GOLF: BRITISH OPEN:GOLF WORSHIPS its heroes, epitomised here at Sandwich by the iconic images of Seve Ballesteros stencilled onto the hoardings in front of the grandstand around the 18th green.
It is on this site, come Sunday evening, that the 140th champion of the British Open will be presented with the Claret Jug and, in the world of romantic notions and the sport’s thirst for a new superhero, the favoured choice as the old trophy’s recipient would be a certain gentleman called Rory McIlroy.
Of course, it’s not as straightforward as that.
If McIlroy is to follow-up his victory in last month’s US Open with back-to-back Major successes, he will have to conquer many things: firstly, the links which is as quirky as you get on a championship course; secondly, a quality field that may be missing Tiger Woods but which has in-form players of the calibre of Luke Donald and Lee Westwood to name but two; and, thirdly, a weather outlook which forecasts winds that will likely test mental fortitude as much as physical attributes and shot-making.
So, there are many imponderables to consider as this course over the humps and hollows of Royal St George’s – which has played host to the oldest Major of them all on 13 previous occasions – contrives to create the champion golfer of 2011 over the next four days.
For sure, the weight might have been lifted from McIlroy’s shoulders with his breakthrough Major win at Congressional; but the expectation levels, it would seem, have risen greatly.
Yesterday, we got a snapshot of what the future holds. Charl Schwartzel, Louis Oosthuizen and Darren Clarke walked off the 18th green as three significant parts of a quartet finishing their practice rounds. The din from the crowds and surge onto the crush barriers, however, was directed at only one man: McIlroy. He is the face of the sport’s newest era, and he would later remark that he now understood why Woods would traditionally be up bright and early to get his work on the course started and done before the crowds had swarmed in through the entrance gates.
The good news? All seems well with McIlroy, who hasn’t played a competitive round since that Sunday in June outside Washington DC when he closed out a Major deal for the first time. McIlroy played 18 holes with Clarke yesterday and, from the 11th, were joined for the closing holes by Schwartzel and Oosthuizen. Take note: McIlroy and Clarke took the money.
“I’ve prepared well these last 10 days, just working on shots I need here . . . I feel as if I’ve seen the course in all conditions,” said McIlroy, who finished third behind Oosthuizen at St Andrews last year when he was blown off track in the second-round gales.
Of McIlroy now compared to McIlroy then, the man himself remarked: “Physically I feel a lot stronger but also mentally I’m a lot better than I was last year. So, that was a good lesson to learn. If I’m going up against that (wind factor) again this year, hopefully I’ll deal with it a bit better . . . I can’t wait to get back at it again. I’ve played three practice rounds now. I feel like I know the course as best as I can. I’m hitting the ball well. Everything’s in good shape so I’m just looking forward to getting out there and getting competitive again.”
For this week’s challenge, McIlroy has taken a five-wood out of his bag and replaced it with a two-iron “to keep the ball (flight) a little lower”. He had to dig the club out of his garage, it’s been so long since he used it, and felt obliged to get it tested to ensure it was still legal. It is. “Hopefully it’ll be a big help,” said McIlroy, who was prompted to search for the club after seeing Gary Woodland using a similar club to great effect in the Memorial Tournament last month.
On this links and in this championship, the weather can be a tremendous influencing factor. The belief about getting on the right side of the draw often holds true but, ultimately, that is in the lap of the gods. For the most part, players must get on with the job of preparing and then bring their game out onto the course where every shot counts.
McIlroy heads into the championship as golf’s current favoured son, but the three other Irish players in the field – Graeme McDowell, Pádraig Harrington and Clarke – are not without serious ambitions of their own. And, of course, there are a bunch of others. Donald. Westwood. Martin Kaymer. Steve Stricker. Nick Watney perhaps? What of Jason Day, second in the last two Majors? Or an overdue win for an Aussie? What of Sergio Garcia?
Donald – the world number one and a player with four tour wins so far this season, including last week’s Scottish Open – is in no doubt this is a championship that could be won ugly rather than with beautiful shot-making. Patience, too, will be critically important for whoever dares to dream the dream.
As Donald put it, “the guy that can scrap it around and make pars from off the greens, (who can) hole some long putts and keep the momentum going, especially when it’s very tough . . . that’s the key.”
And whilst the weather could be an influencing factor, the course – too – is one which offers a test unlike any other on the British Open rota. Some of the quirky and weird bounces on the fairways would test the patience of a saint, and the greens contrast sharply: some are flattish, others as undulating and tiered as you’d find anywhere. It is part of Sandwich’s character, but also why favouritism carries no divine right to a winning outcome.
McIlroy, of course, knows all that. But that won’t stop him trying his darndest.
