Southern California's No. 1 Golf Source
STROKE OF THE DAY |
"A good golf course makes you want to play so badly that you hardly have the time to change your shoes. " |
-Ben Crenshaw |
SITE
SEARCH
GOLF
CALENDAR
Top 10
|
||||
|
This year’s British Open will be contested at Royal Birkdale Golf Club – the last time it was held there was 1998, when former Mission Viejo resident Mark O’Meara defeated American Brian Watts in a playoff for his second major championship of the year. Ten of the last 14 Open champions have hailed from the United States, but with Tiger Woods out for this year’s tournament, American prospects don’t look as promising as they have in past years. Here are my top 10 contenders at the 2008 British Open. 1. Sergio Garcia Best Finish: 2nd (2007, playoff loss at Carnoustie Golf Links) With Woods out of the field, now is the time for Garcia to shine — and erase the horrid memory of last year’s Open loss, in which he held a multi-stroke lead after each of the first three rounds but ended up losing in a playoff to Padraig Harrington. A balky putter reared its head on the final day at Carnoustie, but El Niño proved he could handle the flatstick in the heat of the moment with his win earlier this year at The Players Championship. His record at the British is the best of any major, and he’ll have nobody to blame but himself if he’s not in the winner’s circle at Birkdale this year. 2. Ernie Els Best Finish: 1 (2002 at Muirfield) Els may have a pair of U.S. Open crowns compared to only one British Open title, but his collective record at the British is actually much better: he has never missed a British Open cut as a professional, and his four top 10s in the ’90s have been complemented by six in eight attempts this decade — including a win and four other top-three finishes. Els has had a rocky year on and off the golf course, but his performance at the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines (T14) showed he definitely still has what it takes to contend at tough venues. He will be in the hunt. 3. Justin Rose Best Finish: T4 (1998 at Royal Birkdale, earning low amateur honors) There may not be a golfer happier to see the Open Championship return to Royal Birkdale than Rose. Playing the British as a 17-year-old amateur in 1998, Rose made Birkdale the site of his coming-out party, hitting a plethora of amazing shots – including a holed pitch for birdie from the rough on his final hole. The Englishman turned professional immediately after that performance and proceeded to miss his first 21 cuts, but he has moved way past that, and last year he proved he can consistently contend in majors. Rose hasn’t played up to his potential this season, but a return to the site of past glory will conjure positive memories and vault him back into major contention. 4. Lee Westwood Best Finish: 4 (2004 at Royal Troon Golf Club) Westwood was a birdie putt away from joining an 18-hole playoff for the U.S. Open title at Torrey Pines a few weeks ago. In 2007, Westwood regained the exceptional form he displayed as a youngster, and he has amassed seven more top-10 finishes this year in addition to his near-miss on the South Course. Now is as good a time as any for Westwood to become the first Englishman to win the Claret Jug since Nick Faldo in 1992. 5. Trevor Immelman Best Finish: T15 (2005 at St. Andrews) Immelman’s record at the British Open isn’t necessarily sparkling – then again, his record at Augusta National prior to his win there this year wasn’t so hot, either. Immelman has a chance to match O’Meara’s feat of winning the Masters and the British in the same year (on the same course, too), and while his record since Augusta isn’t remarkable, it contains enough (playoff loss to Justin Leonard at the Stanford St. Jude Championship a week before the U.S. Open) to suggest his game is still solid. 6. Miguel Angel Jimenez Best Finish: T3 (2001 at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club) His game isn’t flashy, but with a flair for clutch shots and a consistent, unique swing, Jimenez is one of the more unheralded perennial major contenders. The Spaniard already has a pair of European Tour wins this year, including the BMW PGA Championship, and has a pair of top 10s in the first two majors (T8 at the Masters, T6 at the U.S. Open). “The Mechanic” is known for puffing cigars, and don’t be surprised to see him light one up in victory at Birkdale. 7. Justin Leonard Best Finish: 1 (1997 at Royal Troon Golf Club) With Woods out of the picture, Leonard is the American favorite. He’s only missed one cut all year and notched his eighth win of the decade at the St. Jude in June. A low-ball hitter who can make birdies in bunches when he gets cozy on the greens, the 1997 British Open champion has to be chomping at the bit to head overseas and display his resurgent game. 8. Padraig Harrington Best Finish: 1 (2007 at Carnoustie Golf Links) The Irishman got the major monkey off his back at Carnoustie last year, but he hasn’t necessarily been lighting up leaderboards since then. Harrington hasn’t won since his Open playoff win over Sergio Garcia at Carnoustie, and he is barely in the top 30 on the European Tour’s 2008 Order of Merit. However, Harrington still has major game, as he finished tied for fifth at Augusta this year. 9. Adam Scott Best Finish: T8 (2006 at Royal Liverpool) With so much young Australian talent on the international golf stage, it’s a little surprising the last Aussie to win the British was Greg Norman in 1993. Scott is the country’s favorite by default because of his No. 3 world ranking, but he has yet to prove he is consistently capable of getting into contention at a major. It’s not that his results at this year’s Masters and U.S. Open have been horrible (T25 and T26, respectively), but they don’t scream front-runner. Too bad, because Scott has the length and precision to win the big ones. 10. Hunter Mahan Best Finish: T6 (2007 at Carnoustie Golf Links) Mahan, a straight hitter, loves difficult golf courses. The 26-year-old Orange native enjoyed his best major finish ever last year at Carnoustie, and with a solid showing at this year’s U.S. Open (T18), he could be poised to get back in the hunt. Plus, Mahan’s game seems to be rounding into form at the right time: he narrowly missed defending his title at the Travelers Championship in late July (T2). Honorable Mention: Phil Mickelson Best Finish 3 (2004 at Royal Troon Golf Club) The San Diego native hasn’t contended in a major since the debacle at Winged Foot during the 2006 U.S. Open, and the British has been by far the worst of his grand slam tournaments during his career. Mickelson’s finish at Troon in ’04 is his only Open top 10, and he only has three top-25 finishes in 14 other appearances. But the Tiger effect could change his fortunes in the United Kingdom: though his game isn’t necessarily the best for a links course, the absence of Woods could change his mindset enough to enable him to flourish. We’ll see. |
||||
RSS Subscribe
Digg This Article
