Open Championship set to be highlight of golfing calendar this summer

News Desk
Authored by News Desk
Posted Tuesday, June 27, 2017 - 10:49am

The Exeter Golf and Country Club is set for a busy summer ahead as the glorious weather is forecast to continue over the next couple of months, making it perfect conditions for golf in Devon. Those who play the game will also be tuning into the 2017 Open Championship next month, which takes place at Royal Birkdale this year in what is set to be the 146th edition of the world’s oldest Major Championship.

World number one Dustin Johnson heads the field and is back to full fitness again after missing the US Masters earlier in the season due to a back injury after the American fell down some stairs on the eve of the tournament at Augusta. Johnson will be looking to drive the ball further than any of his competitors in Southport where he is bidding for his first Claret Jug and is the bookmakers’ favourite at 8/1 to prevail this year. As stated on Sportsbet's golf news site, an outright market is available ahead of every major tournament, while there are some of other ways to get involved including first round leader, three-balls betting and a player to make the cut.

2014 champion Rory McIlroy will be hoping to find his best game again in Merseyside. The Northern Irishman has struggled for form in 2017 as he had to recover from a rib injury earlier in the year. The three-time major winner missed the cut in the US Open at Erin Hills last month. He will be appearing at the Irish Open in a couple of weeks’ time, where he is hosting the tournament at Portstewart Golf Club in the name of the Rory McIlroy Foundation. The former world number one will be joined in the event by Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Hideki Matsuyama, who are both supporting the tournament, which is scheduled on the European Tour. McIlroy was the last British player to win the Open and he will be bidding to join an exclusive list of golfers to have been successful on more than one occasion in the competition.

Jordan Spieth’s best finish in an Open Championship came in 2015, when he finished in a tie for fourth. The young American went into the tournament having won the US Masters and US Open so was on course for the Calendar Grand Slam. Since then, the Texan’s form has dipped a little; however, there have been signs in recent events that his game is coming together again. Spieth is one of the best in the sport on the greens so as long as his driving and iron game are performing well, he will have an excellent chance of adding the Claret Jug to his roll of honour.

Justin Rose, Tommy Fleetwood, Paul Casey and Lee Westwood join the British charge of players who are looking to win in front of their home crowd. All four players have been in contention in at least one of the majors so far in 2017 and would be extremely popular winners in the tournament, which begins on July 20 and can be seen live on Sky Sports across the four days.

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