Weekly Fantasy Golf Preview: The Open Championship

The Open Championship

Royal Portrush
Portrush, Northern Ireland

The PGA Tour heads to Northern Ireland this week for another edition of the Open Championship.

Chris Gotterup, good on you. That performance came out of nowhere and I could go on and on about just how impressive it was, but unfortunately, or fortunately I guess, it's Open Championship week, so I feel compelled to look ahead.

The season's final major is upon us, and I feel like I say this every year, but I can't believe how fast this season has gone. Yes, we've still got over a month left, but as someone who focuses on the majors, this is kind of the end of the season.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves though, we still have four days of major action in front of us, and as has become the custom in these parts, we're going to take a look at the storylines heading into this week.

Usually Scottie Scheffler is atop the list, but not this week as it's Rory McIlroy who'll take most of the attention as we're in Rory's home country of Northern Ireland. It's no secret that McIlroy has struggled since winning the Masters in April, but if this past week is any indication, he looks ready to contend again at a major.

Speaking of Scheffler, he didn't have his best game this past week in Scotland and it's safe to wonder if that was just bad timing or a lack of feel for the links course. Putting is a different beast in Europe and Scheffler's putter abandoned him this past week. It will be interesting to see if he gets a feel for the greens at Portrush before it's too late.

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As always, we've got a bunch of LIV golfers in the mix this week, and unlike the first couple majors, the attention will be shared between Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm. The Spaniard was absent (figuratively) from the majors in 2024, but he's shown some of his old form in 2025.

Then there's Tommy Fleetwood, who just can't close the deal in the States. Maybe he can close in Europe and win his first major? It's unlikely as the pressure is just going to continue to mount until he wins, but you never know, he usually gives himself a chance to win, so if he's close on the weekend…

And lastly, the one storyline at every Open Championship, the weather, should play a significant part in who wins this week. The forecast doesn't look terrible, but it's that typical Open Championship weather pattern, where the bad stuff comes and goes throughout the week. There will likely be some players that end up on the good side of the weather and some on the bad. Just who that will be, we don't know because the weather is unpredictable at the Open.

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LAST YEAR

Xander Schauffele shot a final-round 65 on his way to a two-stroke victory over Justin Rose.

FAVORITES

All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook as of 10:30 AM ET Wednesday.

Scottie Scheffler (9-2) 

Once again, Scheffler did not have his best game this past week and merely finished in the top-10. It's amazing how good his results have been when not at his best, but to win a major, he'll need to be at his best. I wonder about Scheffler's feel for links-style courses though. He didn't look very comfortable putting at the Scottish Open this past week and he's never finished better than T7 at the Open Championship. He's likely going to be in the mix, even if he's off his game he'll be in the mix, but there's just not enough value in a win bet on Scheffler this week.

Rory McIlroy (7-1)

Had McIlroy struggled at the Scottish Open, I would not have liked his chances this week, but having been in contention should do wonders for him this week. Contending last week showed two things, first, he's not too amped for The Open, which would be understandable, but his ability to focus showed me that he's got his mind right, which is actually the second thing he showed me. McIlroy struggled to find motivation after completing the grand slam, but he seems to have put that behind him. If he can keep his emotions in check, he should be in the mix come Sunday.      

Jon Rahm (12-1)

As I mentioned earlier, Rahm spent last year spinning his wheels and regardless of how he's playing on the LIV Tour, he's back to being a factor at the majors again. So much so that he's the clear LIV favorite this week, a title that DeChambeau held for most of the past two years. Though he's never won an Open Championship, Rahm has contended several times, including 2019 at Portrush where he finished T11. There's not a ton of value here, however, as this number is pretty short, especially when you factor in that he has to beat the two guys in front of him on the odds chart.  

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THE NEXT TIER

Tyrrell Hatton (33-1)

Before we get into Hatton, I wanted to point out that Fleetwood is at 26-1 this week and while I like his chances to play well, how could you trust him to win at this point? Hatton appears to have much more value at 33-1 as he, like Fleetwood, has played well at the majors this year, but doesn't have nearly the amount of baggage that Fleetwood has now. Hatton also played well at Portrush in 2019, finishing T6.                        

