The Open Championship every season brings gamers again to the birthplace of golf, and it’s a distinctive check even for the very best within the recreation. Some adore hyperlinks golf because it gives totally different choices and rewards creativity in utilizing the contours of the bottom to work your ball across the course. Others can by no means determine it out.
One cause the profession grand slam holds such a lofty place within the recreation’s historical past? To realize that honor, one is required to grasp each model of golf course — and a few merely can not crack that code on hyperlinks programs. That battle was obvious final week in the course of the Scottish Open, and with the 2025 Open Championship approaching this week at Royal Portrush, will probably be fascinating to see whether or not any golfers can have realized some classes from the previous couple of days.
Even former main champions battle in such circumstances, so let’s take a better take a look at 5 of them who’ve particularly struggled to tame Open Championship programs prior to now. Some are early of their Open careers with loads of time to be taught the methods of the hyperlinks, whereas others by no means fairly figured it out and have been unable to duplicate the success they’ve throughout the pond.
Take this into consideration when you’re making your picks for The Open this week.
Odds by way of FanDuel Sportsbook
Scottie Scheffler (9/2): Let’s begin with a big-time caveat: Scheffler’s “struggles” are solely in relation to his dominance in all places else. That mentioned, Scheffler has made 4 begins in The Open, and whereas he is by no means completed worse than T23, he additionally has a career-best end of T7. It’s the solely main that he is but to complete within the prime 5, and his most important difficulty has been on the slower greens in the UK.
Scheffler has misplaced strokes to the sphere on the greens in every of the final three Opens, and if you happen to broaden it to incorporate Scottish Opens as nicely, he is misplaced strokes placing in his final six journeys throughout the pond. The greens on hyperlinks programs are totally different to these performed stateside, and whereas Scheffler’s ball-striking travels all around the world, the putter could be his lone Achilles heel.
Once more, in comparison with others on this listing, Scheffler’s achieved simply nice on the Open, however it does look like the most important hurdle left for him to clear in his pursuit of the all-time greats within the recreation.
Bryson DeChambeau (20-1): There is a cause DeChambeau shouldn’t be a part of the highest 3 on the percentages listing this week when he is been a fixture alongside Scheffler and Rory McIlroy going into majors the remainder of the 12 months. DeChambeau’s report at The Open options only one prime 10 in seven begins (T8 in 2022), three missed cuts (together with 2024) and no different finishes higher than T44.
It is maybe not a shock that DeChambeau’s model of play hasn’t translated to the hyperlinks. He’s usually a high-ball hitter who has struggled at occasions in windy circumstances. It is uncommon for The Open to be contested with out at the least one or two days of robust winds, and DeChambeau has but to grasp navigating the hyperlinks in these circumstances. On prime of that, he is misplaced strokes on the inexperienced in every of the final three years, because the slower greens and climate circumstances have given him some issues.
Regardless of these previous struggles, DeChambeau is coming into the 2025 version of The Open with a perception that this would be the 12 months he cracks the code. He notes he feels higher about his swing and tools this time round, whereas additionally getting extra snug on the greens.
“The occasions I have been over right here, for some cause, my golf swing hasn’t been the place it must be,” DeChambeau mentioned Tuesday. “Proper now, it feels nearly as good because it’s ever been. Hitting it far, hitting it straight as I can and studying the right way to putt higher on these greens in windy circumstances and rain and all that. It is simply figuring it out. It is simply going to take time and one thing that I by no means actually skilled rising up in California.”
We’ll see if that is the case, however up to now, his most well-liked model of play and hyperlinks golf haven’t meshed nicely. The problem for DeChambeau is recognizing the place he has to adapt and alter his strategy as a result of the course will not bend.
Justin Thomas (50-1): Thomas has by no means completed within the prime 10 at an Open along with his greatest end a T11 in 2019 at Royal Portrush. He has three missed cuts and no different finishes inside the highest 30. His struggles at The Open (and Scottish Open) are shocking given he has a method that will seemingly match hyperlinks golf.
Thomas is a shot-maker, identified for altering trajectories and ball flights to work the ball along with his irons, which is one thing that usually works nicely at locations like these. Nevertheless, for no matter cause, he is by no means gotten his recreation to translate throughout the pond and hasn’t really contended for a Claret Jug. Consistency from spherical to spherical has been a problem with final 12 months being a notable instance as he began robust and stood third after the primary spherical however steadily pale again to T31 by the tip of the week.
His previous struggles at The Open are the principle cause he is again at 50-1 and never along with his regular group within the 25-1 to 35-1 vary. His problem this week might be determining the right way to grasp the hyperlinks for not only one spherical however all 4.
Matt Fitzpatrick (55-1): Sometimes, The Open offers English, Scottish and Irish gamers a leg up on their American colleagues, however Fitzpatrick has not loved that type of benefit. He was low newbie in 2013 however has by no means completed higher than T20 (2019) and has two missed cuts in his eight begins as a professional. Fitzpatrick has completed within the prime 10 at each main apart from The Open, and whether or not it is stress taking part in again at dwelling or a recreation that is not fairly dialed for the hyperlinks, he is but to search out his greatest there.
Hideki Matsuyama (66-1): One other nice ball-striker who hasn’t had the type of success you’d count on at The Open, Matsuyama has really gotten worse at The Open as his profession has progressed. He completed T6 in his debut in 2013 and that is still his lone prime 10 as he has three missed cuts and three different prime 20s in what’s been a lackluster Open profession in comparison with his historical past of contending on the different majors.
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