Open Thursday

Thence during its outward journey it skirts the sandhills on the landward side, and one or two of the holes are just a little inland in character and not particularly entertaining. The homeward journey is, on the whole, the more fascinating, and from the eleventh hole onwards there are a succession of hills and valleys of a truly heroic character. If, however, there are one or two dullish holes on the way out, the course begins splendidly with as good a two-shot hole as can well be; too good a hole almost to play so early before the match has had time to develop. 

BERNARD DARWIN on Portrush

The Open always provides a viewing challenge....  does one watch the live broadcast upon arising, or start at the start on DVR?  I chose the latter, mostly to see of Darren Clarke could get the first drive in play with tears in his eyes...  He did, and went on to birdie the first, a glorious start for the home team.

But, remember Shack's warning about the internal OB?  Yup, and it caught a rather significant victim:

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — Rory McIlroy could hardly have faced more pressure on the first tee of the 2019 Open Championship. The native son. The tournament

favorite. McIlroy had finished his range session at Royal Portrush with a series of driving irons, which is exactly what the 424-yard par-4 1st hole demanded. 

As he walked from the putting green to the first tee, the crowd roared. As he was introduced, the first of his group, the crowd roared again. The wind was picking up, and rain began to fall. And then he hit his tee shot, and the crowd roared for a moment, and then fell silent. 

He pulled that driving iron at No. 1 and hit a high, hard hook that landed well left and kicked into the crowd, out of bounds left of the fairway.

There's OB on both sides of this hole.... To the right is, I believe, an actual property line, so no discussion there.  But left is the mirror image of No. 18, very much of the internal, unnecessary kind, apparently there as an homage to Mad Max Faulkner....

You're probably thinking that Rors sucked it up, mad ehis six (maybe even five) and got on with things.... Alas, no:

Oh, somewhere in this favoured land the sun is shining bright,

The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light;

And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout,

But there is no joy in Ulster—mighty Rory has made eight.

Eight?  Yeah, the lad made quite a thing of keeping his mood light this week, though perhaps it's all a bit too much:

Things hardly got better from there. McIlroy hooked his provisional tee shot, too, then hit his 4th shot left again, his club tugged by the thick rough.

He needed help finding that ball, which required a drop for an unplayable lie. Then McIlroy nearly got up-and-down — but his putt for triple bogey just slid by the edge. In the end, it added up to a quadruple-bogey 8 for McIlroy, leaving him wincing as he walked to No. 2 tee. The only good news? He still had 71 holes to go.

None of us can know how this feels to him, and maybe we'll look back and think it for the best.  A spirited recovery to make the cut might be a feel-good result.

No tears for Rors, because he'll get good use of this for a couple of days (see what I did there?  Let's concede him the four days):

Wild weather returned to Portrush Wednesday as players got their final practice in prior

to the Open Championship beginning Thursday morning. Along with that weather came the necessary rain gear, and perhaps none were more extravagant than that of Rory McIlroy. 

McIlroy rocked a Dodger blue raincoat during his final prep and his pre-tournament press conference. On the surface, that seems ordinary. What isn’t ordinary was the type of jacket: Nike’s collaboration with Stone Island. 

Stone Island is a luxury menswear brand, and their newest jacket with Nike will run customers a hefty $900.

But it has a special membrane?  You know what the best rain jacket is?  Tricked you, there isn't one....

Golf Digest has a betting guide, which contains some unintentional humor, more poignant after Rory's opening quad:

Rory McIlroy's momentum has continued to grow over the past couple of months, as more bettors realize his connections to the Northern Ireland links.

Do bettors not have the Internet?  Because it's pretty hard to look at any coverage of this event without a certain 61 being mentioned.

