It’s The Open week which means two things. First, don’t confuse it with the US Open. This one is held across the pond, this time in England, and they call it The Open. So shall we then. Second, it’s the last major tournament of the year. How is that possible?
That spells the countdown to the PGA FedEx Cup playoffs, the Ryder Cup this year, and football season is around the corner. But, let’s concentrate on golf for the time being.
Who will join Jon Rahm (Masters), Brooks Koepka (PGA) and Wyndham Clark (US Open) as a major title holder this year? Unlike the US Open which was played in the Pacific time zone on the West Coast here in the US, you will have to get up early to see a lot of golf, especially fans west of the Mississippi, with start times as early as 4:00 am in the Eastern time zone.
This is the first of a two-part Open Preview on AaronTorresOnline.com and will focus on course information, television coverage, notables in the field, keys to winning and some top 20 finishers to think about before we dive into a bunch of picks in our day two coverage.
As always, our partner - Betfred Sportsbook - has a lot of opportunities to get in the action.
COURSE INFORMATION: This year’s stop on The Open rotation is Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England. The seaside town near the Irish Sea will host for the 13th time, the last coming in 2014 where, ironically, this year’s favorite, Rory McIlroy claimed the Claret Jug. That was the third of his four major conquests. Tiger Woods also won here in 1996 and his claim to fame that week was that he used his driver only one time in his 72-hole win. Royal Liverpool, which plays to a par 71 at 7,313 yards, had gone 39 years hosting before Woods won there 17 years ago.
THE CUT POLICY: There will be 156 players in the field all of whom will be guaranteed 36 holes of stroke play. The low 70 and ties will advance to the weekend competition and collect a paycheck for their efforts. Players do have a better percentage to make the cut here as opposed to the US Open (top 60 and ties) and Masters (top 50 and ties).
TELEVISION COVERAGE:
If you want an aerial view of each hole before you watch it on TV or your preferred streaming device, take a drone tour here…
Thursday, July 20:
1:30 am-4:00 am and 3:00 pm-4:00 pm EST - Peacock
4:00 am-3:00 pm EST - USA Network
Note: Featured Groups and Featured Holes: All day (Peacock, NBCSports.com and NBC Sports App)
Friday, July 21:
1:30 am-4:00 am and 3:00 pm-4:00 pm EST - Peacock
4:00 am-3:00 pm EST - USA Network
Note: Featured Groups and Featured Holes: All day (Peacock, NBCSports.com and NBC Sports App)
Saturday, July 22:
5:00-7:00 am EST - USA Network
7:00 am-3:00 pm EST - NBC
Note: Featured Groups and Featured Holes: All day (Peacock, NBCSports.com and NBC Sports App)
Sunday, July 23:
4:00-7:00 am EST - USA Network
7:00 am-2:00 pm EST - NBC
Note: Featured Groups and Featured Holes: All day (Peacock, NBCSports.com and NBC Sports App)
NOTABLES IN THE FIELD:
Similarly to the rest of the majors, virtually all the top golfers are playing in The Open. The notable exceptions are Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia, and Will Zalatoris. Woods and Zalatoris are injured. Garcia did not meet any of the qualifying criteria due to his LIV golf status and failed in his qualifying attempt.
LAST YEAR’S WINNER/INTERESTING NOTES:
In a battle of Cameron’s, it was the putting and ball striking of Cam Smith who has held The Claret Jug in his possession for the last 365 days. Claiming it for a year is one of the many perks of winning the tournament. He beat out Cameron Young by one shot. Smith did return the trophy when he arrived at Royal Liverpool on Monday.
PLAYOFF:
Should two or more players be tied after 72 holes of stroke play, a three-hole aggregate playoff format will be used. If there is still a tie, a sudden-death format will ensue until a champion is crowned.
KEYS TO WINNING:
It’s a necessity at any level of golf, but finding the fairway will be crucial to success. Why? The US Open fairways at the CC of Los Angeles were twice the acreage of Royal Liverpool. That’s right, the fairway zone in Los Angeles was twice as big overall. At Royal Liverpool, the fairways are rarely more than 25 yards wide, and they get narrower, the further you drive the ball.
Managing the 17th hole will also be paramount. It’s a short, 136-yard par three. That should be easy for the best golfers in the world right. Well, the green is literally half the size of the next smallest green at Royal Liverpool. Precision here will be paramount. By the way, this is a brand new hole so it was not part of the course in 2014. The 18th hole is a very reachable par five, so there will be drama and opportunities over the final two holes.
TOP 20 PLAYS:
We will have a winner picked, some top 10 finishers and some head-to-head matchups to exploit in our Wednesday preview, but let’s pick three golfers who we think can post a top-20 finish come Sunday.
Cameron Young - The runner-up last year has had a disappointing season. He is a disappointing 46th in the FedEx Cup standings. Firmly in the playoff field, but needs to play himself into the top 30 to play in the Tour Championship at East Lake. Coming off a T6 at the John Deere two weeks ago, now is the time to start a run.
Bryson DeChambeau - He has quietly played well in the majors this year with a T4 at the PGA and a T20 at the US Open. He was 8th in last year's Open.
Follow Stephen Kirck on Twitter - @Skirck
For full British Open odds visit the Betfred Sportsbook
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