Now that the US Open is over and done with, July approaches. And with July comes a weekend steeped in history, when The Open begins. The 154th Open Championship is set to start on 9th July, and the tournament will be played at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England.
The course takes players through towering dunes, with flat fairways obscured from the rest of the course, and the iconic Royal Birkdale clubhouse. It’s played host to 10 Open Championships in its history, but who will win number 11? Here’s a preview of the contenders, and who might walk away with the Claret Jug.
Scottie Scheffler
An obvious contender, as he is at every tournament he participates in. The case against Scheffler is gathering some steam: he fell short at the Masters, allowing Rory McIlroy to put another green jacket in his cupboard, and had a pretty dismal US Open by his standards.
Despite that, the case for Scheffler remains incredibly strong. He’s the defending champion of the Open, having won at Portrush last year, he’s the clear best golfer in the world, he’s ruthless in his consistency. For a course that rewards low hitters, Scheffler can make a great run at another claret jug.
Rory McIlroy
With the Masters demons firmly dispatched with a second Masters victory and another green jacket, McIlroy is arguably in the form of his life. Already an Open winner, he has nothing left to prove to the golfing world, but his close ties with links golf gives him a boost here.
McIlroy has described himself as more motivated than ever after the second Masters, with a newfound drive to keep adding to his major tally. He’s certainly the romantics’ pick as the next Open winner, but will he still have the fire in his belly to win. Right now, he’s behind Scheffler in the odds on the best betting sites in UK, but that didn’t stop him winning the Masters.
Xander Schauffele
Schauffele won both the 2024 PGA Championship and the 2024 Open Championship, becoming the first player to win multiple majors in a season since Brooks Koepka in 2018.
He is a proven Open champion on links terrain, has shown the ability to close under pressure, and goes into Birkdale with strong recent major form, back-to-back top tens to start 2026. The concern is that 2025 was relatively quiet at the major level after a stunning 2024, but if he regains his form, he’s a serious contender.
Tommy Fleetwood
I take it back that Rory McIlroy is the romantics’ pick for The Open’s next winner: it’s obviously Tommy Fleetwood. Fleetwood is one of the best golfers on the PGA Tour that still hasn’t won a major. He’s a Southport local, having grown up just a stone’s throw away from the course.
The emotional pull of winning The Open at the course you grew up beside is enormous, and Birkdale crowds will be firmly behind him. Will that finally be enough to help him get a win over the line?
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