But it's not just forced narratives. The stats all point to Rory. Over his past 50 rounds, Rory leads the field in strokes gained/off-the-tee; strokes gained/ball-striking; strokes gained/tee-to-green and overall strokes gained, per FantasyNational.com. He's also No. 1 in birdies gained on the field; opportunities gained (which indicates birdie opportunities inside 15 feet); eagles gained and seventh in strokes gained/approaches. Rory gained more than 20 strokes on the field in his RBC Canadian Open win last month, and though he didn't look super sharp at last week's Scottish Open, he did seem to be hitting the ball great. As often is the case, it was the putter that let him down. You would think that the familiar putting surfaces at Portrush would help his flat stick wake up. Consider all that, and you realize why people are so high on Rory this week. It seems like he's playing too well in 2019 not to end the year with a major.

OK, but isn't it a bit obvious that this would be an emotional week for the guy?  It's not like he could come in under the radar....

Tiger Scat -  I've let some Tiger stuff slide, so shall we catch up a bit?  First, he made some news with these comments about his schedule:

“[Last year] I played too much,” said Woods, who made 17 starts in 2018. “A lot of it was trying to qualify for certain events, trying to get into the playoffs, trying to qualify

for Akron. It was just trying to build a schedule, to get me where my World Golf Ranking would get me up there where I'd be in the World Golf Championships and some of the bigger events, where I didn't need an exemption into the the U.S. Open. So this year I made a conscious effort to cut back on my schedule to make sure that I don't play too much. 

“I want to play here as long as I possibly can. And you have to understand, if I play a lot, I won't be out here that long.”

I get that he played too much last year, as does anyone that watched the Ryder Cup.  But Tiger has been telling us for decades that he needs his reps to get his feelz and dial in his traj...  Just sayin'.

There was also this:

British Open 2019: Why Tiger Woods is testing two Scotty Cameron putters at The Open

Might make sense, given his obvious struggles on slower greens... 

If you're inclined to like Tiger this week, you should take heart that he put in some work over the weekend, playing the full 18 on two consecutive days.  We haven't seen that from him any time recently, especially important given that it was hard to get any work in on Wednesday:

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — If Tiger Woods played any golf today, it wasn’t here. But by half past four he was on the practice tee in a spitting rain, the heavy stuff moving

in. He was in no rush to go anywhere. 

The 43-year-old Masters champ — the 43-year-old Masters champ! — was struggling with his right-foot footing and hitting more than a few dead pulls. Now and again, Woods took a few steps backwards to consult with Matt (Not the Swing Coach) Killen, notably a nice person with whom Woods can talk shop. 

It wasn’t as if Woods’ bad shots were so alarming. Every top-10 player — Woods is ranked fifth in the world — has bad practice sessions. What was alarming was his disposition. Tiger Woods seemed to be having the time of his life out there.

Attitude can be a big part of this event...  When I saw these images on GC's coverage last night, I wondered whether Tiger and Joe have ever played in the rain as a team.  A player and his caddie need to be in sync.

I love watching the players in difficult conditions, and always hope for some of it at this event.  Ironically, the conditions I craved came a day early, but at least Golfweek caught some of it in this gallery:

Ah yes, the traditional inside-out brolley....a tradition since 1860.

Everyone Talks About The Weather... - But they talk about it differently here, as it's an attempt to discern the good and bad sides of the draw.  Shack takes his best shot here:

The forecasters warned of a miserable Wednesday at Portrush and they were correct. Here is their prediction for the next two days if you’re hoping to figure out luck of @theopen draw (for you @edmac2020). Worst wind sounds like midday Thursday. pic.twitter.com/lyYlsnWNi4

— Geoff Shackelford (@GeoffShac) July 17, 2019

The early groups have certainly had an easy go of it....  So, names please, Geoff:

Given the tee times, the most significant chance for a disruptive wind event appears to be midday Thursday, potentially throwing a wrench in enthusiasm you might have for mid-morning and midday tee times by for names like Fowler, Matsuyama, McIlroy, Woodland, Casey, Molinari, DeChambeau and Scott.

Seems like Rory was in the morning wave, not that it helped him much.  But Tiger goes late as well...

