The true links were moulded by divine hands. Links-land, the fine grasses, the wind-made bunkers that defy imitation, the exquisite contours that refuse to be sculptered by hand--all these were given lavishly by a divine dispensation to the British.
ROBERT HUNTER
Can you feel it? If not, this Jaime Diaz love letter to the Open Championship should do the trick, beginning with the possibly rhetorical question in the header:
What makes the British Open the best of the four majors
Everything. Final answer.
Here's Jaime's lede:
The British … I mean the Open Championship is my favorite event. Professionally, it’s the best of all to cover. Personally, the entire weeklong experience never fails to leave me with a feeling of renewal.
I’ve marked the trips with mementos. Never thrown away one of the bargain cashmere sweaters I got in the 1980s when the pound was weak, or any of the too-many lithographs of cult classic courses that I’ve never framed. Many of the best books in my golf library came from Quarto, a musty secondhand bookstore at 8 Golf Place in St. Andrews, which sadly closed in 2006.
All majors are a wonderful gathering of golf people, but The Open is different in that everyone plays golf during their visit. The midsummer light allows early morning rounds (which allow a return to the media center by 10 a.m.) or, even better, late evening nines that leave you the best version of tired.\
Every Open is a pilgrimage to ancestral ground. It reminds you of how you arrived in the game, and why you stayed. I think I got a head start on the links spirit by being from San Francisco, with its gray, cool, blustery climate. The tawny hue of seaside grasses and smell of the ocean took me back to Lincoln Park, where the rumpled and barren fourth hole tumbles with ancient feel. My formative moments are why the Peter Thomson description of controlling an iron shot—“The thrill of squeezing a ball against the firm turf, trying to keep it low into a buffeting wind, is something that lingers in the mind forever”—will always be one of my favorite sentences in the golf canon.
What he said. It's very hard to explain to Americans the feel of links golf.... It's the same game, yet completely different.... Shall we give Jaime a little more space?
My first links experience was at St. Andrews, in 1974. I got there near the end of a month-long Eurail pass, getting off at the small station at Leuchars, the town that Bernard Darwin wrote would send him “into ecstasy” when he heard the conductor call it out. If memory serves, my round on the Old Course cost £3.50. Tip Anderson, Arnold Palmer’s regular caddie at the British Open, looped in my group.
The first Open I worked was at Lytham in 1988. Notebook in hand, the links seemed to intensify the senses. The air, full of salt and chlorophyll, was energizing. The turf seemed springy, and on a wide, flat expanse of land with no trees or water hazards, it was easier to see. The shots the pros faced, especially with the wind blowing, seemed more interesting. And the way the last hole finished hard against the clubhouse, as it does on several courses on the Open rota, lent majesty to the final act.
They ARE more interesting, both to watch and to play.... My first links experience was also on the Old Course, a last minute attempt to get on as a single with rented clubs in a pair of Wallabees. Watching the ball bounce insanely on the rock-hard turf was triggering.... in a good way.
Enjoy his memories of the Opens he's covered. Like your humble correspondent, he seems to especially feel the pain of the losers.....
Josh Berow has some Monday reflections, including this on the first hole:
2. Here's the scene on the 1st tee as Marc Leishman and crew were getting ready totee off. Based on its history, this opener is a gut-punch of a welcomer to Royal Birkdale. When the Open was here in 2008, this ranked as the fifth-hardest hole on the PGA Tour that season.3. The first thing I noticed when walking the 1st hole, and later as the day went on, is the narrowness of the landing zones in the fairways. Ball-striking off the tee will be critical—that's why Johnny Miller hit 1-iron on 12 of 14 tees when he won the 1976 Open here.
In '76 it was baked out, think Hoylake '06. It won't be quite that fast this week, but DJ is planning on hitting only four drivers....
This, though, is pretty silly:
4. Word is local boy Tommy Fleetwood has played Royal Birkdale more than 20 times in the past month, through his own practice and corporate events. Sleeper pick, anyone?
Oh, pulleaze! He's No. 14 in the OWGR and a local boy, he's nobody's idea of a sleeper at this point... And, just for a little local color, anyone know what a sleeper is over there? It's a railroad tie... and lest you think that Pete Dye originated their use in golf, you can see them next door at S&A Golf Club. Most of you will not be familiar with that name, but it's formal name is Southport & Ainsdale, and it hosted two Ryder Cups in the 1930's.
