Tag: 150th Open Championship

‘It sucked’: Collin Morikawa hands over Claret Jug, begins British Open prep at Old Course to reclaim it

“The replica is beautiful, but it’s not the same. It really isn’t. It will never be.”

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – Collin Morikawa’s possession of the Claret Jug came to an end Monday morning.

It was not an easy separation.

“It sucked. It really did,” Morikawa said in his pre-tournament meeting with the media Monday at the Old Course, home to the 150th Open Championship. “I woke up this morning and looked at it. The replica is beautiful, but it’s not the same. It really isn’t. It will never be.

“But I don’t want to dwell on the past. I think I’ve talked about that early on in my career. I always look forward to what’s next. Maybe hopefully just giving it back kind of frees me up and allows me just to focus on winning this week.”

In his first start in the Open Championship, Morikawa held off Jordan Spieth and Louis Oosthuizen to win the Claret Jug last year at Royal St. George’s (Morikawa also won the PGA Championship in 2020 at TPC Harding Park in his first start).

Morikawa is making his first start at the Old Course, the rumpled, flat grounds nestled in the city. The Home of Golf was love at first sight for Morikawa.

“I can see why guys love it,” he said. “I can see how special this week can be. I can see how the course can play a million different ways, depending on the weather.

“Looks like we’re going to get some pretty consistent weather and some wind patterns this week. I think overall you’ve just got to be ready to play some good golf because you’re going to get some good bounces and probably some bad ones.”

Morikawa, ranked No. 8 in the Official World Golf Ranking, has not won in 2022. Trying to reclaim the Claret Jug might be the final push to victory.

“Now that I know what it’s like to have the Claret Jug for a year, there’s nothing like it. It’s a really special year,” he said. “Even though you won that tournament a year ago, it’s going to be in your history for the rest of your life. And it’s pretty cool. I think trying to defend this week at the 150th at St Andrews would be even more special.”

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Here’s what your favorite players are wearing at the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews

Here’s what your favorite players are wearing at the 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews

The 150th Open Championship is upon us and players are bringing some modern fashion to the historic Old Course. St. Andrews will be flooded with the top players in the world and they are packing the heat with their style this year.

Golfweek has rounded up a list of what players such as Max Homa, Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa and more are wearing to the 2022 Open Championship.

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Photos: Tiger Woods at the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews

Check out the best photos of Tiger Woods at the 2022 Open Championship in St. Andrews, Scotland.

Tiger Woods arrived to the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland on Saturday afternoon to begin preparations ahead of the 150th Open Championship.

It’s a return to the place where Woods has won two Open titles, in 2000 and 2005. His 2000 triumph helped him become the fifth golfer in history — and youngest ever — to complete the career grand slam.

On Sunday, he played an 18-hole practice round, following his 18-hole walk around St. Andrews on Saturday evening, showing how serious he is ahead of the last men’s major championship of the year.

Woods has made the cut in both events he has played this year, the Masters and PGA Championship, though he withdrew following the third round at Southern Hills in the latter when he looked uncomfortable for most of the round.

He returned to the public eye last week for the JP McManus Pro-Am in Ireland.

Take a scroll through some of the images from Woods’ practice rounds leading up to the 150th Open Championship at the home of golf.

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Just hitched: Tom Watson marries former CBS executive LeslieAnne Wade

Golf legend Tom Watson got married Saturday to LeslieAnne Wade.

Tom Watson has a busy week ahead of him. But first, a wedding to attend. His wedding.

The eight-time major champion got hitched Saturday in New Jersey, marrying LeslieAnne Wade. The couple announced their engagement in May. They plan to travel to the Old Course at St. Andrews to attend the 150th Open Championship, which begins Thursday in Scotland.

Watson, 72, won the Open five times during his iconic career. He is a Hall of Famer and won 39 times on the PGA Tour. Watson retired from competitive golf in 2019 after an almost 50-year career during which he won 70 titles and twice captained the United States in the Ryder Cup.