Who Ya Got? -  The Golf.com gang:

Jonathan Wall: Xander Schauffele. Xander has a thing for the majors. He was runner-up at 2018 Open Championship and has finished T6 or better in four of the last six majors. I could see him taking down the field at Portrush. 

Josh Sens: Gimme Adam Scott. His winless season so far belies how well he’s played, having put himself into the mix in all the majors, not to mention a couple of runner-ups in other events. The man is back in form, and back to an event where he’s got a long, strong history. 

Sean Zak: Give me the man playing for Grandma. KUCH! Our Controversial Man of 2019, Matt Kuchar, gets revenge from Birkdale.

Revenge?  Wouldn't that require Jordan to be in contention?

Jeff Ritter: This first-time (in a long time) major venue feels like a spot for a first-time major winner. I’ll take Jon Rahm. At some point he’s going to control his emotions on a major weekend, and he just shot 62 to win the Irish Open — he’s gotta be in a good mood at the moment. 

Pat Ralph: Brooks Koepka. This guy is the best golfer in the world and he shows it every time he suits up in a major. He plays his best when the lights shine brightest, and he’s one of the few golfers in the field with some insight on Royal Portrush, thanks to his caddie, Ricky Elliott. A claret jug for Brooks!

Yawn.  The usual suspects....

Sometimes the sleepers can be more fun, as long as they're actually sleepers:

Jonathan Wall: Charley Hoffman. At 250/1, Hoffman is the epitome of a deep sleeper pick. Sure, he’s missed the cut in his last four starts, but you can’t overlook back-to-back top-20 finishes at The Open. I’ll bite.

Josh Sens: Matt Wallace. Hard to call a guy with his record a sleeper, but even his T3 at the PGA Championship didn’t really put him on the radar for the average state-side golf fan. He’s already proven he can win in Europe. Just a matter of time before he wins an event that makes headlines here. 

Sean Zak: Rafa Cabrera-Bello isn’t going to win The Open but he will play well and finish top 12. He’s faded in some big moments during his career, but he’s so darn solid he’s worth an each-way bet. 

Jeff Ritter: This first-time (in a long) major venue could produce a long-shot, out-of-nowhere winner. It’s been a while since The Open crowned a Paul Lawrie, a Todd Hamilton, or a Ben Curtis, and we’re due. Today, give me Erik van Rooyen at 125/1, a South African who just had a nice week at the Scottish Open, cracked the top 10 at the PGA at Bethpage and may be ready to take another step this week.

Pat Ralph: I agree with Ritter that, given the relative obscurity surrounding Portrush, a one-off, first-time winner could be coming this week. And I like a European’s chances after Americans have snapped up the first three majors this year. With that, give me Matt Wallace. A T3 at Bethpage and T12 at Pebble, Wallace is playing well and knocking on the door. 

Josh Berhow: Erik van Rooyen was my pick, too, but in the name of variety I shall identify someone else. Graeme McDowell has missed the cut in his last two starts but was playing well before then, which helped him get a spot at Portrush, where he’s from. You can’t underestimate how much this week means to him; he’ll play inspired golf.

I think those all qualify in the category, which is quite the achievement compared the the Golf Channel gang.  Last night I listened as Brandel took Frank Nobilo to task for selecting Patrick Cantlay as his sleeper.... And rightfully so, with Patrick currently tenth in the OWGR.

But his criticism was followed by his own selection, that of Xander Schauffele, who resides exactly one place lower in the OWGR.  Pot, kettle.

Golfweek picks here.

One last bit and then I'll leave you to get on with your day.  As we discussed Tuesday, everything in Northern Ireland leads back to William of Orange and the Battle of the Boyne.  Accordingly, props to Rickie for prudence in his apparel:

Good call.

The sun is out (I'm still behind real time), local boy Graeme McDowell has just teed off, and I shall now park myself in front of the tube for the foreseeable future.  Catch you tomorrow morning....