Between Rory McIlroy’s attempt to win Royal Liverpool for a second time, Scottie Scheffler’s historic season and Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka both going for their second major championships of the year, it’s nearly impossible to sort out the top of the heap as the 2023 Open Championship kicks into gear at Royal Liverpool.
Yet that’s exactly what we attempted to do once again as we sorted through the 23 golfers most likely to win the 151st Open this week in Hoylake, England. The formula is inexact, though. A mixture of recent form, past history at Opens and general success at major championships is taken into account. As is who enter the tournament as the best drivers of the ball this year (at a place that is probably going to demand it).
Those are just some of the pieces that go into determining which golfers have the best chance to win the last major of the year. There is so much on the line with major season wrapping up, and though the FedEx Cup Playoffs remain ahead this fall, for many Royal Liverpool is the last opportunity to truly put their stamp on golf in 2023 by hoisting the Claret Jug.
Let’s dive in.
2023 Open field, ranked
1. Rory McIlroy (Won in 2014): Everything is coming up Rory. In golf, that usually doesn’t end well, but the reality of the situation is that he has everything — recent great play, a win last week, sustained Open Championship success, a near miss at this event last year, a near miss at his most recent major and a win the last time the Open was at this golf course — working in his favor. While he has not been the best golfer in the world so far in 2023 (that would be the next guy on this list), he’s an easy favorite as the most likely to win the 151st Open Championship.
Of course, the last time an Open round was played, Rory was also an easy favorite and then he went out and got his heart — along with the hearts of those in attendance at St. Andrews and…
Source : cbssports
