Test for 151st Open 'forged by nature' as drama awaits at new 17th

Written in 12-foot high letters on the back of the wraparound grandstand at the 18th green, ‘Forged by Nature’ is difficult to miss and it’s certainly apt as far as the test for the 151st Open Championship is concerned.

The new 17th hole at Royal Liverpool has been a big talking point in the build up to the 151st Open at the Hoylake venue. Picture: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images.

Little more than a month ago, Royal Liverpool was shaping up to have burnt out fairways like the ones we saw when Tiger Woods expertly maneuvered his way around the Hoylake venue when winning the last of his three Claret Jugs in 2006. “I was excited about that,” admitted The R&A’s CEO, Martin Slumbers. “But every time I get excited about a nice brown golf course, Mother Nature comes in.”

By that, he was referring to recent rain, including some heavy stuff earlier this week on the Wirral, having changed how it looks visually and left the fairways a bit spongy as opposed to firm and fast. “A bit greener than I would have liked,” added Slumbers in his traditional media gathering on the eve of the season’s final major.

Every cloud - no pun intended - has a silver lining, though. “The rough has come up,” reported Slumbers, who may be paid a pretty sum to oversee the St Andrews-based organisation that runs the game’s oldest major but oozes enthusiasm and excitement every time it comes around. “When it was brown, the rough had burnt out and it was a different golf course. It was going to be a different golf course.”

Defending champion Cameron Smith looks on from the 18th hole during a practice round prior to The 151st Open at Royal Liverpool. Picture: Andrew Redington/Getty Images.

Defending champion Cameron Smith is among those making a first visit to the Merseyside venue. “The greens out here I think are probably a little bit flatter than maybe some other greens we've played at The Open,” observed the Australian. “But the punishment for missing the green around here is I think maybe a little bit worse in some cases.”

This is the event’s 13th staging here. Past winners include Walter Hagen (1924), Bobby Jones (1930), Peter Thomson (1956), Roberto De Vicnezo (1967), Woods (2006) and Rory McIlroy (2014). “The list of champions Royal Liverpool has produced is second to none,” said Slumbers in offering his verdict on its roll of honour.

McIlroy was on a roll when he landed his win, quickly adding a World Golf Championship then a PGA Championship in the space of a few weeks. Nine years on, he’s still stuck on four majors, but, buoyed by a brilliant victory in the Genesis Scottish Open last weekend, this week could be the one when he finally gets going again in terms of the legacy he’ll eventually create.

“It's a very strategic golf course, which I like,” said the world No 2. “You really have to think your way around it. I think the biggest challenge of this golf course is avoiding those pot bunkers off the tee. Just getting really comfortable with the clubs you're hitting off certain tees and whether you challenge the bunkers or not or lay back.”

Rory McIlroy, the winner at Hoylake in 2014, with his caddie Harry Diamond on the 15th tee during a practice round for the 151st Open. Picture: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images.

In 2014, when McIlroy went wire-to-wire, it played as a par 72, but it’s now a 71 and also marginally longer at 7,383 yards. Internal out of bounds is an interesting feature once again at the third and 18th holes while the finish isn’t for the faint-hearted. The 15th is a par 5 playing at 620 yards, the par-4 16th measures 461 yards, the new short 17th is just a 136-yarder then it’s a 609-yard par 5 at the last.

Legendary caddie Billy Foster isn’t a fan of the 17th, called ‘Little Eye’, which has little room for error due to steep drop offs on three sides of the green. “Unfortunately, I think this Open Championship could be remembered for a calamity that happened,” he told Golf Monthly. “There was nothing wrong with the little par 3 they had there before (it played as the 15th in 2014) and they’ve created a monstrosity in my opinion.”

Slumbers joked he was surprised it took 35 minutes in his press conference for the hole to be mentioned. “I think it fits well,” he said, highlighting how similar short holes like the eighth at Royal Troon, 12th at Augusta National and 17th at TPC Sawgrass are some of the best in the world. “A lot of things could happen on that, and I think that drama will unfold come Sunday. Whether it's a great hole or a really great hole, I'll wait until Monday morning.”

Matthew Jordan, a former St Andrews Links Trophy winner but, more importantly as far as this week is concerned a Royal Liverpool member, has been handed the honour of hitting the opening shot at 6.35am on Thursday. “I'm sure the first tee, no matter what, was going to be special, but it's an amazing honour,” he admitted.

The 156 players on this occasion includes two sets of brothers - Matthew and Alex Fitzpatrick and the Hojgaard twins Nicolai and Rasmus - as well as a player called Tiger but not Woods, who is an absentee as he recovers from ankle surgery. German Tiger Christensen is among six amateurs in the field.

At a venue where Sandy Herd triumphed in 1902, seven Scots are teeing up, including Genesis Scottish Open runner-up Bob MacIntyre and a trio making their major debuts - Ewen Ferguson, Graeme Robertson and Michael Stewart.

With all due respect to Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka and Wyndham Clark, there was a lack of excitement down the stretch as they landed wins in The Masters, PGA Championship and US Open respectively earlier in the year. Could this event be the one to deliver in that respect? Slumbers certainly think so. “It's a great golf course,” he said. “I mean, I absolutely love it. It's one of my top two or three favourite golf courses on the pool (of courses used for the event).”