Adam Scott and Royal Liverpool have history. The Australian star is the only player in the 151st Open Championship field who finished in the top 10 in both the 2006 and 2014 Opens at Royal Liverpool. While Jim Furyk and Sergio Garcia also did, they did not qualify for the final major of 2023.
On Wednesday at Royal Liverpool, nicknamed Hoylake, the 43-year-old said it counted for little this week as he chases an elusive second career major.
“I’m not sure [it counts]; I guess it’s it’s so long ago it’s almost a different game now,” Scott, who finished tied eighth in 2006 when TIger Woods won and tied fifth behind Rory McIlroy in 2014, told Australian Golf Digest at Hoylake. “I think I think at this point in my career, having not not won an Open at any venue, [what’s more useful] is just experience having played a lot of Opens. Hopefully I can lean on all the different shots that I’ve been asked to play if conditions get a bit squirrely this week.
“I have had good results here and I like I like the golf course and I like what I see this week. I think it’s going to be a good test. The guys who strike the ball better will be identified this week and have a bit of an advantage.”
Along with Woods and McIlroy, Hoylake has produced great Open champions including Scott’s fellow Australian, the late Peter Thomson. Thomson’s 1956 victory was his third Open title in a row.
“It’s fairly flat ground and there isn’t any crazy bounces going on and good shots probably get a good result around here,” he said.
Scott is hoping the creativity required of links golf can extract his best golf.
“I think it has to [bring out my creative side]; you have to have to play what’s in front of you here and hit some shots that release up into the green and it’s a very different style than overpowering a golf course. Hopefully I find that rhythm tomorrow and let that develop throughout the week.”
Scott has gone 10 years since his breakthrough major at the Masters without capturing a second victory. It’s not for a lack of trying, and the closest he’s come is at the Open. After his 2012 Open collapse, when he blew a four-shot lead with four to play on the final day to finish second, Scott placed tied for third, fifth and 10th from 2013 to 2015 at the UK major.
This year, Scott’s form has not been particularly impressive leading into the Open. He has a mixed bag of results featuring three top 10s, some mediocre results and two missed cuts including last week’s Scottish Open. But a tie for 15th at last year’s edition at St Andrews suggests Scott rises for the Open.
“I think I’ve got some game left in me, but just not every week,” he said. “That’s how it feels. But these are the events that I get up for. This is why I’m still grinding to give myself like a look at these big events and hopefully jag another major before my time is done. Luckily for me, I feel like physically, I still have all the tools to match it with the best on a given week.
“The Open is a different style of golf and I think it’s a more open event than any other event in the world. Just look at what Tom Watson did in 2009 [Watson led after 54 holes and lost an eventual playoff to Stewart Cink] and even Greg Norman [led 54 holes] the year before that. If you’ve got the experience and the knowledge and you can control your ball a bit, you can really get it around.”
