British Open 2015: Top Golfers Whose Games Are Best Suited for St. Andrews

The 2015 British Open Championship gets underway Thursday at the Old Course at St. Andrews—but which players are primed to succeed at the year’s third major?

No one would fault you for putting your money on Jordan Spieth and calling it a day. After all, the 21-year-old’s proven strategy and clinical execution at majors have earned him the Masters and U.S. Open already this year. 

However, to look no further than the odds-on favorite would mean ignoring a field rife with players who are tailor-made to excel at St. Andrews. Most of these competitors do not dominate every aspect of the game from tee to green, but the Old Course doesn’t demand all-around excellence from those seeking low scores.

Since it doesn’t exactly take a pro to hit the sizeable greens and fairways at St. Andrews, the challenge lies more in taking advantage of the yardage, being able to zero in on the pin (with every club in the bag) and, of course, knowing how to coexist with the cavernous bunkers through either avoidance or stellar recoveries. 

Let’s take a look at players with the best collection of attributes to give them an edge over the field in the 2015 British Open. Whether it’s a favorite like Dustin Johnson or an outlier like Stewart Cink, all the guys in this list have a special blend of skills that could see them in contention on Sunday.

Stewart Cink

Stewart Cink is not a favorite to win this year’s Open. In fact, he hasn’t been a real contender across the pond for half a decade now. However, Cink can turn that form around and get back to his 2009 winning ways (his only major championship victory, highlighted above and punctuated by some aggressive snare drumming) by playing to his strengths this year.

Looking back at the American’s 2015 season so far, it’s clear he is a cut above the field when it comes to dialing in the green. Cink clocks in at 72.2 percent greens in regulation, which ranks fourth on tour. That alone isn’t a game-changer (again: the groundskeepers at St. Andrews aren’t exactly minimalists), but his accuracy doesn’t stop there.

Cink also ranks seventh on tour when it comes to stopping it near the hole on the approach. Considering Tiger Woods assessed the greens at St. Andrews this week by saying, per GolfChannel.com, “I wasn't expecting the firmness to be that soft. We made ball marks on the greens. I don't ever remember making ball marks around this place,” Cink’s accurate irons shots should hit (and stay) very near the pin.

Combine that with his lag putting from outside 25 feet (ranked ninth on tour), and he should find himself with reasonable looks at birdies and par saves all week, even when his irons don’t come off perfectly.

Cink showed moments of quality last time out at St. Andrews in 2010, when he finished tied for 48th at one over par, even though nothing much came from his “fiercely competitive” attempt to retain the Claret Jug.

This year, though, all the pieces are in place for the American to finish in the top 20 if he can sustain his season averages.

Dustin Johnson

The man who just missed glory at the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay in June currently sits at 11-1 odds to win the British Open, per Odds Shark.

Perhaps Dustin Johnson’s biggest advantage heading across the pond is his tour-leading 319-yard driving average (highlighted above with some great sound bites). While the ability to turn par fives into par fours is generally helpful on any course, it will become a dramatic game-changer on the Old Course’s short par fours.

Of St. Andrews’ 14 par-four holes, exactly half of them are under 400 yards. With a good roll, a little help from the wind or just some good, old-fashioned power-driving, Johnson should have plenty of opportunities to go straight from the big stick to his putter.

His 57 percent driving accuracy (168th on tour) may seem a serious detriment for a major contender, but the links fairways will be far more welcoming of slightly wayward drives than the average course.

Add to that Johnson’s putting average of just over 1.7 strokes per hole (ranked second on tour), and the man from South Carolina is ahead of the field in (arguably) the two most crucial categories necessary for going low at St. Andrews.

J.B. Holmes

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Speaking of long drivers, J.B. Holmes is also no stranger to bombing it from the tee. His driving average of over 308 yards ranks fifth on tour, and his strokes gained tee-to-green ranks 12th.

If Holmes combines that driving distance with his approach shot accuracy from 75-100 yards (ranked third on tour), he’ll have a potent one-two punch that should lead to consistent low-scoring opportunities on those short par fours.

On the green, Holmes ranks third in putting average and eighth in birdie-or-better conversion average at 34.9 percent.

In his last British Open outing at St. Andrews in 2010, Holmes finished tied for 14th place at four under par. Aside from that, however, his career at major championships has been unremarkable at best. Holmes has only broken into the top 20 twice in the last decade in any major, and he missed the cut at his last two British Opens.

Regardless of his credentials at past Opens, though, the 33-year-old is presently peaking with the attributes necessary to take advantage of St. Andrews this year. Maybe Holmes will never win a major—or maybe it’s finally his time to shine on the biggest stage. 

