By Darren Heitner, Contributor
The British Open is in full swing at the Muirfield Golf Links in East Lothian, Scotland, with the best golfers in the world competing for a total purse of $8,000,000 ($1,400,000 going to the overall winner). Defending champion Ernie Els, at the ripe age of 43-years-old, hopes to become the 5th player in 50 years of the British Open to win the tournament in back-to-back years. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
The Open returns to Muirfield for the 16th time starting Thursday, with two straight weeks of sunshine having turned the famed Scottish links into a firm, fast and furious test for the best.
Drivers will seldom be seen and irons will be the weapon of choice off many tees as an elite field looks to stay out of the punishing rough and create the best angles to attack the pins at the par-71 East Lothian layout.
Graeme McDowell, the 2010 US Open champion who grew up playing on links in Northern Ireland and who will start among the favourites, compared golfing at Muirfield to playing a game of chess.
“This is certainly a game of chess this week, where you have to position your pieces and keep them in play,” he said.
“This golf course is all right there in front of you, there’s no hidden tricks to it. Good quality golf gets rewarded.
“You hit the shots, they’ll be where you expect them to be. It gives you half a chance around the greens. It’s very penal off the tee, about half a chance around the greens, gives you a chance to pitch and hit bunker shots, and doesn’t kind of unduly punish you too much.
“Nine out of ten times this golf course will reward good golf, and punish you off the tee, but give yourself opportunities up and around the greens.
“I think it’s a fair golf course which rewards great players and great golf, probably why we have so many great champions at this venue.”
A quick check down the list of past winners at Muirfield certainly confirms what McDowell says as they include Ernie Els, the last time it was played there in 2002, Nick Faldo in 1992 and 1987, Tom Watson (1980), Lee Trevino (1972), Jack Nicklaus (1966) and Gary Player (1959).
Tournament favourite Tiger Woods is eager to join that list and finally win his 15th major title, over five years after his last, which came at the 2008 US Open at Torrey Pines.
The 37-year-old American knows Muirfield well and not all his memories are fond ones.
The last time it was held there in 2002, he went out in his third round just as a storm system came out of the North Sea, whipping up havoc on the course and condemning the American to a 10-over 81, to date the worst score of his professional career.
That left him with no chance of making it three majors in a row, having already won the Masters and the US Open that year, and Woods has failed to get that far along the road to the Grand Slam since then.
Still, he insists he harbours no hard feelings.
“Look at the list of past champions. The number of Hall of Famers that there are who have won here,” said Woods, who said that the elbow injury that sidelined him after last month’s US Open is no longer a problem.
“I think it just goes to show you you really have to hit the ball well. You have to …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
This week is the 142nd rendition of the British Open (or simply, “The Open,” as it’s known across the pond), the oldest of the four golf majors. It is frequently unpredictable, both weather and winner-wise (for the past five years, the champion has come from outside of the world’s top ten world ranking). And it may be the most pleasing golf tournament of the year on the eyes. The game of golf was born on links courses like this year’s host, Muirfield. It was meant to be an outdoor game with all of the elements—the sea, the sun, the sand, the wind and the rain—playing a factor. Many courses around the world these days feel and look a bit too manicured. But Muirfield—tousled by the elements—has endured, ancient and everlasting. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
Tournament favourite Tiger Woods will join Ulsterman Graeme McDowell and South African Louis Oosthuizen for Thursday’s first round of the British Open.
The 37-year-old American, who will be playing competitively for the first time in a month after spraining his left elbow during the US Open, is seeking a 15th major title, over five years after winning his last at the 2008 US Open.
In McDowell he will have the 2010 US Open champion, who won his third title of the year at the French Open on July 7.
Oosthuizen won the British Open at St Andrews in 2010, with Woods having won the title there in 2005 and 2000.
They will have a mid-afternoon start on Thursday at 2:45 pm (1545 GMT) and a 9:44 am (1044 GMT) start on Friday.
Defending champion Ernie Els will go out with Justin Rose, who won the US Open last month and American Brandt Snedeker, seen as one of the finest putters in the game but who has yet to win a major.
Rory McIlroy, winless this year after making an equipment change that has seen his form slump, is paired with Phil Mickelson, who is back up to fifth in the world after winning the Scottish Open on Sunday and rising Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama.
Other top groupings see Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia and Charl Schwartzel brought together as well as Masters champion Adam Scott, Matt Kuchar and Luke Donald.
First out on Thursday at 6:32 am (0732) will be Australian veteran Peter Senior, local lad Lloyd Saltman and Oliver Fisher of England.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
By Bob Harig If he had it to do over again, Ernie Els said he would have tried to talk Rory McIlroy out of withdrawing during the second round of the Honda Classic on Friday. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at ESPN Headlines
