Aimee Howarth talks about her sporting hero, Cristiano Ronaldo
Steve Puddicombe on why he thinks Mark Cavendish should win Sports Personality of the Year 2011
The Yorker's sports team says what they would like for Christmas this year
The second blog for The Yorker from the University of York Riding Club
Everyone seems to be talking about Rory McIlroy in the run up to these championships after his win at the US Open earlier in the year, and it was revealed this week that he turned down an offer of a Tiger Woods style entourage of bodyguards for the tournament. There is no doubt that McIlroy is talented, and the way he played at Congressional in the US Open showed that he had categorically moved on from his horrendous final round at The Masters earlier in the year and gained some mental toughness. However, McIlroy will find out very quickly this week that the key to him being in the hunt for the tournament will be to manage the weight of expectation that will be placed on his shoulders. So many golfers win one major and then struggle to replicate their success, and McIlroy will be out at Royal St George this week to show that he isn’t about to become one of those players.
While I think that McIlroy will win more majors in what will definitely be a sparkling golfing career for the man from Northern Ireland, he is not my pick for this year’s Open. That great honour goes to Luke Donald, who would seem to be in prime position as world number one and coming into this tournament on the back of a fantastic victory in the Scottish Open last week. Rather than playing on adrenalin, Donald goes about his game with a level of calmness that is very rarely seen on a golf course, and is completely in control of his game at the moment.
Donald has the best short game out of all the players that will line up at Royal St George this week, and if he can drive the ball straight and find the fairways then he will be very hard to beat. The Englishman has worked his way to world number one by quietly yet confidently accumulating wins throughout the year, and if there was ever a time for him to shine on the big stage then this is it.
Of course there are many other British players that could be backed to win the 2011 Open. The likes of Lee Westwood, Paul Casey and Ian Poulter will inevitably be mentioned, but looking a little further into the pack, you find the likes of Scott Jamieson, who played extremely well in the Scottish Open and, excuse the cringe worthy X Factor style quote, could be a dark horse in the competition. Notable absentees this year include Colin Montgomerie, who missed out on qualification for the first time in 22 years, and Tiger Woods, who is ruled out with injury.
It could however be the case that for all the talk, a rank outsider happens to string three or four great rounds together to win the championship. After all, who would have backed last year’s winner Luis Oosthuizen before the tournament began? Not me certainly! One of the most compelling things about major golfing championships is their wonderful unpredictability, and hopefully the 140th Open Championship will provide wonderful entertainment and drama from Thursday to Sunday.
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