Gary Van Sickle has some fun with the adventures of the Claret Jug, including an actual typo:
WHAT THE ELL?The claret jug has a typographical error? Or in this case, a typo-etch-ical error? That's right. When The jug visited Walt Disney World Golf in January, the North Florida PGA group noticed the original engraving error made in 1947, when Fred Daly won the Open at Hoylake. The engraver carved it as "Holylake." No, there is no spellcheck if you're an engraver.
I'm less surprised about the typo than I am with the colloquialism.....Shouldn't that be Royal Liverpool?
And this is just plain disgusting:
MEET THE BEETLESYes, the claret jug has been infested with bugs. When Padraig Harrington won the Open at Carnoustie, he promised his son, Patrick, that he could use the claret jug as a home for his growing collection of ladybird beetles (ladybugs), which entomologists call coccinellidae. Patrick had previously used Lego pieces as a ladybird housing development for beetles prospering near his home beneath the Dublin mountains. "The ladybirds went in," the Open champion confirmed when he defended his title the following summer. In fact, he had ladybirds engraved on the replica claret jug he kept.
Yuck!
Wither the weather?
Those wind numbers are hourly for Wednesday.... Thursday and Friday they pick up, with gusts into the mid-20's. 17C is 63 Fahrenheit, so I'm unsure whether we'll see ski hats.
Pickage? First the guys putting down actual quiddage, including Alex Myers:
Sergio Garcia (£10 to win at 18/1): Yes, he already won the green jacket in April, but if Mark O'Meara could pull off the Masters-Open double at Royal Birkdale, why can't Sergio? Besides, I bet on him to win the British Open every year. If he wins the one time I don't, I won't be happy. Garcia has the lowest odds of anyone who I'm betting on. I had also planned on backing Jordan Spieth, but I can't bet on two players at sub-20/1 odds out of principle. Sort of like how I refused to pay to use the bathroom at the Liverpool train station out of principle. True story.
Adam Scott (£10 to win at 28/1): A difficult Royal Birkdale, which puts a premium on iron play, sets up well for ball-strikers like Garcia and Scott. Plus, the the Aussie seems owed a claret jug after nearly winning three straight years from 2012 to 2014. With a lot of rain in the forecast, could we see him winning another major in the mist?
I really can't warm up to Adam Scott, though Alex is after a useful profile. The greens are very flat at Birkdale, so you'll not need to be a great putter (not that that's ever a bad thing). Great ball-strikers with sufficient discipline to leave the driver's headcover on are the ticket.
The photo above is from our 2010 trip to Southport. I can't remember which hole this is, but it shows the beautifully defined driving corridors typical to Birkdale. That definition comes partially from the beautiful dune lines, but also from the 123 pot bunkers.... Do the math, that's an average of seven per hole. Avoiding those is Job #1 for the players, as the ball cannot be advanced any meaningful distance from within.
Alex, however, loses me with this pick:
Jason Day (£10 to win at 33/1): He was on my flight heading over, and we had a nice chat beforehand so I'm picking him. How's that for analysis? No, seriously, you have to make at least one bet based on a sign or a hunch. I also liked how no one other than one flight attendant seemed to know who he was.
There may not be a player in the field that I like less than Jason Day. His world ranking ensures that he's over-priced, but he's shown no form and has only the one gear in his arsenal.
Shack had this:
Oddschecker is sensational for up-to-the-minute (literally) prices.Full disclosure: I've placed each-way bets on Rickie Fowler (18-1), Alexander Levy (250-1) and intend to add Wesley Bryan at 300-1.
I can't find a pick better than Rickie... He's way overdue, has proven himself on the links and his relentlessly upbeat attitude is perfect for the conditions. Just a reminder though to anyone late to the party, that your humble blogger remains the '62 Mets of Fantasy Golf. In this case, the humility is well-earned....
Shack has Ten Players to Watch at Golfweek here, though written before the Scottish. Other golf writer picks here and here.
I'd summarize it all by noting that there's more love for Justin Rose and Jordan Spieth than expected, though I'd love the cosmic irony of the latter winning after heading over early. I know, 2015 was an eternity ago and I shouldn't be bitter, but the effin John Deere. Really, Jordan, what were you thinking?
We don't do much scripting here, but Nike is all over it this week:
First Rory:
Then JDay:
Exit question: Will we see the bottom row for either of these guys?
Look for a bonus post later.
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