Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau loom over Rory McIlroy bid for Major redemption

TROON – The list of potential winners of this week’s British Open at Royal Troon is a long one, as Rory McIlroy begins his latest bid to end a decade-long Major drought.

The Northern Irishman’s misery continued at the US Open in June, when he agonisingly finished second – one shot behind American Bryson DeChambeau – after bogeying three of his last four holes.

The pain of that loss took the world No. 2 a few days to process but, as he prepares for the British Open which starts on July 18, he is feeling no added pressure in his quest to claim a fifth career Major.

“I know I’m in a good spot,” McIlroy said on July 16 after playing his first practice round of the week.

“If I think about 2015 through 2020, that five-year stretch, I seldom had a realistic chance to win a Major championship... So I’d much rather have these close calls. It means that I’m getting closer.”

The 35-year-old, who has not won a Major since the 2014 PGA Championship, also spoke about how he dealt with the US Open disappointment.

“I went from being very disappointed and dejected to trying to focus on the positives, to then wanting to learn from the negatives and then getting to the point where you become enthusiastic and motivated to go again,” he said.

“It’s funny how your mindset can go from ‘I don’t want to see a golf course for a month’ to four days later being ‘I can’t wait to get another shot at it’. When that disappointment turns to motivation, that’s when it’s time to go again.”

McIlroy is in good form, having tied for fourth at last week’s Scottish Open.

“I feel like my preparations have been going well. Just getting myself familiar again with links conditions, links turf, green speeds. We play a majority of our golf in the States and green surfaces there are quite different to here,” he added.

The British Open is the oldest of the four Majors and often the most unpredictable, given the vagaries of the weather and the fickle nature of links golf.

The 152nd edition promises to be wide open with a host of players looming as genuine contenders.

World No. 1 and Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, seeking his third Major title, always seems to be in contention.

“I’m excited. The golf course is great. We should get some good wind this week... which increases the challenge of this golf course. It should be fun,” said the American, who has won six times on the PGA Tour this season in 15 starts.

Ninth-ranked DeChambeau has played better than anyone in the 2024 Majors, having tied for sixth at the Masters and finished second at the PGA Championship before winning his second US Open crown.

“I come in here with the most confidence, obviously, off a Major championship win. Played decent last week, as well,” he said.

“I know how to get the job done. It’s just a matter of if I’m as consistent as I was at the US Open last month. If I can play the golf that I have been playing, I’ll give myself a great chance.”

Other likely contenders, include PGA Championship winner and world No. 3 Xander Schauffele, fourth-ranked Swede Ludvig Aberg, 2021 British Open champion Collin Morikawa and two-time Major winner Jon Rahm.

American Brian Harman is the defending champion at the US$17 million (S$22.8 million) Major – the winner takes home US$3.1 million – but not a favourite.

Royal Troon, situated next to the Irish Sea, will provide a tough test. The Ayrshire layout has one of the most difficult closing stretches in championship golf, and eight of the last nine holes play into the prevailing wind.

The 2024 edition also features the longest hole in British Open history. The sixth was 601 yards when the event was last played on the Ayrshire links in 2016, but it will measure 623 yards this time.

Overall, the course will play 195 yards longer than in 2016, when Sweden’s Henrik Stenson held off American Phil Mickelson in one of the greatest final-round duels in its history. REUTERS, AFP