The long and the short of it, not just about the fact that Royal Troon will have the longest hole (the Par 5 sixth stretching to 623 yards) and the shortest (the famed Par 3 eighth, aka the Postage Stamp, which officially measures 123 yards but with a new forward tee that could see it play at 99 yards) is that the famed links on the Firth of Clyde on the western Scottish seaboard will play host to a changed golfing world since it last staged The Open in 2016.
On that occasion, Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson played out a duel for the ages before the Swede claimed the Claret Jug. Third-placed JB Holmes finished 14 strokes behind the champion, Stenson, who became the first Swedish male to win a Major; and, also, ended a run of six American winners (which started with Arnold Palmer in 1962 and extended to Todd Hamilton in 2004) of the grand prize at the venue.
The real change since Stenson’s only Major success, however, is that both protagonists from that magical Sunday eight years ago have switched their golfing allegiances to LIV, the two of them high-profile moves to the Saudi Arabia PIF-backed tour that has caused friction in men’s professional golf.
Yet, in spite of the fracturing of the respective tours and the power plays that have resulted, the four Major championships – the Masters, the US PGA, the US Open and The Open, the oldest of them all – have found even greater elevated status, if that were possible, as the only events that offer pathways for players from all the tours (and amateurs too!) to compete against each other.
Rory McIlroy brings season of fluctuating fortunes to rest on a high note in Dubai
Rory McIlroy wins DP World Tour Championship and clinches sixth Race to Dubai title
Rory McIlroy shares lead heading into final round at DP World Championship
Leona Maguire fails to make halfway cut at The Annika in Florida
So, this week’s 152nd Open returns to a famed venue and, indeed, the biggest change is not so much to the golf course but to the fact that a larger attendance than ever will flock to the links. In 2016, a total of 173,000 filled the hillocks and grandstands while this year’s total is a sell-out 250,000 placing it third in the all-time attendance records.
Only the 150th Open at St Andrews (290,000) and last year’s championship at Royal Liverpool (261,000) have attracted bigger crowds. Royal Portrush in 2019 had 237,750.
Since 2016, an additional 195 yards has been added to the course – going from 7,190 yards to 7,385 yards – with the biggest addition coming to the sixth hole which will play to 623 yards to become the longest hole in The Open’s history.
The shortest hole, though, also has undergone some work with the iconic Postage Stamp – the eighth – having seen renovation work to the coffin bunkers that have traditionally acted like magnets for any, even slightly, overhit tee shots.
Yet, for all the tweaking, Royal Troon – which has staged nine Opens: Arthur Havers (1923), Bobby Locke (1950), Arnold Palmer (1962), Tom Weiskopf (1973), Tom Watson (1982), Mark Calcavecchia (1989), Justin Leonard (1997), Todd Hamilton (2004) and Henrik Stenson (2016) – has retained the character of that first staging in 1923, in advance of which James Braid, a five-time Open champion and noted course architect, was brought in to do the redesign and strengthen the demands on players.
Indeed, it is a tribute to Braid’s workmanship that the course remains true to those design concepts. A number of greens have been re-sited through the years and the fairways narrowed but the challenge is the same, an old-school layout of out-and-back which sees the opening six holes along the seashore before turning slightly inland from the seventh to work its way through duneland – and gorse – and then turning back, along the railway line, and into a finish invariably into the prevailing wind. The Par 11th, known as Railway, has proved to be a train wreck for many a scorecard through the years.
Like any links course anywhere, its main protection is the wind. As Gareth Lord – who was on Stenson’s bag in 2016, and who gave up smoking in honouring a bet he had with the Swede on winning the Claret Jug – recently observed in the 19th Uncut podcast: “We’ll need a bit of wind, otherwise they’ll murder it”.
Hopefully, the wind will be a factor.
When Ludvig Aberg visited Troon a week ago, last Monday en route to the Genesis Scottish Open, there was little or no wind.
“We had a very uncharacteristic day in Scotland where it was 20 degrees, sunny and no wind. I don’t think it will be that way next week, at least we don’t expect it to be. But the golf course was great. It was tough.
“It was my first time there. I remembered a lot of those holes from when Henrik won in 2016. It will be challenging, obviously the back nine and front nine are a little bit different. The front nine is a little bit easier and more gettable. And then you make the switch here on 10, and all of a sudden you get the wind into your face. It will be a good challenge!”
So, some wind. Please. (*The forecast for Thursday’s opening round range for wind speeds of 11mph to 14mph, with gusts of up to 34mph).
Take Five
Bryson DeChambeau
Odds: 14/1
There’s a special swagger these days in the man with the initials B.A.D. on his yardage book! DeChambeau’s win in the US Open – for a second career Major – had a nervy finish, just not as nervy as Rory McIlroy’s, and he seems to be the player who has managed LIV’s reduced schedule to his benefit. The world No.9 has performed superbly in the Majors this season: tied-6th at the Masters, runner-up at the US PGA and winner at the US Open. Expect him to be there or thereabouts again.
Xander Schauffele
Odds: 14/1
Although Scottie Scheffler has racked up the most wins on the PGA Tour this season, the most consistent has been Schauffele who extended his cuts-made streak to 51 straight tournaments in making the weekend in the Scottish Open. Of course, Schauffele also scored a breakthrough win in the US PGA – along with top-10s in the Masters and the US Open – so brings a ton of form into Royal Troon.
Robert MacIntyre
Odds: 33/1
No question who will garner the biggest support. The shinty-loving Scot is on familiar turf along the western Scottish seaboard and has moved up the gears this season, securing a breakthrough PGA Tour win at the Canadian Open and consistently well inside the world’s top-50. Knows links, loves links and due to contend in the Majors. Where better than here? He has top-10s from 2019 and 2021 in just four appearances in The Open championship.
Shane Lowry
Odds: 33/1
Lowry knows what it takes to lift the Claret Jug and, a year in advance of his return to Portrush where he won in 2019, the Offaly man is headed into Troon with solid form including a win (with Rory McIlroy in the Zurich Classic) and a top-10 finish in the US PGA. He also had a top-10 in his last outing on the PGA Tour (in the Travelers) and has plotted his own route to Troon, staying away from the Scottish Open and instead playing links golf in Ireland as well as an advance visit to Troon. He has done the prep work.
Adam Scott
Odds: 100/1
Well, you’ve got to tip the cap to the affable Aussie who will be making his 93rd straight appearance in a Major championship at Royal Troon. That’s 23 years where Scott hasn’t missed playing in a Major! Scott’s only Major win, of course, came in the 2013 Masters but his competitive longevity is evidenced from having top-10s on both the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour this season. A long shot, for sure, but worth an each-way look.
