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Unless you have problems, like me, you probably sleep for the beginning of the British Open on Thursday. Golf Channel went online for the very first time, just after 1:30 am ET and 6:30 am local time in Scotland. We are approaching the midpoint of a full coverage of 14.5 hours and have a lot to review. So while you pour your coffee or you just work, let's catch up before ignoring the rest of your obligations and enjoying the second part of the day. Here are some of the highlights and themes of the beginning of the biggest major championship golf.
Morning Plan
We heard all week about the divergent strategies caused by the conditioning of these burned bonds. The bombers, including Jon Rahm, said that they thought they would hit many drivers in an attempt to erase all the problems and pot bunkers. We did not expect to see many players hitting the driver at the 3rd hole, a par 4 shorter with precisely placed bunkers. But Rahm pulled the big stick and carried it perfectly over the problem and found himself in the heart of the green a few hundred yards away.
We can see some of the biggest hitters in the world, but none will do it. as well as this. The most likely game will be suspended as you have seen with partners Chris Rahm and Rickie Fowler.
Thomas Pieters, another great bomber, opened his championship by putting one on the first green, which was 390 yards up there. Get used to seeing this a bit chosen over the next few days.
Clbad Ground Play
One reason we love the Open is the creativity that it requires around the green. Grasping your 60-degree corner and hacking some rough is rarely the game. But there are options, unlike most US golf tour, where this hack is the game only . We have seen this variety and creativity in the consecutive holes of one of the power groups in the morning wave.
After Justin Rose hit a beautiful chip that snuck a juuuuust around a pot bunker, Jordan Spieth pulled out the putter on the next hole to bypbad a similar hurdle. Look how far it gets!
This is what makes the Open a different, interesting watch from other majors each year. Rose fell in slow motion with a run and Spieth stayed all the way with a putter, both pulling him apart and putting him closer than what seemed possible. We do not receive requests for this creativity almost every other week on the calendar
Scottish Fun
When I woke up, I was not expecting to meet Sandy Lyle, content generator. But the Scottish 60 has provided Thursday at 1:30 pm. Lyle, who almost certainly plays at his last Open, has come forward to lead the championship with the air of a volunteer.
It is 130 o'clock in the morning but it took me a few minutes to realize Sandy Lyle and not a volunteer marshall who was leading the Open. pic.twitter.com/zuWtosKTG3
– Brendan Porath (@BrendanPorath) July 19, 2018
This does not look like a competitor. This sounds like a local retiree who volunteered for the free hat, the golf shirt, and the windbreaker in exchange for holding a "quiet" sign for a few days.
We usually see logos everywhere on these players, but not the official logo of the tournament. Lyle looks like a fan who is a little too eager in the merchandise tent not a multiple champion and a golf legend. He even had the matching golf shirt under the coat. It's the kind of meticulousness that is an innocent fun and may appeal only to extreme golf nerds, but I want to thank Sandy Lyle, who looks like a good guy, for providing this morning.
Jets and Choppers
The most dramatic question of the morning was whether Jhonattan Vegas would make its start time at 10:31. Todd Lewis of Golf Channel reported that Vegas, who spent the week fighting a visa issue, would not be landing in Glasgow until 8:45. He then took a helicopter through Scotland and up to Carnoustie in a race against the clock. to be against me for getting my visa and doing @TheOpen . First of all, @UPS mechanical problem and pbadport is late and second, the time across New York and the flight is late. Probably need to find another flight.
– Jhonattan Vegas (@JhonattanVegas) July 17, 2018
Oh, and he also did not have his golf clubs, which were separated from him while he was banging and changing travel plan in a desperate attempt to finally get there. His equipment sponsor threw a set for him and Vegas went to the beach in time for a quick warm up. But yes, playing without seeing the course and without practice and new clubs that you have never used after spending the night is not the ideal preparation for the start of a major championship!
Carnicety
I'm sorry I'm trying to delete this subtitle, but what has become known as Carnasty is actually playing quite benign. We knew it was cooked, with the fairways running as fast as the greens. But with the putting surfaces so receptive and, well, green, there should be some low numbers throughout the day. To sum up:
- the firmness of the fairways makes the longest course on the Open rota much shorter
- the greens are relatively slow and gentle, with throwing shots stopping on a ten meters the day
- there is very little wind
This is a combination for a super low round and a lot of red all over the rankings. It is still early, but if these conditions are maintained, we will have a 65 and maybe lower
Continue, guys
The first group of Lyle, Martin Kaymer, and Andy Sullivan came in a good 20 minutes ahead of schedule. Euros are always better on the rhythm of play and the respect of the calendar. Hope this is the kind of rhythm we get for the week.
Coming Soon
Tiger hangs the back half of the T-shirt with an extremely late tee time. He leaves at 3:21 pm local and 10:21. in the eastern United States, we will see some greens that are a bit trampled in relation to the conditions of the morning wave. Here are some of the groups of capitals to come in the afternoons wave in Scotland:
7:53: Rory McIlroy, Marc Leishman, Thorbjorn Olesen
8:04 am: Dustin Johnson, Alex Noren, Charley Hoffman [19659031] 08:26: Justin Thomas, Francesco Molinari, Branden Grace
9:48: Padraig Harrington, Bubba Watson, Matt Wallace
9:59 am: Ian Poulter, Cameron Smith, Brooks Koepka
10: 10h: Sergio Garcia, Bryson DeChambeau , Shubhankar Sharma
10h21: Tiger Woods, Hideki Matsuyama, Russell Knox
Rank of the boat
The first leader was Gopher from South Africa and former Minnesota Erik Van Rooyen. The general fan has probably never heard of him, but he is built like a brick house and has shown a lot of play lately. It's not shocking to see him play here after finishing among the top five on a linking run two weeks ago at the Irish Open. This has propelled it into the top 150 in the world – we are not talking about a high ranked player here, but it has the talent to display that kind of mid-60 number and is not a total unknown. Margins can be incredibly thin from the No. 150 in the world and from No. 15. Now comes the hardest thing to have to save a 67 with another number on Friday.
Here is your live ranking as more and more players enter the club:
