PGA Preview: 2015 Open Championship

Monday Finish at The Open Tune in today (Monday) to ESPN folks, for Open Championship final round coverage which starts at 6 a.m. eastern time.  No matter what happens or how the crowded leaderboard unfolds, history will be made. Weather Delays In case you were not aware, the Open Championship (British Open) has had some delays due to bad weather.  High winds made completing the second round Friday impossible and play was suspended.  Yes, it does sound strange to hear the Open, St. Andrews, and links golf having a suspension of play due to wind.  As they say in Scotland, nae wind, nae gowf.  But since the R&A and professional tours have decided to speed the normally slow greens on the Old Course up, winds were blowing balls off the greens.  When that happens the must stop play. The delays moved play about a day off and the 3rd round was contested Sunday, but let's go back a bit to the first two rounds. Notables Who Missed The Cut Tiger Woods struggled in round one with a 76, his worst score ever on the Old Course in the Open.  A lackluster second round 75 which completed on Saturday (yes Tiger made it to the weekend... #joke) left Woods five shots off of the cut and 17 shots behind the then leader Dustin Johnson.  More questions than answers remain regarding the state of Tiger Woods's golf game. Long hitting Bubba Watson had a decent first round, but a late triple in his second round dashed his hopes of making the final two rounds.  Links golf seems to be a mystery to Watson. Speaking of players named Watson, Tom Watson's career major ending round was on the Old Course this week.  The five time Open Champion, a favorite in Scotland and the UK, said goodbye from the Swilken Bridge, the same place Jack Nicklaus said goodbye to majors 10 years ago. Former Open champion John Daly showed signs of life with a first round 71, but missed the cut after a final round 74. Others who missed the cut include Ian Poulter, Miguel Angel Jimenez, JB Holmes and Darren Clarke. [caption id="attachment_5914" align="alignright" width="246"] Dunne and caddie[/caption] Packed Leaderboard The leaderboard for Monday's final round is packed.  There are 14 players within three shots of the lead.  In major championships, especially at the Old Course where one bad swing can mean a double or a triple, the field is wide open. The biggest stories of the event so far include two players who are 21 and 22 years of age respectively.  Jordan Spieth (21) has a shot at history, having won the first two majors of 2015 in the Masters and the U.S. Open.  Spieth sits one shot behind the leaders at -11, not in the final group.  This is a similar position to a few weeks ago when he came from behind to win the U.S. Open at Chambers bay.  A win for Spieth would put him at three legs of the grand slam, winning all four major championships in one season.  Not even Tiger Woods did that, though he did win four majors in a row, calling it the "Tiger slam." Atop the leaderboard sits aussie Jason Day.  Day has been knocking at the door of major championships for many years, but fighting vertigo has made sealing the deal difficult.  Day seems to have worked out the vertigo issues. Louis Oosthuizen knows how to win the Open at St. Andrews.  He did it the last time the Open was played on the Old Course in 2010.  He too sits at -12 along with Day and one other player. The other player tied for the lead at -12 is an unknown amateur from Ireland named John Dunne.  Dunne shot up the leaderboard in the third round with a 66.  Only one player in the entire field shot in the 60's for the first three rounds, Dunne.  The last time an amateur had a lead in the Open after three rounds was in 1927, Bobby Jones.  I doubt Dunne will have the nerves to pull off the win, but if he does the story will be one of the top five stories in golf in the last 100 years, no doubt. Within Reach Players who could win with a "special" round include Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, and Zach Johnson, Adam Scott, Marc Leishman, and Danny Willet. Put your mouthpiece in and your crash helmet on and enjoy the final round of the Open.