Rory McIlroy says fast-running British Open fairways a ‘double-edged sword’

Southport – Rory McIlroy said the recent UK heatwave that has transformed conditions ahead of this week’s British Open is a “double-edged sword”.

Players who often lag behind their rivals for driving distance may now see their shots getting extra run on the fairways of a Royal Birkdale course in north-west England baked hard and fast by soaring temperatures.

But equally, anyone wayward off the tee may not face the same consequences of what McIlroy said on July 15 was the once “penal rough” of a few weeks ago.

“I think it’s a double-edged sword,” said McIlroy, who began his quest for a second British Open title on July 16 after triumphing at nearby Hoylake back in 2014.

The 37-year-old Northern Irishman, the reigning US Masters champion, added: “All this dry weather and sun and a little bit of wind is obviously great for the course in one way, but when I was here a couple weeks ago the rough was a lot more penal than it’s going to be this week. It’s definitely burnt out a lot.

“The big thing, especially off the tee here, is avoiding the fairway bunkers. You might see some guys being more aggressive off the tee, taking driver, trying to take the fairway bunkers out of play.

“It might be in the rough, but it’s not that penal, so you get a wedge in your hand and you can figure it out from there,” explained McIlroy, one of just six golfers to have completed the career Grand Slam of Major titles – the British Open, US Open, Masters and PGA Championship.

The British Open is played on a links or coastal course, with defending champion Scottie Scheffler’s most recent experience of those conditions seeing him miss the cut – the American’s first in four years – at last week’s Scottish Open.

“The ball’s just going to run for forever pretty much (at Birkdale),” the 30-year-old said on July 15.

“There’s a lot of thinking off the tee on whether you want to just hit driver up there somewhere and play from the rough most likely or start hitting some irons, getting it in some fairways and hitting some longer shots into the greens.

“If it wasn’t as firm as it is now there wouldn’t be as much decision-making but with the firmness, it creates a whole lot more challenges just to try to control your ball and figure out where it’s going to end up.”

It sets up significantly different conditions than when Jordan Spieth won the 2017 British Open at Royal Birkdale.

Then, he and the rest of the field spent four days battling wind, rain and tangled fescue so sodden that iron wrists were required to hack errant balls from it.

While Spieth’s rain gear and umbrella are unlikely to see much use this week, the American says the sea breezes combined with unforgiving hard fairways will give the course teeth.

“It’s almost impossible to overestimate the wind,” he said this week. “I feel like I underestimate it every single time the first three or four days that I’m playing golf here.

“The effect on the golf ball is magnified almost double what it is in the States.” AFP, REUTERS