British Open Storylines

The John Deere Classic is this week, but who in their right mind is thinking about the event? Michelle Wie will be trying to make her first cut in a men’s event, but that’s old news. The Open Championship is next week, and that’s where my focus is. This year’s British Open has flown under the radar somewhat here in the United States, but that shouldn’t be the case.

There are plenty of great storylines brewing for next week’s major championship at Royal Liverpool. Will Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson get themselves in contention on Sunday? Is Hoylake good enough to host a British Open Championship? These are just a couple of the storylines I’m going to talk about, so sit tight and continue reading.

Is Hoylake Worthy of Another British Open?
The British Open hasn’t been played at Hoylake since 1967, and that raises a few questions in my mind. We all know about The Old Course at St. Andrews, Turnberry, Carnoustie, Royal Troon, etc. However, I know very little about Hoylake because I wasn’t even close to being born in 1967.

This doesn’t mean the course stinks by any means. It could very possibly produce one of the best and most exciting tournaments in recent history. The intriguing part to me is the “out of bounds” situation. From what I’ve seen so far, there seems to be an excessive amount of out of bounds compared to the typical North American golf courses.

I’m a big fan of having the golfers punished for hitting wayward tee shots, and we are either going to see a lot of penalty strokes or a lot of hybrids and 5-woods off the tee. Then again, we may see a lot of both. A lot of golf fans like to see the “grip it and rip it” approach, but I’m more of a strategic guy myself. This course sounds exciting to me.

Whether or not the course is deserving will be determined once the world’s best tee it up in a little over a week. The course is different than what a lot of fans have seen over the past couple decades, and that’s exciting. I hope things work out for the best.

Tiger vs. Phil?
Phil Mickelson won The Masters earlier this season and came very close to winning the U.S. Open as well. Tiger Woods, absent for much of the past three months due to his father’s passing, showed he has his game back this past weekend at Cog Hill. Lefty, on the other hand, struggled a little at Cog Hill and has never had much success across the pond.

The golf world wants to see Tiger and Phil battling for a major, and it almost happened at Augusta earlier this year. However, Tiger was a few groups in front of Lefty, and it was anti-climactic for the most part. All indications point to the same thing happening this week.

Like I said earlier, Phil has struggled in the British Open for the most part, and it will be no different this year. If he hits smart shots off the tee, he may contend for a little while. However, he will probably resort to his U.S. Open tactics eventually and fall fast.

Tiger Woods has won at St. Andrews a couple times, but he has had trouble at other venues. Tiger will hit some shots out of bounds at Hoylake. That’s inevitable, but Tiger bounces back better than any golfer in the world. He will be in contention, and he can hit the low ball into the wind. Tiger won’t win the British Open, but he will be in contention heading into the back nine on Sunday.

Fans wanting to see a Tiger vs. Phil pairing late in a major are going to have to wait this time around. I’d put my money on seeing guys like Jim Furyk and Adam Scott at the top of the leaderboard instead of Lefty. We can always hope though.

Can the Aussies Win Another One?
The Australians have had a great year on the PGA Tour. Adam Scott, the highest-ranked Aussie in the world, hasn’t won yet. However, the guys from down under have accounted for six PGA Tour wins in 2006. Scott has been very close to winning, but he hasn’t sealed the deal so far this season.

Geoff Ogilvy won the U.S. Open at Winged Foot last month, and Stuart Appleby will join him as a first-time major champion at Hoylake. The Aussie success of 2006 will continue at The Open Championship next week. Appleby has two wins already this season, and a major championship has eluded him for far too long.

Stuart Appleby lost to Ernie Els in a playoff at the 2002 British Open, so he has been very close before. Appleby’s statistics aren’t great in 2006, but his scoring average is solid. In the end, Stuart Appleby has what it takes to win a major championship, and the world will see it very soon.

As for the other Aussies, keep your eyes on Geoff Ogilvy. There isn’t any reason Ogilvy can’t win two majors in a row because he has the talent to do so. Adam Scott should also be in the hunt for his first major championship at Hoylake, and he has been playing very well as of late. The Aussie fans should definitely tune in to The Open Championship because they will have more bragging rights after it’s all over.

How will Monty Bounce Back?
A lot of golf fans talked about the U.S. Open being Colin Montgomerie’s last run at a major championship. That’s far from the truth, however. Monty is playing quality golf right now, and he is better mentally than ever before. The collapse at the 72nd hole didn’t help matters any, but he can and will bounce back soon.

Monty hits the ball straight as an arrow off the tee, and he is a very good ball striker as well. Last year’s British Open performance helped get Monty over the hump of playing bad in front of hometown crowds. He contened with Tiger Woods at St. Andrews, so he can contend at any British Open venue.

Monty will finish in the top 10 or top 20 at Hoylake because his game fits the course pretty nicely from what I’ve seen. However, he won’t find himself in the last couple groups on Sunday this time. Fans of Montgomerie will have to wait a little longer before their hometown guy wins a major championship. However, Monty will bounce back nicely from the debacle at Winged Foot.

British Open Sleepers
My U.S. Open sleepers really didn’t play that well, so maybe I can bounce back for the British Open. The guys that will sneak up on the field at Hoylake are Ian Poulter, Justin Leonard, and Kenneth Ferrie.

It surprises me that Ian Poulter is ranked 55th in the world because he is a better golfer than that. Poulter has the game to contend in major championships. The colorful Englishman finished T12 at Winged Foot last month and T11 at last year’s British Open. It isn’t a long shot to say Poulter has a good chance at winning at Hoylake.

It’s tough to call a former British Open champ a sleeper, but Justin Leonard isn’t playing very well at all. The Texan is in the middle of one of his worst seasons of his career. He is 87th on the PGA Tour money list and has falled to 58th in the world rankings. Why in the world would I pick him as a sleeper? Leonard loves the British Open, and this tournament could very well pull him out of his slump.

Keep an eye on Kenneth Ferrie as well. Ferrie played in the final group with Phil Mickelson at last month’s U.S. Open, and he held on for a T6 finish. Ferrie is very good off the tee and is scrappy around the greens. If his temper doesn’t get the best of him, the Englishman will find himself in contention once again.

The Final Say
The Open Championship often gets overlooked for The Masters and U.S. Open here in the United States. It’s just the way it is, but it’s still a great tournament and oldest of all the major championships. My favorite major is the U.S. Open, but I love the British Open as well.

I’m looking forward to seeing the golfers make their way around Hoylake next week, and you can bet I will have my TiVo set for the early morning action (I can’t wake up at five or six o’clock in the morning). I’m hoping for a day or two of high winds just to make things interesting. If that happens, the course could very well frustrate and confuse the world’s best.

That’s all I have to say this week. How will Tiger and Phil play at this year’s Open Championship? Also, what are your thoughts on the golf course? Finally, who do you think will sneak up on the field and contend on Sunday? If you have anything to add, feel free to comment below or discuss it in the forum. Thanks for reading this week’s Thrash Talk!

Photo Credits: © Unknown, © Bill Haber/AP.