150th The Open is on Sky Sports!
Watch The 150th Open throughout the week live on Sky Sports' dedicated channel.
Now, I don't know about you, but...
I don't know much about golf aside from the kind that's 'mini'. But what I can tell you from spending the last two weeks immersing myself in the club (pun intended), is that it's more than meets the eye. The basic concept of golf is to get the ball in each of the 18 holes in the fewest strokes possible. Seems simple enough, so I'm going to give you my Hot Takes.
The sportsmen are artists...
I've never been familiar with big names in golf. For instance, I'm aware of two players:
Rory McIlroy, the four-time major Irish champion, claiming victory in all before he turned 25 years old. Much like Tiger, he has had a varied career with stunning highs, harsh lows and health concerns that have impacted his influence on the game. But in recent years, he's gained momentum back in smaller cup tournaments and singles, so it seems there's cause for excitement.
Tiger Woods, the biggest household name. At just 21 years of age, the American smashed The Masters and sky-rocketed to No.1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. His career since then has taken a journey similar to that of Frodo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings: diverse. Following multiple injuries, poor showings and victories alike, Tiger's return to The Open is long-awaited and nostalgic.
Aside from these two, I've remained blissfully unaware. But if there's one thing I appreciate more than a seasoned sportsman, it's an artist. And from my two weeks trawling through YouTube clips of various players, I think I've found the Van Gogh of golf. The Van Golf.
My One To Watch (as if I'm qualified to say that) is Collin Morikawa. If he does not finish in the Top 3 of The 150th Open, he is still a figure of interest in my eyes. He has begun his PGA Tour career with 22 consecutive made cuts, five PGA wins, and the first American to win the Race to Dubai. He also nailed the 2021 Open at Royal St George's Golf Club, winning by two strokes over Jordan Spieth. He became the first player since Bobby Jones in 1926 to win two majors in eight or fewer starts.
The thing that makes Collin Morikawa so interesting is the way he treads the grounds. It's like watching a chess player observe the landscape, calculating the impact of minute movements and predicting every future turn. What will be interesting to watch is his treatement of the Old Course.
The course is *almost* impossible...
The Old Course is bursting at the seams with blind spots, humps and bumps that make navigating this course one of the hardest to learn. The topography of the land at the Old Course makes it one of the toughest courses to nail. So watching Collin play will be like watching Tom Daley swim in custard: fascinating.
It's the oldest and most iconic golf course in the world. It's the Bette Midler of golf courses. It's also home to the 'Hell Bunker'. It's about as fun as it sounds; the Beardies, 7 Sisters and Hell Bunkers are those huge craters in the course you see some players trapped inside. They gobble up long drives for breakfast, and swallow players whole like the Shai-Hulud from Dune.
A bogey *isn't* that thing up your nose...
You might hear some interesting phrases when watching The Open... Let's face it, golf is hard to understand. When I first heard the word 'bogey' in relation to golf, I thought I'd been put in a time capsule back to the era of Dick and Dom In Da Bungalow. Sadly, this was not the case. Let's break some of these terms down together.
Tee: this is the part of the course where you start each hole. It's also the little peg you put in the ground to balance your ball on before, ahem, 'teeing off'.
Bogey: this is a hole played one stroke over par. In extreme cases, you could have a double bogey, triple bogey, or...a bogey five.
Drive: this is a long tee shot played with a wood or driver.
Fore: you'll hear this yelled when a ball is about to hit another player, or sometimes, the audience.
Par: short for 'professional average result'. It's the standard score for a hole/course, or the number of shots expected from a golfer to hole the ball or complete a round.
Birdie: this is a hole played one stroke better than expected (one under par).
All in all...
You're in for a big treat. And if you're like me, completely new to the world of golf, my advice? Immerse yourself. There's a reason Sainsbury's tells you to 'Try Something New Today'.
Follow @SkyHelpTeam for updates and @SkySportsGolf for fixtures!
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