Through two days of the British Open, some of the world’s best players have climbed the leaderboard at Royal Portrush, setting up an exciting weekend in Northern Ireland. But as is the case at any major, there are plenty of other big names who won’t be there.
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One who seemed destined to go home early was Bryson DeChambeau after an opening 78. But the two-time U.S. Open champ bounced back with a 65 to get inside the one-under-par cut line and take his name off this list. Others weren’t as fortunate. Anyway, here’s our collection of eight particularly surprising players that missed the cut.
Brooks Koepka (75-74, +7)
We start with Brooks because he’s the only player on this list with five majors to his credit. That being said, maybe this shouldn’t be too surprising considering his recent efforts in golf’s four biggest events. This is Koepka’s third cut in four majors this year. And he doesn’t have a top-10 in a major since winning his fifth one at the 2023 PGA Championship.
Collin Morikawa (75-74, +7)
Warren Little
Still searching for his first PGA Tour title since October of 2023, Morikawa’s major drought is now at a full four years. More troubling is the fact that this was by far his worst collective performance (T-14, T-50, T-23, MC) in the four majors since turning pro.
Ben Griffin (74-70, +2)
A late cut casualty with the line moving to one over Friday evening, Griffin entered this week with only two previous missed cuts in two Open starts. But he’s been one of the best players on the PGA Tour in 2025 with his first two victories He also picked up his first two top-10 finishes in majors at the PGA Championship and U.S. Open so this will still go down as a successful major campaign for the 29-year-old.
Patrick Cantlay (73-72, +3)
Another year, another run through the four majors without winning. Much more surprising is that he failed to make the weekend in each of the last three. Cantlay continues one of the weirdest resumes of top players with more PGA Tour titles (8) than top-10 finishes (5) in majors.
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Patrick Reed (77-70, +5)
Christian Petersen
The 2018 Masters champ was a sleeper pick by many given a solo third at Augusta National in April and winning his first individual LIV title last month. But an opening 77 doomed his chances for another high major finish at Royal Portrush, where he had finished 10th in 2019. With a back-nine 32 on Friday, at least he’ll have some momentum going into his next start.
Cameron Smith (72-78, +8)
It’s been three years since the Aussie became the Champion Golfer of the Year with that breathtaking back nine at St. Andrews to overtake Rory McIlroy. But that feels like ages ago after the 2025 campaign Cam put forth, getting bagled when it comes to made cuts. And when you go back to last year’s Open, the 31-year-old has missed a shocking five consecutive major cuts.
Adam Scott (72-79, +9)
It’s been 13 years since Scott let the claret jug slip through his fingers at Royal Lytham & St Annes, but he finished T-10 at last year’s Open (not to mention a brutally close call at the Scottish Open the week before) and was in the final group at last month’s U.S. Open. The Aussie entered Friday at one over, but made only one birdie during a disastrous second round in which he barely broke 80.
Joaquin Niemann (70-74, +2)
It’s been a dominant season on LIV Golf for the Chilean, but he ends the major season in disappointment. After recording his first top-10 in a major at the PGA Championship, Niemann missed the cut at both the U.S. Open and British Open. Meanwhile, Phil Mickelson, the 55-year-old who called Niemann the world’s best player earlier in the year, made the weekend.
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Is it the British Open or the Open Championship? The name of the final men’s major of the golf season is a subject of continued discussion. The event’s official name, as explained in this op-ed by former R&A chairman Ian Pattinson, is the Open Championship. But since many United States golf fans continue to refer to it as the British Open, and search news around the event accordingly, Golf Digest continues to utilize both names in its coverage.
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This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
