The Course at Hoylake
For anyone who likes a bet on golf, The Royal Liverpool Golf Club is both a beautiful and challenging. Strong winds may prevail and deep roughs may unsettle the greatest of the entrants. Established in 1869, the links course at Hoylake is the second oldest of the English seaside courses, after Westward Ho!
The club has hosted The Open Championship on 12 occasions with recent winners Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods demonstrating the quality of golf demanded by this excellent course.
The newly designed par-3 15th is imaginative, original and a little different in look compared to the rest of the course. The lush grass and sandy areas combine wonderfully with the raised green turned facing the coast. The ample bunkering is well designed and the drop off areas really punishing. It’s a great addition to a classic links course!
Course Stats and Figures
Distance: 7341 yards
Par: 72 strokes
Front 9, 3526 yards, Par 36:
- Hole 1 - 425 yards, Par 4
- Hole 2 - 366 yards, Par 4
- Hole 3 - 514 yards, Par 5
- Hole 4 - 199 yards, Par 3
- Hole 5 - 479 yards, Par 4
- Hole 6 - 437 yards, Par 4
- Hole 7 - 215 yards, Par 3
- Hole 8 - 503 yards, Par 5
- Hole 9 - 388 yards, Par 4
Back 9, 3815 yards, Par 36:
- Hole 10 - 444 yards, Par 4
- Hole 11 - 191 yards, Par 3
- Hole 12 - 454 yards, Par 4
- Hole 13 - 614 yards, Par 5
- Hole 14 - 456 yards, Par 4
- Hole 15 - 134 yards, Par 3
- Hole 16 - 611 yards, Par 5
- Hole 17 - 458 yards, Par 4
- Hole 18 - 453 yards, Par 4
Golf Players to Bet on at The Open Championship
One of the fascinating attributes of betting on The Open Championship is that the odds are high due to the unpredictable qualities of such a tournament. The main factors are the recent form of the players and whether they can hone their skills to the windy links courses of the UK!
Presently the favourite is Rory McIlroy. He is ranked 3rd in the PGA Tour status and all punters should bear in mind his epic victory at Royal Liverpool back in 2014 where he beat Rickie Fowler and Sergio Garcia by 2 strokes. Therefore, he might be a clever bet considering his ranking and previous Open title. He needs only The Masters to complete a Grand Slam of all four majors and at Augusta in April, he finished in 2nd place to Scottie Scheffler after a wonderful closing 64.
The defending Open Champion Cameron Smith will definitely be one to watch with the confidence gained from his glorious win at St. Andrews at this year's 2022 Championship.
At this year's Masters Tournament, he finished 3rd overall, his fourth consecutive top 10 position at the event. He played in the final pairing during the final round with champion Scottie Scheffler and recorded a 1 over par at 73.
John Rahm the Spaniard is another hot tip for the next Open as he has certainly proven himself being ranked at the world number 1 in The World Golf Ranking! Even though he only achieved 34th position in the 2022 Open, his present form may change all that.
Scottie Scheffler could be one to watch well. He finished 2nd at the US Open, his third runner up position this year and went on to win the Masters Tournament to collect his first major championship title. Born and raised in Texas he is definitely a strong challenge.
It is still very early days and a lot of golf will be played before July 2023. However, in the current market, many golf experts also like the chances of Jordan Spieth. He won The Open back in 2017 by three shots, and constantly excels on links courses. The American finished the 150th Open in a tie for eighth after going 4 under in the final round. Tommy Fleetwood could be another that goes close after a strong display at St Andrews last weekend.
Any guide to the Open must include mentioning Matthew Fitzpatrick who in 2019 came in 19th place but whose golf has been on fire since winning the US Open this year and who came in a very impressive 5th position at the PGA Championships. His recent achievements include winning The DP World Tour Championship and playing on the Ryder Cup European team. Born in Sheffield in 1994, he has a steely mind-set and he will be a player worth a bet on. The blustery wind and links play at Liverpool should suit his northern temperament!
Nationality Trends in The Open
For betting purposes, it is very useful to consider all the stats and data available to golf fans.
The USA is the nation to have won The Open Championship and an American player has taken the title four times out of the last nine. Out of the 150 Open competitions, 45 have been claimed by American golfers. In other words an impressive 30%.
Europeans have, pardon the pun, fared well over the years to claim 82 from the 150 champions. The most successful nation, rightfully so, being Scotland with 41 wins. However, before you put all your money on a Scottish player bear in mind that it's only two wins since 1920!
The R.O.W or Rest of the World has achieved 15 % success or 23 wins overall. It is South African players that lead the way with ten wins in the competition.
Stats and Facts for The Open 2023
In the build up to the Open, you may want to keep the following in mind:
- 6 out of 10 of the previous Open winners were ranked in the world's top ten.
- 8 out of 10 were inside the world's top 25 ranking players.
- 10 out of 10 of the title holders all had rankings in the top 40 going in to the event.
- Since 2016, all five winners were winning their first major, Colin Morikawa being the only exception.
- Of the last ten winners, eight had all finished in the top nine positions at a previous Open Championship, 2021 winner Collin Morikawa was making his Open debut.
- Not since Padraig Harrington in 2008 has a defending champion taken the silverware
- Ernie Els in 2012 is the only player having previously won the Open Championship in 2002 in the last ten years.