The Round Table with thoughts on the 154th Open Championship

Each week, we ask our panel of writers, PGA members and golf industry experts to weigh in with their views on the hot topics of the day.

It’s Open Championship week and the tournament returns to Royal Birkdale where in 2017, Jordan Spieth put together one of the best ever closing stretches to snag the Claret Jug. Birkdale is the home of Tommy Fleetwood who is looking for his first major. Other prominent sub-plots include Scottie Scheffler looking to rebound after his first missed cut in forever, Masters Champion Rory McIlroy going for another Jug and Cameron Young, who seems to be a regular fixture on major leaderboards lately, searching for his first major. There are plenty of other compelling storylines too.  What’s your favourite?

Jim Deeks, Fairways Magazine (@jimdeeks): Wouldn’t it be nice if home-grown Tommy Fleetwood could find the magic and win in his backyard? He’s such a likeable guy, and after years of being a bridesmaid, he managed to win the Tour Championship last Fall.

Craig Loughry, Golf Ontario (@craigloughry): For me, it’s Tommy Fleetwood. Royal Birkdale is a home game, it comes with pressure, but he knows this place like the back of his hand, and his ball striking is world class. He’s had enough close calls to make this feel like the right stage for a breakthrough. Winning your first major is always compelling but doing it at home in The Open would be epic.

Michael Schurman, Master Professional / Hall of Fame Member, PGA of Canada: Of the stories you offer, Tommy Fleetwood playing at home has to be near the top. The Spieth debacle in 2017 when he was allowed to play from the Driving Range, 80 yards right of the fairway, will always taint his victory. Rory is in full flight, and a Robert McIntyre victory would be fun. Windham Clarke could make it back-to-back national opens. The one big story for me will be the fans showing how to behave while showing their pleasure for great shots.

TJ Rule, Golf Away Tours (@GolfAwayTJ):  I’m pulling for the local boy and fan favourite Tommy Fleetwood, hoping he can find the magic this week for his first major.  It would be a perfect place for him to get one.  I think the field is wide open this year with nobody dominating coming into the event, so hopefully that leads to some nice surprises and a lot of guys in contention come Sunday. Let’s go Tommy!

Peter Mumford, Fairways Magazine: My preference would be to see Jordan Spieth rekindle more of that Seve-like magic and bag another Claret Jug. However, that’s something of a longshot so I’ll pick the Tommy Fleetwood story. Winning your first major at home would be a wonderful Cinderella story.

Each year a number of players put winning a major down as one of their goals. For some, a major victory is the next logical step in their career; for others with one or more already in the trophy case, it’s a case of meeting very high expectations and validating an elite legacy. Which player will be most disappointed if he doesn’t nab the year’s final major? (Scheffler, Hovland, Aberg, Shauffele, Morikawa, Young, Fitzpatrick, Fleetwood, Rose, Spieth, McIlroy etc.)

Deeks: Of the group you listed, I would say Fleetwood (cuz it’s in his backyard), Fitzpatrick (cuz he’s British and seems to expect to win every event he plays in), and Hovland (cuz he’s failed to achieve early expectations) would be most disappointed.  Rose would be disappointed, too, because he undoubtedly realizes his chances diminish with each passing year, despite the fact that he’s been playing as well as ever the last two years, and because he’s finished 2 or T2 in six majors in his career.

Loughry: Lots to pick from, but I’ll go with Scheffler. He’s been the best player on the planet for an extended stretch and sets an incredibly high standard for himself. After this rare missed cut, I expect him to be motivated. Winning majors is the ultimate measuring stick, and when you’re playing at his level, anything less than contending on Sunday would feel like a missed opportunity.

Schurman: Declaring a goal of winning a major is pretty confident ‘stuff’. There are so many unknowns and things that are beyond a player’s control. I understand a player wanting to win and making the effort to prepare but only a limited few can actually announce it and do it. However, Tommy Fleetwood has to have high expectations as does Rory.

Rule: Given his dominance of the game the last few years, I’d have to say Scottie, as I’m sure he expects to win at least one each year, which is a tough goal to achieve, but he’s the one guy these days who should almost expect it. Cameron Young has also been knocking on the door so often at major championships in the past few years, he would no doubt be disappointed to be shut out for another year and have to wait until April to get another shot.

Mumford: Like Nicklaus and Woods, Scottie Scheffler has reached that exalted level of high performance and consistency that he expects to win a major every year. His numbers this year are off the charts – except for wins. Missing out on a major would be a huge disappointment and a perplexing outcome for someone who contends as often as he does.

Who’s your pick to win the Claret Jug on Sunday?

Deeks: Fleetwood will buckle under hometown pressure, Rose will be up on the leaderboard, Rahm will be there too before blowing his stack, and Rory will come out on top.

Loughry: I’m going Rory. He’s already checked off one major this season, his game travels well in tough Open conditions, and he seems to be playing with a little more freedom than we’ve seen in recent years. If Rory keeps the driver under control and putts reasonably well, I like his chances to add another Claret Jug to the collection.

Schurman: I always ‘mooch’ out and pick 3 favourites. Tommy Fleetwood, Rory McIlroy and Mathew Fitzpatrick. I hope the wind blows.

Rule: Well, over the past few years, my picking a player to win has been a curse to that player, so I’m not going to pick Tommy to win.  I do think that Chris Gotterup has a good chance of being there on Sunday given his hot play and the fact he’s won in Scotland on a links-Ish golf course.  But my pick to win is Patrick Reed, mostly so that I jinx him enough to miss the cut!

Mumford: My record of picking winners is abysmal. My hunch is that it will be a European player cuz they always seem to rise to the fore in the Open. Think McIlroy, Rahm, Aberg, Hovland, Fleetwood, Fitzpatrick, Rose, Lowry and McIntyre. Basically, the European Ryder Cup roster. Out of that group, I think Rory probably has the best mindset to win his second Claret Jug.

On a local note, Brooke Henderson had a stellar final round at the Amundi Evian Championship in France on Sunday, closing with a 64 and coming from seven shots behind to tie Haeran Ryu and force a playoff, which she lost due to a bad drive on the first playoff hole.  Have Brooke’s last two major results (3rd, 2nd) indicated she’s returned to the form that’s eluded her the last couple of seasons?

Deeks:

Loughry: Brooke had one heck of a weekend and tournament. Tough playoff loss, but she made a bucket full of eagles and an ace. And it probably felt good to contend in a Major, hopefully she can build off this and have more regular top finishes or a win.

Schurman: Brooke Henderson has played the LPGA TOUR for over 10 years. She has travelled around the world, made numerous exhibition appearances and performed in many sponsor commercials. She has enjoyed a wonderful career but all of that takes a toll. Yes, she played a fantastic final round bolstered by two eagles and an ace. But if a round like that was required, she was a long way back starting the round.

Mumford: Professional golfers are very tight-lipped about what’s really going on in their lives—Tiger Woods was the poster boy for this, never revealing any details about his health, just saying he was “close”—and Brooke hasn’t indicated any particular problems or injuries. Maybe the adjustment to a new caddie was a bigger deal than we thought, but she seems to have that well in hand recently. My analysis of Brooke is that she’s streaky. Her grip-it-and-rip-it style works for a while but then goes cold, much like her putting. When they’re both working though, she’s tough to beat. It’s great to see her playing so well now, right when the LPGA has a cluster of majors.