British Open 2015: Field Odds, Favorites and Tournament Preview

This week, golf returns to its place of birth, as the 2015 British Open will be played at the historic Old Course at St Andrews in Fife, Scotland.

One of golf's greatest treasures, the Old Course is a wide-open seaside track that features many unique attributes. The course has 112 natural bunkers, some of which are incredibly notorious for their depth, such as Hell Bunker on the 14th hole and the Road Bunker on the 17th. Another interesting attribute is on the 17th hole, also known as the Road Hole, as golfers face completely blind tee shots.

Aside from those hazards, the Old Course is an absolutely breathtaking venue. In a picturesque location just off the North Sea, St Andrews is home to the iconic Swilcan Bridge—a monument that has helped say farewell to some of golf's legends upon their final Open Championships—and the majestic Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.

The course is a 7,305-yard par 72, but it may feel far longer or shorter by the hour because of the constant swirling winds coming off the North Sea. It's truly a one-of-a-kind track, and it makes this prestigious major championship even more meaningful to the world's top players.

Speaking of the world's top players, Rory McIlroy would generally warrant consideration as the favorite heading into the British Open; however, that won't be the case. After suffering an ankle injury while playing soccer with his friends, he decided to skip the tournament in an effort to heal faster. He announced his decision on his Instagram account:

So, with McIlroy out of the mix, who enters this year's Open Championship as the favorite? If you've followed golf closely of late, you could probably take a rather accurate educated guess, but let's go ahead and take a look at the full tournament odds anyway.

Open Championship Odds

Golfer	Odds
Jordan Spieth	9-2
Dustin Johnson	12-1
Justin Rose	16-1
Rickie Fowler	16-1
Adam Scott	18-1
Henrik Stenson	20-1
Louis Oosthuizen	20-1
Tiger Woods	20-1
Jason Day	25-1
Martin Kaymer	25-1
Phil Mickelson	25-1
Sergio Garcia	25-1
Bubba Watson	28-1
Paul Casey	28-1

All tournament odds courtesy of Odds Shark.

Analyzing Tournament Favorites

Jordan Spieth

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There's plenty on the line for Spieth this week at St Andrews, but that's nothing new for him. The 21-year-old phenom has been on fire this season, winning the Valspar Championship, the Masters Tournament and the U.S. Open before emerging victorious in the John Deere Classic following a Sunday playoff. He ranks No. 2 in the world, but with a win at the Old Course, he'll overtake McIlroy for the top spot.

Spieth has been solid off the tee and accurate with his approach shots, but the biggest reason why he leads the PGA Tour in scoring average is his putting. He has nerves of steel on the green and leads the tour in both putting average and putts per round as a result. Expect that attribute to come into play often on the enormous greens at St Andrews.

Should Spieth win the coveted Claret Jug, he'll be just one PGA Championship victory away from the calendar Grand Slam—a feat no golfer has accomplished in the modern format. Shooting a 61 to close out the John Deere Classic should provide plenty of motivation for the American overseas.

Dustin Johnson

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Dustin Johnson doesn't have a great deal of momentum following his disastrous collapse in the U.S. Open. A three-putt from close range saw the world No. 4 lose his grip on the lead and finish tied for second. Unfortunately, that wasn't Johnson's only flop in a major tournament, as he's had close calls in the 2010 U.S. Open, 2010 PGA Championship and 2011 British Open as well.

Still, Johnson remains undeterred. In fact, his agent, David Winkle, thinks those near-misses are actually helping.

Here's what he had to say during an interview with Bob Gillespie of PGA.com: "He looks at all those collectively as, 'I'm good in majors, I know how to play them, I put myself in position to contend.' With every one of those, he's more confident he can contend, and win. It's a process, learning how to prepare and play majors golf, and he's getting better and better."

If Johnson's mental game is strong, he'll be a force at St Andrews. The course can favor big hitters because of its open landscape, and there's no bigger hitter on tour, as Johnson ranks first in driving distance, averaging 319 yards off the tee.

Justin Rose

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Justin Rose is no stranger to winning major tournaments, having won the 2013 U.S. Open; however, the Englishman has never fared better than a tie for fourth (way back in 1998) in an Open Championship. Yet because of his recent success, he's being considered among the favorites heading into St Andrews.

Rose notched a win in the Zurich Classic this year and also tallied two runner-up finishes, most recently in the Memorial Tournament. He didn't have the strongest showing in the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay, but he did post four solid rounds of 72, 70, 72, 71 to finish tied for 27th.

The biggest test for Rose in The Open Championship will be his consistency. He hasn't been able to get on any kind of a streak this year, resulting in a wide array of finishing positions. That trend continued this past week in the Scottish Open, as he began with a pair of 66s but shot 72 and 76 over the weekend to fall completely out of the picture.

Rickie Fowler

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Don't look now, but Rickie Fowler is peaking at the right time. Everyone remembers Fowler's epic duels with McIlroy in last year's British Open and PGA Championship. The two were neck-and-neck in both majors and seemed to be setting up a fascinating rivalry. Unfortunately for Fowler, he fell by the wayside with some poor showings earlier this season.

Fowler began to show glimpses of returning to form with a win in The Players Championship, but he followed that up with a tie for 30th in the Irish Open and a pair of missed cuts in the Memorial Tournament and U.S. Open. This past week, however, Fowler emerged victorious in the Scottish Open with four consecutive rounds in the 60s.

The 26-year-old is apparently liking the conditions overseas, and if he can find a way to remain hot heading into the British Open, we should expect him to be a force once more. Perhaps this time he's ready for a showdown against Spieth.