Betting Stat Pack: The 151st Open Championship

15H AGO

The fourth and final major championship of the 2023 season will feature the links of Royal Liverpool Golf Club which hosts the tournament for the 13th time on the western coast of England.

The Wirral peninsula will host the world’s oldest championship for the third time this century. Returning for the first time since 1967 for the 2006 edition, Tiger Woods posted 18 under to claim his third and final Open crown. Rory McIlroy won the 2014 edition at 17 under to secure his only Open title.

Changes abound for the 2023 edition. The former par-72 layout now plays to a par 71. The length of the links has increased from 7,312 to 7,383 yards. A new hole, the par-3 17th, will be in play. Read about the changes for 2023 here.

Defending champion Cameron Smith returns, joined by the top 49 players from the OWGR top 50. Only Will Zalatoris misses out because of a back injury.

The field of 156 will all play from the No. 1 tee Thursday and Friday. A purse of $16.5 million, up from $14 million in 2022, will see the winner claim $3 million, plus 600 FedExCup points and the claret jug.

Only players listed are competing this week. Stats from the current 2022-23 season.

A full bag is required to conquer all 72 holes of championship golf. There is plenty of evidence from September of 2022 through last week’s Genesis Scottish Open to identify who has brought the goods this season. The cream usually rises to the top on the best venues playing against the deepest fields. Click on the link above if you do not see who you are looking for this week.

The links of Hoylake will be affected by the persistent winds off the Irish Sea. Riveted bunkers, all redone for this event, are strategically placed in landing zones off the tee and protecting the greens. Gorse and other rough off the fairways will temper decisions on attacking the greens. With doglegs framed by trouble on both sides, including on some holes with internal out of bounds, risk and reward will need to be managed. The test this week is a serious one from tee to green.

Scoring at this championship the last two times has produced big winning totals. The firm and fast conditions didn’t deter two of the best in history. As of Tuesday, there is plenty of green in the grass on the links. That should favor the power players if firm and fast are not on the menu. With three chances to take advantage on par-5 holes, knocking a shot or two off each round can go a long way. The outward nine features 520 yards at No. 5. The inward nine will produce a pair of 600-plus yard monsters. Hole No. 15 will play 620 yards, and the home hole will tip at 609 yards. Playing downwind on the inward nine, both holes could provide scoring chances to help determine the champion.

Quirky bounces into the bunkers. Breezes that turn into gusts. Great swings result in bad lies. Welcome to links golf! Grinding through the perceived unfairness is half of the battle. Pitching out of the gorse, scrambling to get up and down from bunkers, and lagging putts in the breeze will keep big numbers off the cards keeping players in contention. There will be no feeling of “catch-up” when pars are written down on the scorecard this week!