Robert MacIntyre (40-1)

I wrote this past week that MacIntyre has done nothing but impress me this year, and while he failed to come through this past week at the Scottish Open, that was understandable considering he was defending the title in his home country. Now he gets to move onto a new country, a new open, one where the majority of eyes will not be on him. Much like a month ago at Oakmont where he flew under the radar until the very end when he almost found himself in a playoff at the U.S. Open.

Matt Fitzpatrick (50-1) 

A few months ago, I might have needed 50-1 odds just to make the cut on Fitzpatrick, but a lot have changed since then. Fitzpatrick found his old form a couple months ago and he's starting to look like a major championship again. He was in contention this past Sunday at the Scottish Open, and while he didn't come through, that experience can only help him this week. A win is certainly not likely this week, but that why we are getting such a big number. He's capable of winning a major, we've seen it, it's just a matter of if he's all the way back.

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LONG SHOTS

Cameron Young (80-1)            

It's pretty rare to pick up your first PGA Tour win at a major, and that's why we've got such long odds on Young, but if you based his odds this week on his play this year and at the majors in general, his odds wouldn't be nearly as high. As it is though, you do have to factor in that he's yet to actually seal the deal at this level, so he's definitely a longshot to win. With that said, his best showing at a major, came at the Open Championship in 2022, where he finished runner-up. He backed that up with a top-10 the following year, so he obviously has a feel for links golf.        

Marco Penge (120-1)    

If you were unfamiliar with Penge prior to this past week, then join the club. Though he was a relative unknown to a lot of us I the States, he's been playing pretty well on the DP World Tour this season and his performance at the Scottish Open wasn't a huge surprise to many. If may be a bit ambitious to think he can play as well as he did this past week again this week, but sometimes it's the guys that don't know they aren't supposed to contend that are the best plays. Unlike some big names in the field, there's no baggage here. If Penge gets off to a good start, there's no reason he can't contend again this week.  

ONE-AND-DONE LEAGUES

Highly-Chosen Pick: Rory McIlroy – Normally I would assume that just about no one had McIlroy left at this point in the season, but considering we all knew that McIlroy would be playing the Open Championship in his home country this season, I think that there are a good amount of OAD players that still have him at the ready. If that's the case, then there's no reason to hold back this week. You've got a great card to play here, you might as well do it.    

Moderately-Chosen Pick: Tyrrell Hatton – Hatton doesn't have a great record at the Open Championship, but he has finished inside the top-20 in three of his five most recent starts, including the aforementioned T6 at Portrush. It's never a bad thing to come in under the radar either, and considering all the other storylines this week, I don't think many will be paying much attention to Hatton, which should serve him well. 

Lightly-Chosen Pick: Cameron Young– Young was trending the wrong way entering this season, but he's turned his game around and looks ready to be a factor again. Young missed the cut at the Masters earlier this year, but he hasn't missed a cut since and he finished T4 in his most recent start at a major. He also has a strong record at this particular major, so everything is lined up for another strong showing.     

Buyer Beware: Tony Finau – If you're basing your picks on who played well here in 2019, then you might be considering Finau who finished T3, but I would advise against that. Finau has been off his game all season and he hasn't teed it up since mid-June. He's also struggled at the Open Championship lately, missing the cut in his last two starts at this event.  

My Pick: Tyrrell Hatton – It's rare that I have so many good options to choose from this late in the season, but considering that some of those options are LIV players and therefore ineligible the rest of the season, I thought it best to choose one of them. Some of those "good options" are Fleetwood, Fitzpatrick and Rahm, so it came down to Rahm or Hatton for me, but since Rahm is likely to be much more popular than Hatton this week, I decided to go with the golfer that could help me move up the standings.                              

Previous Results

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FANDUEL PICKS

Upper Range: Rory McIlroy ($11,900)
Middle Range:  Matt Fitzpatrick ($9,900)
Lower Range: Marco Penge ($7,800)

SURVIVOR LEAGUES

My Pick: Jon Rahm – Since the OAD pick came down to Rahm and Hatton and I used Hatton for the OAD, I'll mix it up and use Rahm for this format. Rahm is seemingly back to his old self, which means he's much more reliable than he was this past year. Added bonus of using a guy that I won't be able to use the remainder of the season.