As the Open is about to start in Carnoustie, one of the big questions is what has happened to European golf? Americans have dominated recently and Justin Rose, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy and the other European players will be desperately trying to prevent another US win – especially on home soil.
Tommy Fleetwood recently commented on this current period of American dominance, stating: “They have an exceptional bunch of players at the moment.” Adding “They’ve generally been the best players in the world at the time that they’ve won them.”
US player rivalry pushes them on
The rivalry between the US players appears to be added motivation for them, with Justin Thomas reflecting on how much he hates to lose to DJ. The players train together and that competitive rivalry throughout training helps to push each other even further, something which the European players do not seem to have going for them.
Carnoustie will be Car-nasty for some players
The 147th Open at Carnoustie promises to be a fantastic competition yet again and the interest in US dominance makes it even more intriguing. The course itself will also play a big part in the excitement, having earned the nickname ‘Car-nasty’ for good reason. Just ask Jean van de Velde how much he loves playing at Carnoustie and the 18th hole in particular!
The weather has also been known to heavily influence play, with the Scottish coast often being prone to periods of heavy rain and high winds. This year, the weather has been much calmer in this part of the world, even experiencing long periods of sunshine! So the weather forecast is looking fairly kind for the Open at this point, so it is more the matter of the tricky course that the players will have to contend with.
All of the action starts tomorrow and Jordan Spieth will be hoping to bring back the Claret Jug this year at Carnoustie, after last year’s memorable victory at the Royal Birkdale.
