We’re just days away from the start of the 144th Open Championship and excitement is definitely building for the year’s third major golf tournament. All eyes will definitely be on Masters and US Open champion Jordan Spieth as he attempts to win his third consecutive major title at the home of golf in St. Andrews.
Read on below as we breakdown Spieth’s chances of lifting the coveted Claret Jug. While you’re at it, you can check out our complete British Open preview here as well as our sleeper picks for this year’s Open Championship.
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Can Jordan Spieth Win the 2015 British Open?
He’s playing some spectacular golf
There’s just no stopping the great Jordan Spieth. The 21-year-old has been playing some exceptional golf since the start of the year, recording 11 top-10 finishes in 19 starts this season. He has already won four tournaments this year, including those memorable victories at Augusta and Chambers Bay. Spieth destroyed the field at the 79th Masters, shooting a record 18-under-par total of 270 to win the event by four shots. He then went on to capture the U.S. Open in thrilling fashion, edging past Dustin Johnson in a gripping final-hole shootout.
[sc:Golf240banner ]Spieth sustained the momentum of that huge U.S. Open victory by winning the recently-concluded John Deere Classic for the second time in his career. Spieth shot a career-best 61 in the third round to put himself in contention and then birdied four of the final six holes in the last round to send the tournament into a playoff. There he outlasted tour veteran Tom Gillis to grab the fifth PGA Tour win of his career. Spieth is once again rounding into peak form heading into a major championship and that is bad news for the rest of the field.
Putting
The Open Championship prides itself in being one of the toughest tests in golf and the one thing that stands out with this tournament throughout the years is the difficulty of its greens. The rainy conditions at St. Andrews have made the greens more difficult to judge with 14-time major winner Tiger Woods calling its state right now shocking.
But if there’s one golfer on the planet who can conquer that particular challenge it’s got to be Jordan Spieth. He’s the best golfer in the PGA Tour right now in terms of putting average with a solid 1.697 clip. He’s also ranked third in one-putt percentage with an incredible 43.70% rate. His excellent putting has been the main reason behind his tremendous success this year and that will play a major part as well in his quest to win the British Open crown this week.
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Rory McIlroy’s Injury
With history beckoning, the pressure on Jordan Spieth to win the British Open this week will definitely be intense. His path to a third consecutive major title became much easier, though, with the news that his main rival Rory McIlroy will sit out this year’s event because of a freak ankle injury. He suffered some ligament damage in his left ankle while playing soccer with his friends just a week ago.
Before his ill-fated injury struck, McIlroy was declared the odds-on favorite by bookmakers to win this year’s British Open. The Northern Irishman won last year’s Open Championship in emphatic fashion, earning a wire-to-wire victory at Royal Liverpool. He was widely tipped to repeat that feat this week as this year’s Open Championship will be held at one of his favorite courses, St. Andrews.
The last time the British Open was contested in these hallowed grounds (2010), McIlroy opened with a stunning 63 before eventually finishing in a tie for third behind champion Louis Oosthuizen. Spieth will be thanking his lucky stars the world no. 1 will not be in the 156-man field this week.
Spieth Loves Playing in Major Tournaments
It’s crazy to think that Jordan Spieth, with all he has accomplished, is just 21 years of age. What makes that specific fact hard to process is that he has already garnered plenty of success at major tournaments even at that young age. In the 10 major tournaments that he has played, Spieth has finished first or second in three of those 10 events. He finished second at the Masters last year before finally grabbing the coveted green jacket last April. Spieth then added to his legend with a nerve-wracking victory over Dustin Johnson in the U.S. Open last month.
With his victories at the Masters and U.S. Open this year, Spieth became the youngest golfer to win two majors since Gene Sarazen did it at the age of 20 back in 1922. His victory at Chambers Bay also made him the youngest U.S. Open champion since Bobby Jones won it at the age of 21 back in 1923. Even at his young age, Spieth has plenty of experience when it comes to major championship pressure. That will be a major advantage if he once again finds himself in contention on Sunday afternoon.
Spieth’s Game is Built for St. Andrews
Plenty of experts have been weighing in on Spieth’s British Open chances this week and they are unanimous in saying that the American’s golf game fits St. Andrews to a tee. Former major champion Paul Azinger said in a recent interview that the golf course sets up nicely for Spieth, particularly with his favored draw. ESPN’s Andy North, on the other hand, highlights Spieth’s precision as his main weapon heading into St. Andrews this week.
He is third in the PGA Tour in strokes gained from tee to green (1.653) and that will be a major weapon when tackling the long 7,305-yard, par-72 Old Course. Another advantage for Spieth heading into this week is his superb scrambling play. He is sixth in the PGA Tour in the scrambling department with a solid 65.22 percent clip. That will be useful here at St. Andrews as the Old Course houses a whopping 112 bunkers. If he can successfully navigate his way around the home of golf, Spieth has an excellent chance of creating more history this week.