Ms. Wade served as a Senior Vice President of Communications at CBS Sports and currently works with the Endeavor agency and for White Tee Partners, a women-owned marketing agency she co-founded.

Congrats to the newlyweds.

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How is Tiger Woods’ caddie Joey LaCava handling prep work for the 150th Open Championship? We walked along and found out

“This Open has been on his mind the entire year. Couple things: he loves the place and it’s going to easier to walk.”

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – Some three hours after Tiger Woods took off in his private jet from Ireland, his destination being the 150th Open Championship conducted on the Old Course in Scotland, his trusted bagman, Joey LaCava, started charting his own course around the Home of Golf.

LaCava, who hooked up with Woods in 2011 and was on the bag when his boss won the 2019 Masters, began his prep work for the Open on Saturday alongside Jim “Bones” Mackay, caddie for Justin Thomas.

The last time LaCava set foot on this sacred ground was 2015, when Woods, battling many injuries, missed the cut. So there was a lot of work to do.

“For me, it’s mostly getting lines,” LaCava said. “It’s been seven years and I don’t know what I did yesterday. It’s all about where the bunkers are today and to get a feel for the golf course. The good news for us is what I’ve been told is the wind should be the same this week as it is today, so we’re getting a good feel how the course could play the rest of the week.

“I can’t go by that 100 percent, but it’s nice to get a feel for it. To get our lines, the carries, how far it is to each bunker, that’s the priority today.”

The day was so pleasant and dry, LaCava’s intention would be to chart all 18 holes. That would take five to six hours and he did all things to fill his yardage book, from getting the lines to the bunkers, securing proper targets in the distance of this treeless, flat land, and studying the slopes and speed of the greens.

That’s easier said than done. There are seven double greens on the Old Course, where two holes share the same massive putting surface. For, instance the home to the putting surface of the fifth and 13th holes is 100 yards deep and at least 50 yards wide.

Tiger Woods’ caddie Joe LaCava looks over notes at The Old Course at St. Andrew’s in advance of the upcoming 150th Open Championship. (Photo by Steve DiMeglio/Golfweek)

“Tiger lets me do my thing, and he does his thing. He’ll come out here and know where the bunkers are and how far it is to each. I just don’t,” said LaCava, who will be caddying in his fifth Open at St. Andrews – two with Woods, three with Fred Couples. “Tiger loves the place, and he’ll have a good feel for where the bunkers are.”

LaCava hasn’t seen Woods since the third round of the PGA Championship. After making the cut – Woods also made the cut in the Masters in his only other start of 2022 – he visibly labored with injuries that Saturday. That night, he withdrew.

LaCava said Woods is stronger than he was in May.

“He’s going to give it a go. We’ll remain positive and get through it,” LaCava said. “This Open has been on his mind the entire year. Couple things: he loves the place and it’s going to easier to walk.”

Woods showed up in the early evening Saturday and chipped and putted his way around a few holes of the Old Course. Full shots were not on the agenda. Saving his energy and reacquainting himself with the course was.

Woods likely will team up with LaCava for a practice round on Sunday and then play in the Celebration of Champions on Monday.

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The R&A to Greg Norman: Stay away from the 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews

Norman won the Open Championship in 1986 at Turnberry and in 1993 at Royal St. George’s.

The R&A said no way to Greg Norman.

The ruler of the game’s Rules of Golf outside the U.S. and Mexico who also stage the Open Championship announced Saturday it had reached out to Norman to tell him he was not invited to play in the Celebration of Champions on Monday.

Norman, a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, won the Open Championship in 1986 at Turnberry and in 1993 at Royal St. George’s. But Norman is the head of LIV Golf, the Saudi Arabia-backed rival league that has lured top stars away from the PGA Tour and DP World Tour and caused angst in golf’s world order.

