Open Championship week has arrived, with Royal Portrush set to host the final major of the season.
The Open is golf’s oldest and most prestigious tournament, and every top player in the world wants to get their hands on the Claret Jug.
Xander Schauffele won last year at Royal Troon and will be back this week to defend his title.
Rory McIlroy heads into Royal Portrush with plenty of confidence following his performance at The Scottish Open.
With a stacked field of proven names and rising stars, this year’s major is shaping up to be one of the most compelling in recent memory. However, it may also be demanding, as Harry Colt’s design presents plenty of challenges.
How Grant Horvat played at Royal Portrush before The Open
Grant Horvat has made a name for himself on YouTube with his golf content, but he’s no stranger to the game itself.
He’s currently playing off around +3, and at one point, his handicap was as low as +4.
Just a week before The Open Championship, he had the opportunity to play Royal Portrush under tournament conditions.
Horvat, known for his series attempting to ‘make the cut’ at major championship venues under professional conditions, took on the 2019 Open setup – where Shane Lowry led at eight under after the opening round and the cut line hovered around +1.
The challenge was to see how his own scores and those of his playing partners compared in their first-round effort.
Horvat shot a six-over 77, while George Bryan finished with a four-over 75. Wesley Bryan led their group with an impressive two-under 69.
Royal Portrush is known for being tough, often leaving even top players puzzled by its challenges.
Tiger Woods found something unusual about Royal Portrush
Tiger Woods made his way to Portrush in 2019, not long after winning the Masters at Augusta National in April.
He pointed out that there was something that set Portrush apart from other Open venues.
“This is just a wonderful golf course. It can play so many different ways. [A lot] depends on the wind and what it does. Some of the bunkers here, you wonder why in the hell is it there. And then all of a sudden it’s in play,” he said.
“The difference between this layout versus most of The Open layouts is that the ball seems to repel around the greens a lot.”
“You’re going to have a lot of either bump-and-run chips [or] slow putts coming up the hills. But it’s an unbelievable golf course.”
The Open returns to Royal Portrush this year for just the third time, following previous editions held there in 1951 and 2019.
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