The 145th Open Championship Preview

As a result of the flooding in West Virginia, the Greenbriar Classic has been cancelled for this year.  Our thoughts and prayers are with those who live in the affected communities.  This also creates an unusual off-week for the PGA Tour in mid-July.  

The 3rd major of 2016 is on-deck for the world's best players: The Open Championship.  The 145th championship will be contested at Royal Troon in Scottland.  Past champions at Troon include Arnold Palmer, Tom Weiskopf, Juston Leonard, and Todd Hamilton who won the last time the Open was contested at Troon in 2004.  

Early forecasts are predicting some brutal weather for this year's competitors.  Wind and rain have always been the great equalizer to historic links styled courses like Troon.  Players who have been practicing this week have shared pictures and video via social media wearing jackets and rain pants.  

Notable Holes

Arguably the most famous hole at Royal Troon is the Par-3 8th hole, affectionately called "The Postage Stamp."  The hole measures only 123 yards, but the players are hitting into a green which is a scant 420 square feet.  Of course, the defense to any links styled course is weather and wind which is predicted to rear it's head this week.  

Broadcast

For the first time in 50 years, the Open Championship will not be broadcast on ABC/ESPN.  NBC, after losing the rights to the US Open to FOX, won the rights to broadcast The Open last year.  Dan Hicks and Johnny Miller will be perched in their tower as lead play-by-play and color analyst respectively.  David Feherty, who joined NBC earlier this year, will cover his first Open Championship in the United States.  And Mike Tirico, who left ESPN after 25 years will begin his first assignment at NBC as the host of the Open Championship broadcast.   

Prediction 

So who is going to win the 145th Open?  The year's first two major championships have been captured by first-time winners.  B&B predicts that the trend continues with another first time winner hoisting the Claret Jug. 

Prediction: Sergio Garcia