Unless you've been living in the stuff for the past four days, you won't have escaped the furore over the state of the rough at Royal St Lytham this week.
The debate has split the players into two camps: Tiger Woods has been moaning about it while Tony Jacklin, the former European Ryder Cup captain told him to quit whingeing. Darren Clarke, last year's champion, described it as "brutal" before adding "If you start spraying the ball around this week, you might as well go home." Which, made me chuckle, not least because it served Clarke notice of how us mere mortals feel every time we pick up a club. Unless I've missed the dictat from the Royal & Ancient, then surely the point of golf is to make it as difficult as possible for the professionals?
Will the rough ruin the spectacle? No. Did Jean Van de Velde's implosion at Carnoustie in 1999 make for excruciating, yet compelling viewing? Yes.
The player who wins the Open this week will deserve it.
There are certainly those with a game that is suited to making big scores at Lytham, many at huge prices. This is no reflection on the suggestion that the rough will create a lottery but rather it is because five of the last nine winners of the Claret Jug have been outsiders. Indeed, Clarke, Stewart Cink and Louis Oosthuizen, the last three winners, started with odds in excess of 200/1.
There are other factors which also need consideration: the wind has the potential to wreak havoc given the length of the rough, meaning those with tidier games should prosper, while 10 of 12 winners of the Open have enjoyed a victory on the European or PGA Tour in the previous 12 months.
Also, a good performance a week earlier is no guarantee of success, with South Africa's George Coetzee a case in point as he was the only player last year to finish in the top-20 at Castle Stuart and at Royal St Georges. In contrast, three of the top four at last year's Open had endured a miserable time at the Scottish version with Clarke finishing 66th, Phil Mickelson 58th and Thomas Bjorn missing the cut.
If we are looking for precision and good form over links then Ben Curtis, the 2003 champion at Sandwich, could be the shout. Fifth for accuracy and sixth for greens in regulation on the PGA Tour, he is in the form of his life having won the Texas Open, finished second at Sawgrass and fifth at Quail Hollow.
Ernie Els, the 2002 winner, is another past champion who has come into form at the right time and at the right place. The South African's top-10 finishes at the BMW PGA Championship and the US Open this season give reason for optimism. Finally, fortysomethings in with a shout include the aforementioned Bjorn while Tom Lehman, winner here in 1996, is the pick to finish as top senior.
Selections Ben Curtis (100/1, general); Ernie Els (50/1, general); Thomas Bjorn (95/1, youwin) all each-way; Tom Lehman to be top senior (7/4, William Hill)
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