“In response to enquiries regarding the R&A Celebration of Champions field and the Champions’ Dinner, we can confirm that we contacted Greg Norman to advise him that we decided not to invite him to attend on this occasion,” the R&A said in a statement. “The 150th Open is an extremely important milestone for golf and we want to ensure that the focus remains on celebrating the Championship and its heritage. Unfortunately, we do not believe that would be the case if Greg were to attend. We hope that when circumstances allow, Greg will be able to attend again in the future.”

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Tiger, Rory and Lee, oh my: Woods to play in Celebration of Champions Monday on Old Course alongside McIlroy, Trevino and Georgia Hall

Woods has hoisted the Claret Jug twice at St. Andrews, in 2000 and 2005.

Tiger Woods will start Open Championship week on Monday.

Alongside Rory McIlroy.

Woods, who completed the career Grand Slam with his win on the Old Course in 2000 and won at the Home of Golf again in 2005, will play in the Celebration of Champions as the 150th Open begins at St. Andrews.

Woods, who also won the Claret Jug in 2006 at Hoylake, will be grouped with 2014 Open champ Rory McIlroy, 2018 Women’s British Open champion Georgia Hall and the Merry Mex, Lee Trevino, who won the Open in 1971 and 1972.

“This is going to be a special week of golf and having many of the sport’s great champions and future stars play in this event is a great way to mark this historic championship,” Woods said in a statement. “St. Andrews has such a unique atmosphere, and I’m looking forward to playing in front of the fans again and on a course that holds fantastic memories for me.”

The Celebration of Champions will have the golfers play four holes – the first, second, 17th and 18th. Woods played in the event in 2005, his teammates that year being Tom Weiskopf, Mark O’Meara and Nick Price.

Woods is still recovering from a horrific single-car accident north of Los Angeles in February 2021 that nearly took his life and nearly led to amputation of his right leg. He has played twice this year – making the cut in the Masters and the PGA Championship. He did withdraw from the PGA Championship following the third round in which he was visibly laboring because of his injuries.

Woods decided against playing the U.S. Open at The Country Club near Boston to allow more time to heal.

Defending champion Collin Morikawa will hit the first tee shot Monday and play with AIG Women’s Open champion Anna Nordqvist, Jess Baker, who won the Women’s Amateur Championship at Hunstanton last month, and Asia-Pacific Amateur champion and 2021 Mark McCormack Medal winner Keita Nakajima.

The full draw for the Celebration of Champions will be announced Monday morning. The best two scores out of four on each hole from each team will count. The team with the lowest total over the four holes will win.

Hall already said she’s won.

“It is an absolute thrill to play alongside Tiger, Rory and Lee,” she said. “I think it’s fantastic that the R&A has invited champions from all levels of the sport and I’m sure that Jess and Keita will be massively excited by the prospect of teeing it up with Collin and Anna at St. Andrews.”

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Daniel Berger WDs from 150th Open Championship, Sahith Theegala now in field at St. Andrews

It’s been a rough stretch for Daniel Berger, who has been working through some medical issues. 

It’s been a rough stretch for Daniel Berger, who has been working through some back issues.

The four-time PGA Tour winner and member of the victorious 2021 U.S. Ryder Cup team pulled out of the John Deere Classic last week in an attempt to be ready for the upcoming 150th British Open Championship at St. Andrews.

On Friday, it was announced Berger has pulled out of that field in Scotland as well. He will be replaced in the Open by Sahith Theegala, who is currently No. 62 in the Official World Golf Ranking.

Berger withdrew from the Vidanta Mexico Open in May before the event and also pulled out of his title defense in February at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. At the time, he said he was dealing with a joint sprain in his lower back. He told PGA Tour.com that earlier this year he suffered a sacroiliac joint sprain in the part of the body that links the lower spine to the pelvis and played through it at Torrey Pines during the Farmers Insurance Open.

Berger, who has slipped to 25th in the world, has played well when he’s been fit enough to finish a tournament, placing T-5 at the Memorial and in the top 25 at the Charles Schwab Challenge. He did, however, fail to make the cut at the U.S. Open at the Country Club of Brookline.

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