Look for a top-20 finish from the American this week.

Justin Rose

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Justin Rose has a little bit of everything one needs to make the most of this Open, despite the fact he just missed the cut in 2010.

This year, Rose comes to St. Andrews ranked 25th in driving distance (just under 300 yards on average), 27th in greens in regulation (69 percent), eighth in sand saves (64.3 percent) and 18th in putting average (1.73 putts per hole).

The Englishman has been playing well across the board all season, earning a tie for second place in the Masters and a world No. 8 ranking. He is also No. 14 in the FedEx Cup standings, thanks largely to three top-10 finishes so far this year.

Rose’s career at majors has been generally positive, with only one exception: the British Open. He has recorded at least one top-five finish in each of the four major tournaments over the past four years, but he has yet to break the top 10 at the British Open (his best professional finish was T-12 in 2007).

Add to that the burden of national hopes after Rory McIlroy withdrew last week, and British fans may be worried about local pros’ chances. Rose, however, calmly dismissed that concern when he said, per ESPN, “As a home hope there might be an added inkling of tension with Rory out, but I don't think that really translates into anything to be worried about or even think about.”

When asked about his history at the Open, Rose added, “You only need to win it once, and [it] doesn't matter what the previous 10 years look like. Winning the Scottish Open on a links course last year at Royal Aberdeen proved to me there's no reason why I can't do well in the Open.” 

The oddsmakers seem to agree with his self-assessment.

According to Odds Shark, the Englishman is favored at 18-1, behind only Jordan Spieth, Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler. Look for Rose to finish in the top 15.

Rickie Fowler

What Rickie Fowler lacks in long-iron accuracy he more than makes up for with his short irons and putting.

Overall, Fowler has only managed to hit 63 percent of greens in regulation this season (ranked a lowly 162nd on tour). When focusing on his 75-100-yard range, however, he has been able to dial it in at an average of 13 feet from the hole.

Fowler also isn’t too shabby when aiming for the pin from 25 yards farther back, where he typically lands his Pro V1x within 19 feet of the hole.

Add that to his nearly 300-yard drives, and (like many others on this list with a similar formula) Fowler should be routinely looking at comfortable approaches on many of the Open’s par fours. Once he finds the green, he can rely on his 1.55 putts-per-hole average, which ranks fifth on tour.

After his win Sunday at the Scottish Open (highlighted above), Fowler also has the intangible benefits of confidence and recent links experience to build on his T-14 finish at St. Andrews in 2010.

“To win on a links golf course, my favorite style of golf, in Scotland and the week before the Open and going to St. Andrews, the Home of Golf is great timing,” Fowler said, per Fox Sports, adding, “I like my chances [at the British Open].”

Not long after being named “most overrated player on tour” by his peers, Fowler hit back at his critics with a pair of wins. This week, he’ll have the tools and opportunity to silence those doubters for good with major wins.

Hideki Matsuyama

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Hideki Matsuyama is currently ranked 14th in the world and 13th in FedEx Cup standings. He also tied for 18th at the U.S. Open and took fifth place at the Masters. This will be only his third attempt at the Claret Jug, but his T-39 finish last year and T-6 finish in his first try in 2013 are certainly a promising foundation.

The 23-year-old already has six top-10 finishes in 2015, and the style of play that got him there should give him a distinct advantage over much of the field at St. Andrews.

Matsuyama’s driving average of 297 yards ranks as a “good, but not spectacular” No. 33 on tour, but his 70.5 percent greens in regulation comes in at an enviable No. 9. More importantly, his approach accuracy from the critical 50-125-yard range ranks 18th, meaning he typically finds himself only about 16 feet from the pin when he goes for it with a short iron.

If Matsuyama wants to turn those approach shots into red figures, though, he’ll have to either improve on his 27 percent conversion rate from 10-15 feet or find a way to get inside 10 feet more consistently (he’s made 88.8 percent of his putts from inside 10 feet this season).

One solution to that issue could be simply playing more aggressively: The pro from Japan ranks second on tour in eagles with 13 and counting. Softer greens this year at the Old Course means there’s no reason Matsuyama shouldn’t feel comfortable aiming right at the pin every time.

While favorable conditions will make aggressive play more enticing, there’s another reason Matsuyama may feel the need to push the envelope more than usual at St. Andrews: He’ll be teeing off with Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson for at least the first two rounds.

Being grouped with the two favorites from the start will be an excellent incentive for the man sitting at 33-1 odds, per Odds Shark, to make every shot count while trying to match (or surpass) their scoring.