Patrick Reed and Sergio Garcia are two of the largest names lacking from this 12 months’s Open Championship.
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There are 157 individuals within the subject at this 12 months’s Open Championship, which suggests there are roughly 7.95 billion who aren’t.
Amongst these there are just a few surprises — guys you’d suppose is perhaps enjoying however aren’t. Let’s run by 10 of ’em.
LIV DIVISION
LIV has 18 professionals within the subject — however a lot extra large names who aren’t.
10. Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Paul Casey, Graeme McDowell, Richard Bland
We’re already breaking our personal guidelines right here however let’s begin by grouping this U.Okay. fivesome collectively. Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Paul Casey and Graeme McDowell have been mainstays on golf’s worldwide stage for many years, and Richard Bland is coming into his personal because the Senior PGA and Senior U.S. Open champion. It was unusual not seeing them ultimately fall’s Ryder Cup and it’s unusual not seeing them at their dwelling main. In equity, there’s no approach to know whether or not they would have certified had they not defected to LIV — however there’s no query the transfer accelerated their drop. None of those 5 stay inside the highest 500 on the planet.
9. Talor Gooch
Talor Gooch was a notable addition to the PGA Championship as a result of it appeared as if his distinctive play on LIV final season was being acknowledged by one in every of golf’s governing our bodies. No such luck on the Open, and Gooch didn’t try and qualify.
LIV’s main exemptions are dwindling. If nothing modifications, right here’s what’ll occur
8. Carlos Ortiz
With two victories on his 2024 resume — one at LIV’s Houston occasion and the opposite on the Asian Tour’s Worldwide Sequence occasion in Oman — Carlos Ortiz has established himself as one in every of LIV’s higher gamers. DataGolf has him as one of many 50 greatest golfers on the planet in the meanwhile. However he’s ranked simply No. 260 within the OWGR and did not advance by Open qualifying.
7. Patrick Reed
The latest main champion to overlook this 12 months’s Open might be Patrick Reed. When the 2018 Masters champ missed the U.S. Open final month it ended a decade-long streak of enjoying in each main — however now he’ll miss two in a row. Reed, who’s No. 104 on the planet, lately performed two DP World Tour occasions however his T29 and T13 finishes weren’t sufficient to spice up him into the sphere.
6. Sergio Garcia
There’s no LIV golfer whose quest for the U.S. Open and Open Championship drew extra consideration than that of Sergio Garcia, a testomony to his standing within the recreation. He completed T12 on the U.S. Open, his greatest main outcome since successful the Masters in 2017. However he’s fallen to No. 323 on the planet and got here up brief in qualifying for the Open. The truth that he gained final week’s LIV occasion in Spain served as additional reminder of golf’s ongoing divide — and Garcia’s potential.
NON-LIV DIVISION
These guys are good, too.
5. Mark Hubbard
When Mark Hubbard missed the minimize ultimately week’s Genesis Scottish Open, it was his first MC of 2024 in his twentieth begin. His ’24 marketing campaign hasn’t all been spectacular — apart from the two-man Zurich Basic, he doesn’t have a high 20 since early February — however you’d determine one of many recreation’s most constant performers could be within the Open. He’s not.
4. Keith Mitchell
The favourite to win this week’s opposite-field Barracuda Championship is Keith Mitchell, who has performed properly this 12 months, racking up 9 top-20s on the PGA Tour, however not fairly properly sufficient; none of these outcomes have been larger than T9 and so he stays No. 84 on the planet — regardless of his expertise and aspirational type.
3. Taylor Pendrith
You’d suppose that a win like Taylor Pendrith’s on the CJ Cup Byron Nelson could be sufficient to get him into each main, and Pendrith’s recreation appears ok by any measure — he’s No. 59 on the planet, DataGolf ranks him No. 61 and he’s No. 36 within the FedEx Cup — however wasn’t fairly excessive sufficient in any given class to get into the sphere at Troon.
2. Nick Dunlap
Talking of high-profile winners, Nick Dunlap gained on the PGA Tour earlier this season as an novice, instantly boosting himself into the Signature Occasions in addition to into the collective consciousness of each big-time golf fan. He additionally performed in every of the primary three majors of the 12 months. However the Open has no ensures for Tour winners and due to this fact Dunlap’s OWGR, which now sits at No. 71, wasn’t fairly sturdy sufficient to get him by.
1b. Thomas Detry
If there’s somebody who actually appears to have slipped by the cracks at this 12 months’s Open it’s Thomas Detry. He might have certified had he completed within the high 10 at Hoylake final 12 months; he completed thirteenth. If he’d been inside the highest 50 within the OWGR on the cutoff date he would have been in; he was 53rd. He performed his first full PGA Tour season in 2023, which meant he fell exterior the DP World Tour’s eligibility standards however he didn’t play properly sufficient to make it to the Tour Championship, both, which might have certified him. Nevertheless it’s unusual to see him omitted given he was an element on the PGA Championship, the place he wound up T4, and on the U.S. Open, the place he completed T14. He’s arguably having the very best {golfing} 12 months of anybody not within the subject. Once more, simply not fairly ok.
1a. Cam Davis
An admission: Once I was drafting this text I left Davis off my listing altogether as a result of I didn’t understand he’d been left off the Open’s listing, too. Appears like a foul omission on each elements!
Right here’s the deal: Davis simply gained the Rocket Mortgage Basic two weeks in the past, a victory that bought him as much as No. 37 on the planet. He’s now No. 41. Sadly that win got here too late for the OWGR cutoff; the event had already accepted the world’s high 50 gamers 5 weeks earlier.
The excellent news is that his standing on the planet has him at first alternate, so he’s on website — however that’s the place issues get much more irritating. The R&A desires a subject of 156 gamers however started the week with 159. When David Duval withdrew they have been left with 158. When Sebastian Soderberg withdrew they have been left with 157. However Davis gained’t get the inexperienced mild until their quantity drops to 155, so he’ll want two extra WDs to get his shot, regardless of some open spots in tee instances.
Even worse? That is the second consecutive 12 months Davis is first alternate. He waited round all Thursday final 12 months at Royal Liverpool, however no cube. And in accordance with an interview with Golf Digest, in 2022 he mentioned officers advised him his alternate quantity was too huigh, so he stayed dwelling — however would have gotten in.
Possibly 2025 is his 12 months.
Others receiving votes:
-LIV Golfers: Martin Kaymer, Eugenio Chacarra, Marc Leishman, Anirban Lahiri, extra
–David Duval — Previous champ and former World No. 1 who performed as lately as 2022 and was listed within the subject earlier than a late scratch
–Harry Corridor — Received final week’s ISCO Championship however that didn’t qualify him. No worries: His spouse is due with their first youngster this week.
–Colin Montgomerie — Hasn’t performed in a number of years however drew loads of consideration for his feedback on Tiger Woods’ ongoing chase, significantly after Woods’ rebuttal.
–Webb Simpson — I count on to see Simpson in each main for the remainder of time; he’s solely performed one in every of the final two years however my mind hasn’t but adjusted.
–Alex Fitzpatrick — His first main got here ultimately 12 months’s Open and he performed remarkably properly all week (and appeared on Netflix) however his T17 end wasn’t sufficient to earn him a return berth.
-Everybody else I’ve omitted — Many, I’m positive. Possibly we’ll get ’em subsequent 12 months.
