The final men’s Major of the year is upon us already!
What a season it has been in the men’s game, with the Masters, PGA Championship and US Open all flying by in the past few months and the game’s best now descending on Royal Liverpool this week to try and claim the fabled Claret Jug.
Royal Liverpool hosts its 13th Open Championship this week and first in nine years, when Rory McIlroy claimed the Claret Jug in 2014. Before that, Tiger Woods famously won at Hoylake over baked fairways in 2006, when he hit just one driver all week.
The course is a true links test with fairway bunkers and long, whispy rough set to make it a stern driving challenge – and that’s before the wind starts howling. There’s also the prospect of a par 5 finish as well as the brand new ‘Little Eye’ short par 3 17th, which is set to be controversial and potentially very difficult, too, if the wind gets up.
Here we take a look at five TaylorMade staffers, many of whom have excellent Open records, to look out for this week at the 151st Open…
Open Championship Key Info
| Course | Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake, England |
| Yardage/Par | 7,383 yards/Par 71 |
| Dates | 20-23 July, 2023 |
| Defending champion | Cameron Smith (-20) |
5 Big Names To Watch At The 151st Open Championship
Rory McIlroy
(Image credit: Getty Images)
- World Ranking: 2
- PGA Tour wins: 24
- DP World Tour wins: 16
- Open starts: 13
- Best Open result: 1st (2014)
View Rory McIlroy What’s in the bag?
Rory McIlroy enters the 151st Open Championship as tournament favourite after his stunning victory at the Scottish Open this past weekend.
The Northern Irishman finished birdie-birdie to win his first ever pro title in Scotland and to become the first man to win the Scottish Open, Irish Open and Open Championship. That stunning 2-iron shot he hit into the 72nd hole was the best shot he has hit all year according to him, and the P760 model is set to be used a lot in the links conditions this week.
McIlroy built on his 2nd-place finish at the US Open last month and looks to have his game, and the frame of mind, to go and win his second Claret Jug this week.
His first came back here at Royal Liverpool in 2014, so he’ll be hoping for a repeat of nine years ago. Getting over the line in Majors has proved a tricky task for McIlroy over these last nine years, but the stars could well be aligned for him this week.
Scottie Scheffler
(Image credit: Getty Images)
- World Ranking: 1
- PGA Tour wins: 6
- Open starts: 2
- Best Open result: T8th (2021)
View Scottie…
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