• The Open Championship: Preview

European stars hoping to feast at Sandwich

Alex Dimond July 11, 2011

ESPN will be providing live commentary during all four days of The Open Championship from Royal St George's - along with all the news, views and opinion from the course when the tournament gets underway on Thursday.

The oldest major championship in golf, The Open Championship is also arguably its most prestigious.

The greatest players in the history of the game may all be American - Bobby Jones Jnr, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods - but almost without exception all have expressed their love for the Open above the other three major tournaments of the year.

For an outsider, understanding why that is might initially be difficult - although anyone would agree the competition has come a long way since the inaugural event of 1860, when eight Scottish golfers played three rounds on one day around Prestwick's 12-hole course to decide the winner of the Champions Belt.

This year, the winner (of the 140th championship) will pick up the fabled Claret Jug (Young Tom Morris kept the Belt after winning the tournament for the third time in a row back in 1870) and a cheque for £900,000 - a key slice of what will be a £5 million overall prize fund.

Not only is the Open the oldest of the majors - it is now also the richest.

The Course

This year the event returns to Royal St George's, eight years after the last appearance. On that occasion it was the unheralded American Ben Curtis who held his nerve on the back nine to claim victory, after others (most notably Thomas Bjorn) fell apart.

The Sandwich layout is not the most popular course on the Open rota, as many professionals have commented in thinly-veiled terms about the high number of blind tee shots the course demands and the undulating fairways that can result in some comically bad bounces.

But course officials have remodelled a number of holes to reduce both problems, while the deep rough is likely to be less penal than it was in 2003. Nevertheless, the R&A believe some of the course's idiosyncracies are fair and honest challenges for professional - so don't expect the problems to have been eroded completely.

Another reason the Open continues to return to Kent - the only truly southern course on the rotation - is of financial and structural consideration. Built on a wide open expanse of land with holes spread nicely apart, the course can hold many more spectators than some of the other Open venues - with organisers hoping over 200,000 fans will come through the gates across the four days even in these straitened financial times.

Reduced to a par 70, at 7,221 yards the course will be a good test for most players in the field. Birdies and bogeys should be on offer in equal measure, although don't be surprised if complaints about the course gather momentum if the weather begins to trick things up.

"There was no rain here between February and May, virtually not a drop," Royal & Ancient chief Peter Dawson said on Sunday. "The rain has come back to average level and the course has greened up - we are pleased with it. The player reaction has been very positive.

"The changes that we have made have helped at one and 18, which were unpopular tee shots last time. The greens are just lovely. All credit to green staff. The rough is patchy - it is not huge. I am hoping for not too much hacking out, but it will be a factor in distance control."

Keys to victory

Read a different report on the qualities needed to win at St George's and you'll receive a different verdict. Some say iron play will be decisive, others say you must be straight off the tee. The truth is both will be key - along with the short game and that old links golf favourite, Lady Luck.

If the weather stays calm, then those who can keep the ball in play off the tee will have a distinct advantage. But, with the rough not being grown to its maximum, it'll be playing into the greens where players can get a real advantage.

The greens at Royal St George's are all well protected - either through clever bunkering or subtle undulations around or on the short stuff that all demand precision to navigate. It's no real coincidence that when Curtis won in 2003, he made few errors with his irons (along with being guided by a caddie with great local knowledge) on the back nine.

Curtis' closing holes demonstrate the other key factor that all major winners need in place - a sure touch with the flat stick. Curtis didn't miss crucial putts on the way to the biggest win of his career, and his successor in 2011 will almost certainly be the man who best repeats the feat come Sunday afternoon.

The gameplan for most players, then, should be similar - take advantage of the course when conditions are nice, and protect a score when they are not over the first three days to try and get into contention come Sunday. From there, as Curtis showed beyond all doubt, anything can happen.

---

Ten to contend

While Curtis' victory in 2003 was a fairytale story, Open organisers would certainly prefer it if a more established name were to win this time around. Paul Lawrie (1999) may be the last Home Nations golfer to win the event (Padraig Harrington, in 2007 and 2008, doesn't technically qualify in that regard), but the chances of that changing have arguably never been so good.

Indeed, considering the form of some of the local continent's best, it would be a huge surprise if this week's winner didn't come from a European country.

EUROPEAN HOPES

Rory McIlroy
On the back of one of the most dominant major performances in living memory, McIlroy comes into the Open as the favourite with the shortest odds [not named Tiger Woods] in a good two decades. It's not hard to see why - the Northern Irishman has led seven of the eight major championship rounds so far this year, and has a great links golf resume. He burst onto the scene at the Open in 2007 as an amateur after three great rounds at Carnoustie, while he finished in a tie for third at St Andrew's last year despite a second round 80. At 16 he shot 61 at the difficult Royal Portrush, so he knows how to play a links. The only doubts are about how the draining requirements of being a new major champion (and three weeks without competitive action) have affected the 22-year-old's sharpness.

Lee Westwood
Arguably the form horse of recent major championships, Westwood has five top-three or better finishes in the seven majors he has played in since the 2009 Open at Turnberry. A fine driver and consistent iron player - the Englishman ticks all the boxes required of a strong challenge at Sandwich. His putting remains patchy, however, and the course might not be tight enough for his strengths to be accentuated. Nevertheless, the man from Worksop has proven beyond all doubt in recent years that he can be expected to be there or thereabouts at any and every major come Sunday evening.