ROUND ONE TEE TIMESÂ (in AEST)
3.57pm Ryan Fox (NZ), Lucas Herbert (Aus), Byeong Hun An (Kor)
6.14pm Jordan Spieth, Matt Fitzpatrick (Eng), Jason Day (Aus)
6.47pm Scottie Scheffler, Tommy Fleetwood (Eng), Adam Scott (Aus)
6.58pm Cameron Smith (Aus), Xander Schauffele, Wyndham Clark
7.42pm Dan Bradbury (Eng), Oliver Farr (Wal), Haydn Barron (Aus)
9.20pm Brendon Todd, Romain Langasque (Fra), Travis Smyth (Aus)
9.42pm Min Woo Lee (Aus), Christiaan Bezuidenhout (Rsa), Harrison Crowe (amateur) (Aus)
10.15pm Zach Johnson, Matt Wallace (Eng), David Micheluzzi (Aus)
12.43am (Friday AEST) Guido Migliozzi (Ita), Oliver Wilson, Connor McKinney (Aus)
Live TV coverage
Wednesday
10pm-4am Live From The Open (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
Thursday
3.30pm-5am Round 1 (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
Friday
5am-7am Live From The Open (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
3.30pm-5am Round 2 (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
Saturday
5am-7am Live From The Open (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
7pm – 5am Round 3 (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
Sunday
5am-7am Live From The Open (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
Final Round 6pm – 4am (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
Monday
4am-6am Live From The Open (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)
Australasian Profiles (provided by Tony Webeck/Australian Golf Media)
Cameron Smith
Age: 29
World ranking: 7
Best finish in 2023: Won LIV Golf London
Past Open appearances: 5
Best finish at The Open: Won in 2022 (St Andrews)
How he qualified: The Open Champions aged 60 or under on 23 July 2023
Jason Day
Age: 35
World ranking: 27
Best finish in 2023: Won AT&T Byron Nelson
Past Open appearances: 10
Best finish at The Open: T4 in 2015 (St Andrews)
How he qualified: The first 50 players on the OWGR for Week 21, 2023
Adam Scott
Age: 43
World ranking: 39
Best finish in 2023: T5 at Wells Fargo Championship
Past Open appearances: 22
Best finish at The Open: 2nd in 2012 (Royal Lytham & St Anne’s)
How he qualified: Top 30 players from the Final 2022 FedEx Cup Points List
Ryan Fox (NZ)
Age: 36
World ranking: 42
Best finish in 2023: T11 at Ras Al Khaimah Championship
Past Open appearances: 6
Best finish at The Open: T16 in 2019 (Royal Portrush)
How he qualified: First 30 in the Final Race to Dubai Rankings for 2022
Min Woo Lee
Age: 24
World ranking: 47
Best finish in 2023: T2 at Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship
Past Open appearances: 2
Best finish at The Open: T21 in 2022 (St Andrews)
How he qualified: Open Qualifying Series (3rd at Australian Open)
Lucas Herbert
Age: 27
World ranking: 56
Best finish in 2023: Won ISPS HANDA Championship
Past Open appearances: 3
Best finish at The Open: T15 in 2022 (St Andrews)
How he qualified: The first 50 players on the OWGR for Week 21, 2023
Daniel Hillier (NZ)
Age: 24
World ranking: 137
Best finish in 2023: Won Betfred British Masters
Past Open appearances: 1
Best finish at The Open: MC in 2021 (Royal St George’s)
How he qualified: Open Qualifying Series (Won British Masters)
Travis Smyth
Age: 28
World ranking: 310
Best finish in 2023: 3rd at World City Championship, Hong Kong
Past Open appearances: 0
Best finish at The Open: First appearance
How he qualified: Open Qualifying Series (3rd at World City Championship, Hong Kong)
David Micheluzzi
Age: 26
World ranking: 363
Best finish in 2023: Won Play Today NSW Open, TPS Sydney
Past Open appearances: 0
Best finish at The Open: First appearance
How he qualified: Won ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit
Harrison Crowe (a)
Age: 21
World amateur ranking: 35
Best finish in 2023: 2nd at NSW Amateur
Past Open appearances: 0
Best finish at The Open: First appearance
How he qualified: Won the 2022 Asia-Pacific Amateur
Haydn Barron
Age: 27
World ranking: 937
Best finish in 2023: T15 at Vic Open
Past Open appearances: 0
Best finish at The Open: First appearance
How he qualified: Open Qualifying Series (T4 at Australian Open)
Connor McKinney
Age: 21
World ranking: 1,140
Best finish in 2023: T5 at Kaskada Golf Challenge
Past Open appearances: 0
Best finish at The Open: First appearance
How he qualified: Final Qualifying at Dundonald Links
Australian winners of The Open
Peter Thomson (1954, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1965), Kel Nagle (1960), Greg Norman (1986, 1993), Ian Baker-Finch (1991), Cameron Smith (2022)
