Incredibly, we\u2019re staring at golf\u2019s final major of the season, The 154th Open Championship, starting tomorrow at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport England, running through Sunday.<\/p>\n
First tee-off is 6:35 a.m. BST, or 1:35 a.m. EST.<\/p>\n
The storylines are plentiful. What does Scottie Scheffler (who tees off tomorrow at 9:58 a.m. BST) have left in the tank after winning just once on the PGA Tour this season?<\/p>\n
Jordan Spieth (10:09 a.m. BST) won The Open the last time it was played at Royal Birkdale in 2017. After following his 2015 Masters victory with a U.S. Open title, and then that Open triumph, many in the golf world expected him to fast-track to all-time great level. He hasn’t won another major since.<\/p>\n
Can Rory McIlroy (3:15 p.m. BST) bookend the major season after capturing his second straight Masters in April?<\/p>\n
The course is playing firm, fast and brown in the heat, and it has been heavily renovated (nearly every hole has been changed). No. 5 is now a drivable par 4, with seven pot bunkers guarding the front, creating more eagle and birdie opportunities. The famous \u201cdonut bunker\u201d remains on No. 7, but it has been shortened from 177 yards to 151 yards, and the green was raised and made smaller. The old No. 14 is gone, converted into a short-game practice area. The new No. 14 is a much tougher par 5, at 602 yards; bunkers have been repositioned, and the new undulating green has been elevated, with severe run-offs for players.<\/p>\n
Scheffler is defending Open champ, but he just missed the cut at the Scottish Open. That was the first time since 2022. At a news conference yesterday, he said that it may have been a blessing going into Birkdale. The comments by the No. 1-ranked golfer in the world were a tell for sports bettors.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel at peace, yeah,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s never the best thing to miss a cut, but sometimes having a couple of days off resets the body, resets the mind, and gets some time away. When you look at other sports, a football team that\u2019s made it really far in the NFL each year, that’s hard to keep doing that every year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve played a lot of high-level golf for a few years now. It\u2019s later in the season. I think sometimes you get a little more tired. I\u2019m excited to try and defend my title this week.\u201d<\/p>\n
McIlroy was a T4 at Birkdale in 2017, and links golf suits him.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s local boy Tommy Fleetwood (10:09 a.m. BST). One of the more likable guys on tour, he\u2019s never won a major, so wouldn\u2019t it be fitting to have him do that here? The World Cup final is Sunday as well. And England plays Argentina in the semi-final tonight. Think of the possibilities for an all-England Sunday. Plus, Fleetwood knows the course well.<\/p>\n