Muirfield expected to offer fair test
Open course predictable
GULLANE, Scotland — One of the best players who never won a major would love a crack at one now.
Colin Montgomerie used to say it was harder than ever to win a major because each year it seemed that Tiger Woods won two, Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson or Vijay Singh won another and that left only one for everyone else. Those days are gone. Over the last five years, 18 players have won the last 20 majors, and Woods has none of those wins. And this year? It could be anybody. Darren Clarke won in his 54th major. Keegan Bradley won in his first. Rory McIlroy won when he was 22. Els won when he was 42.
The next chance is the 142nd British Open, which returns Thursday to Muirfield for the 16th time, dating to 1892.
Muirfield is reputed to be the fairest of the links courses on the rotation, mainly because there are no tricks and very few blind shots. The course consists of two loops running in opposite directions so that golfers will face the wind in every direction by the end of the day. Muirfield is perhaps more predictable than the others.
Not so easy is finding a player at the top of his game.
The search ordinarily would start with Woods, and for good reason. The world’s No. 1 player has won four times this year, and during a two-month stretch in the spring, he won three out of four tournaments, the exception a tie for fourth in the Masters.
Now, more mystery envelops Woods. He offered limited details at the U.S. Open about an injury in his left elbow that had been bothering him for a month. Woods has not played since he tied for 32nd at the U.S. Open, and until recently said he can’t guarantee he’ll be at full strength at Muirfield.
On Saturday, Woods said on his website that he’s “confident” that the injury won’t bother him this week.
McIlroy is one of two players to win multiple majors in the last five years — Padraig Harrington, with back-to-back major wins in 2008 is the other — but he has become an afterthought this year. Ernie Els closed with a 68 to win the British Open last year at Royal Lytham & St Annes golf club in Lytham St Annes, England. In the last five years, 18 players have won the last 20 majors.
After building a big lead atop the world ranking at the close of 2012, the 24-year-old from Northern Ireland made a wholesale equipment change at the start of the year and has had only one reasonable chance to win, at the Texas Open.
After missing the cut at the Irish Open, he said he felt “lost.”
Graeme McDowell has three wins, second only to Woods this year, though even he isn’t sure what to expect. In his last eight tournaments, McDowell has won three times and missed the cut the other five times.
“When it’s been good, it’s been really good,” McDowell said.
Woods can relate. He won his first major as a pro with a record performance at the Masters. He had the career Grand Slam when he was 24. He was on his way to a calendar Grand Slam in 2002 when Muirfield and some fickle weather stopped him. Two shots out of the lead going into the third round, Woods couldn’t cope with a cold rain and 40-mph wind that sent him to an 81, still the highest score of his career.
But he is seeing more players emerge to challenge him — McIlroy the last two years, Adam Scott and Justin Rose this year.
“If you look at most golfers, their prime years are usually in their 30s,” Woods said. “It takes a while to learn how to win at this level and learn how to do it consistently. ... There’s so much to learn out there, and I think that generally you see some of the guys don’t mature into their games until their 30s.”
But Muirfield has a way of bringing out the best. Dating to World War II, the seven players who have won a British Open at Muirfield are all in the World Golf Hall of Fame.