Rose. Seems like forever we’ve been waiting for him to win a major. If he doesn’t blow up and shoot another 82 like last year in the third round, he has a chance.

T.M.
Sergio. How do you really describe the way that Sergio has played lately? Honestly, the word good doesn’t even come to mind. However, I just wouldn’t doubt if perhaps he pulls together whatever it is that he is working on and puts on a good show at the British.

George
Can John Daly go from exiled to exalted? I don’t think anyone is really expecting John Daly to do all that well this week and this course doesn’t seem to set up well for him, which kind of makes me think Daly will flirt with the leaderboard over the weekend. He won’t win, but there will be sightings.

I’ve also got this weird feeling that it’s about time for Sergio to play better. That’s probably just bad cream in my coffee, though.

He Won’t See the Weekend…

Erik
Padraig Harrington is an easy pick, but somehow I think he guts it out and makes it. I’m picking David Duval. I’d almost like him to win, but I think it goes the other way for him. Nick Faldo won’t make the cut either, but that’s a “duh” pick. Nor will Greg Norman.

Ben
John Daly, or Nick Faldo. Sadly, I don’t think Duval will either, or Norman.

Donald
David Duval. Double D is getting a lot of attention following his surprise reappearance at Bethpage. I was recently chatting with some top golf instructors, and they all agreed that Duval remains an all-or-nothing player. When his timing is on, he can play at the highest level. But when he’s off by just a shade, he’s hopeless off the tee. Duval remains a strong putter, and I hope he can become a consistent presence on the tour again. But expecting Bethpage Part Two this week is a non-starter.

Alan
Ernie Els leads a list than includes Ian Poulter, Luke Donald, and Todd Hamilton. Oh yeah, Brett Quigley won’t see the weekend either, or Thursday or Friday for that matter after declining his invitation. Smooth move, Brett.

T.M.
Ryo Ishikawa. I think that the kid has a lot of talent but getting paired with Tiger for the first two rounds of a major may be a bit much to handle. I hope I am wrong about this one.

George
Padraig Harrington won his sixth overall and third consecutive Irish PGA Championship by seven-strokes last weekend. In doing so, he beat such golf heavyweights as Brian McElhinney and Simon Thornton. Seriously, the victory is proof of progress for Harrington in his quest to reclaim the level of play he enjoyed just one year ago. Based on my experiences, however, golf generally is a one-step-forward/one-step-back kind of sport. I believe, come Friday, he’ll be slamming the boot (as they say across the pond).

Wouldn’t it be Bloody Fantastic if ________?

Erik
The weather doesn’t severely hamper half the field’s play?

Ben
Greg Norman played well again.

Donald
Tiger won after a stirring final-round duel with… well, anyone. A win by Tiger would be huge ­ good for the golf business, good for the sport getting more attention. It would be even better if someone stepped up to challenge him head-on like the famous Duel in the Sun that Nicklaus and Watson had at Turnberry. Tiger winning is very good; Tiger winning in dramatic fashion (like Torrey Pines) is even better.

Alan
Sergio Garcia and Greg Norman get paired up. “So you’re blaming the downfall of your golf game on my daughter, eh?”

T.M.
I am going to cheat and say two things. One, I would absolutely love to see Duval win. People that know me know that is something I would love to see. Second, if it isn’t Duval I think that the golf world would erupt if it was Rory McIlroy. No one doubts his ability but winning on a stage like this would give him the confidence that those would be challengers like Sergio Garcia, Adam Scott, Charles Howell, etc. have lacked.

George
Paul Goydos could sport his Long Beach State Dirtbags cap and the Claret Jug at the same time? OK, maybe that’s too much. I’d be happy just to see him in contention on the weekend, so we could enjoy his post-round interviews all week. Goydos is one of the best dry wits in the game.

What Will Nick Faldo Shoot?

Erik
Perhaps himself? Ah, but then he wouldn’t be able to date 20-year olds… or cash his big announcing checks.

Ben
Something just beyond the cut line, we’ll say +2. Faldo seems more interested in the experience than playing well at this point at his career, not that I blame him. Given the hoopla surrounding his recent knighthood, I really don’t think he makes the cut.

Alan
Sir Nick has not made the cut since 2005 and his best days are long behind him. Having said that, he not only stays around for the weekend but gets a top ten finish to boot (278, -2).

T.M.
I have heard that it will be raining most of the week which can be good or bad at a British Open. If the wind stays down then Faldo could put up something respectable. However, if the wind is a factor and the rain makes the course longer I would not be shocked to see 78 or higher both days.

George
Faldo’s going to put up something like a 145 (71-74) in good conditions Thursday and Friday, which will just miss the cut. Nick will probably be fairly happy not to be playing as the field backs up over the weekend when the wind and rain pick up.

Monday Morning’s Headline

Erik
Tiger on Top: Woods Takes Open Championship

Ben
Tiger Wins, Swears off Driver Forever, Nike Aghast

Donald
El Nino Storms Open Championship; No Roar for Tiger

Adam
Englishman Casey Holds off Woods’ Late Sunday Charge

Alan
Tiger Takes Turnberry

T.M.
No clue. In my mind it is always something exciting going into these majors like having Tiger, Duval, or McIlroy win but with our luck it’ll be some player will win who has a lot of talent but no one really is that excited so the top story will end up being more about who didn’t win – Tiger – than the winner. Again, I hope I am wrong about that one as well.

George
Woods Makes It 15, Never Hits Driver!