Luke Donald
Not traditionally considered a strong links player as, unlike some of his contemporaries, his college career was spent on the stadium courses of America and his high ball flight tends to suit that style more than links golf. But victory in last week's Scottish Open by some margin suggests his T-11, T-fifth finishes in the past two Opens are by no means a fluke - with a renewed mental strength he'll almost certainly contend, although whether the course will be set up difficult enough for his skillset to come to the fore (and his lack of length not to be a slight disadvantage) provides something of a note of caution.

Sergio Garcia
Would have placed in the top five at the US Open were it not for a short missed putt at the last, Garcia was deeply impressive from tee to green at Congressional but once again looked suspect with the putter. The Spaniard has earned Jack Nicklaus' backing to win a major before too long, and the Open would seem a prime opportunity. A beautiful driver of the ball, a fine iron player and creative around the greens - a little bit of form with the shortstick (maybe a switch to the belly putter?) could see Garcia romp away with an event he was unlucky not to win in 2007 and finished in the top ten six times in seven years between 2001 and that Harrington play-off defeat.

Matteo Manassero
The Italian may be nearly two years younger than McIlroy, but he only has one less professional victory to his name in a far shorter tour career to date. And if the Northern Irishman made a name for himself in finishing just inside the top 50 as an amateur in 2007, then the Italian deserves serious respect for finishing in a tie for 13th at Turnberry in 2009. A former British Amateur champion, another indication he can play a bit on the links, the recent trend for young players rising to the top in such championships means it might be time for the 18-year-old to have a major coming out party.

Alternatively: Martin Kaymer, Graeme McDowell, Robert Rock

WISE BETS

Nick Watney
After winning the AT&T National last month, Watney might just have a claim as the best US player around (bar perhaps the irrepressible Steve Stricker) at the minute. A two-time winner already this year, Watney has never missed a cut in three Open appearances (tied-seventh last year) and led at the links-style Whistling Straits in last year's USPGA before a final round blowout. After the AT&T win the 30-year-old suggested he had learned to cope with the high expectations that scuppered his USPGA challenge (and seemed to see him fall apart at the Masters, where he was made favourite in some quarters, this year) - if that is really the case then he is certainly a name to keep an eye on.

Phil Mickelson
The maverick lefty is not proud of his Open record and, for a man of his calibre, with good reason. A third placed finish in 2004 is hardly the best result you would expect from someone with his all-round game. A disappointing effort at the Scottish Open suggests the American has not suddenly found the secret to the style of play, but if the weather stays glorious on the Kent coast then he may be able to get by on the strength of his short game alone. Of course, if the wind gets up then the four-time major champion will be an obvious candidate to get blown away.

Alternatively: Jeff Overton, Zach Johnson, Dustin Johnson

OUTSIDE CHANCES

Jason Day
The upstart Australian with the beautiful wife has finished second in both majors of the year so far - despite having never played in either The Masters or US Open before. His Open debut last year saw a T-60 finish that suggests he can handle links golf, although the mild conditions at St Andrews obscure whether he really does know all the ins and outs of the style of play (much like that year's winner, Oosthuizen). Nevertheless, he has the chutzpah that marks out a potential major champion, and with his confidence sky high if the sun shines he could well feel right at home at the top of the leaderboard.

Retief Goosen
The two-time US Open champion is in an interesting phase of his career. Rarely off the pace in tournaments yet infrequently in strong contention, at 42 he nevertheless remains on the verge of the world's top 20. His unrivalled composure could prove crucial around St George's - where he finished inside the top ten in 2003 - while his last finishes in this tournament are sixth and tied-fifth. After a solid US Open display he could have a great shot.

Thomas Aiken
A prolific winner on South Africa's Sunshine Tour (and victor on the European Tour already this year), that is a trait he only shares with the likes of Charl Schwartzel, Louis Oosthuizen and Trevor Immelman - all major winners. Aiken is a prodigious hitter who has made the cut in his last three appearances in majors, including a top ten spot in 2009. Another South African winner would be an incredible streak for the country, but beyond Rory Sabbatini, Aiken is the next viable candidate for the job.

Alternatively: Fredrick Andersson Hed, Alejandro Canizares, Thorbjorn Olesen

---

Woods watch

Like the US Open last month at Congressional, once again Tiger Woods will not grace a major championship. The American is still recovering from injuries to his left leg he suffered at The Masters and aggravated during an ill-advised return for the Players Championship, and as such is being cautious with his rehabilitation.

"Unfortunately, I've been advised that I should not play in the British Open," Woods said last week. "As I stated at the AT&T National, I am only going to come back when I'm 100 per cent ready. I do not want to risk further injury.

"That's different for me, but I'm being smarter this time. I'm very disappointed and want to express my regrets to the British Open fans."

The question now is when Woods will finally return. If the USPGA at the end of the year is a no-go (and it would appear possible at this point), then there appears to be little incentive for the 35-year-old to return at all in 2011 (he will struggle to qualify for the season-ending FedEx Cup unless he returns within the next month).

British fans will hope he is able to tee it up at Royal Lytham & St Annes next year but, as with anything involving Woods these days, unfortunately there appear to be no guarantees.

---

Predictions

All this talk would mean little without a few equally meaningless predictions also thrown in...

Winning score: Seven-under
Winning margin: Two
Lowest round: 63
Low amateur: Tom Lewis

Top European: Sergio Garcia
Top American: Jeff Overton
Top Rest of World: Retief Goosen

Runner-up: Lee Westwood

Winner: Sergio Garcia

You heard it here first. Or not.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.