2023 Open Preview with Darren Clarke
We sit lanugo & yack with Darren Clarke well-nigh his experiences playing The Open Championship at Royal Liverpool. Darren talks well-nigh his experiences of Hoylake as well as insights well-nigh the most difficult holes. Darren’s insights into the undertow and the tournament are invaluable for anyone watching The 151st Open Championship or playing Royal Liverpool on an upcoming golf break.
Darren Clarke on Royal Liverpool
When we played there the last time when Rory won there was no wind and it was soft, Rory played unbelievably. It was two contrasting tournaments, as far end of the spectrum as you can get.
Now the course, as you stand on that first tee you’ve got out of premises on the right so you want to aim a little bit left and you pull it left to go into the rough then try to not get a flyer, that’s usually the way I try to play the first hole.
The undertow gives you opportunities as well, the holes are not all long beasts. The 15th has been redesigned, a unconfined little par 3 surrounded by bunkers, I squint forward to getting when there and seeing how that worked out.
On 18 you are scrutinizingly going over the corner with the out of bounds, you have to make sure you have your structuring for your second shot. You have to pick a mark on the grandstands and commit to it, it’s very easy to take your vision off it and leak one or hit a bad shot.
It is a really pearly golf undertow that gives you opportunities to make birdies but it is moreover going to zest you really quick if you get it wrong.
What is the hardest slum at Royal Liverpool?
The hardest slum on the golf undertow is going to depend upon the conditions, if the wind blows and it’s firm & fast with bunkers waiting to gobble up any wittiness that is drawn towards them leaving you with no shot. So the hardest is probably the 8th, it’s going to play really tough but then it depends on the conditions. Like any links undertow if the wind is self-glorification straight lanugo one day it’s an easy hole, self-glorification straight into you then it’s a brute of a slum so weather dependant.
Who will win The Open in 2023?
I wish I had that crystal ball, Rory is going to go when there with really good memories of winning. The depth is so unconfined at the top you had Cameron Young finish second last year at St Andrews, he has an unbelievable golf game. You’ve got Jordan we know what he can do and JT there are so many guys who are going to be there and challenge.
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On Sunday, Brian Harman capped an impressive four days of golf to win the 2023 Open Championship by six strokes. This weekend, the attention will shift to the Legends Tour and the 2023 Senior Open Royal Porthcawl Golf Club.
The Senior British Open figures to be an entertaining competition in its own right. While the Legends Tour is reserved for players 50 and older, it doesn't lack skilled golfers or star power.
Defending champion Darren Clarke, for example, was once ranked as high as No. 8 in the world and emerged from the 2011 Open Championship victorious. Colin Montgomerie notched 31 wins on the European Tour and recorded six top-five finishes in Major Championships.
Other notable names and familiar faces in the Senior Open field include two-time Masters winner Bernhard Langer, three-time Major winner Vijay Singh and 2003 Masters winner Mike Weir.
With bragging rights and the winner's share of $2.75 million on the line, fans should expect some stiff competition and a lot of fun along the coast of the Bristol Channel.
The 2023 Senior Open will take place at Royal Porthcawl, a fantastic links course that also hosted the event in 2017 and in 2014, along with the Amateur Championship in 2016.
Interestingly, both the 2014 and 2017 Senior Opens were won by Langer, who is still going strong at 65 years old. The German pro has won the Senior Open four times and just won the U.S. Senior Open earlier this month.
"There are a lot more aches and pains than 10 years ago," Langer said, per the Associated Press. "I still enjoy the game. If I play like I did this week, I'm going to keep playing.
That victory allowed Langer to break a tie with Hale Irwin for the PGA Tour Champions' career victory record. Langer stands a good chance of winning once again this weekend.
However, he'll face stiff competition from the likes of Clarke and 2022 runner-up Pádraig Harrington. At 51, Harrington is one of the youngest players on either the Legends or Champions tours, and he has won the Open Championship twice.
Fellow 51-year-old Steven Alker should also be a factor this weekend. He won the Insperity Invitational in April, tied for sixth at the U.S. Senior Open and has seven top-10 finishes in 10 events this season.
Steve Stricker won't be in the field, which may elicit a collective sigh of relief from the rest of the competition.
The 56-year-old has been on a stellar run, finishing second at the U.S. Senior Open, winning the Senior PGA Championship and notching four other victories (including two majors( and finishing inside the top 10 in every single tournament this year.
With Stricker not participating, things should be a little more open atop the leaderboard, and it should be a fun race to the finish on Sunday.
