British Open: Dark horse candidates to raise the Claret Jug

The 2019 British Open is here. It’s time for some dark horse candidates that could take home the Claret Jug.

It seems like a week ago when Tiger won the Green Jacket. Alas, that was back in April. It’s the middle of July, and the final major of 2019 is now upon us. This year’s Masters is when I started my dark horse weekly article. This week, we head to Northern Ireland for the British Open.

I’ve done all right so far this year during majors with my picks. Matt Kuchar finished T-12th at the Masters. Adam Scott finished T-8th at the PGA Championship. My crowning achievement so far this year was giving out Gary Woodland to win the U.S. Open.

Let’s see if I can pick another winner. Before we get there though, we should check in on last week’s dark horse picks at the John Deere Classic.

• Nick Watney – 50/1 – T-6th (-16) – was tied with Frittelli at two back to start the day. Shot a 69, and ended five shots back.
• Sam Ryder – 66/1 – T-18th (13) – Very consistent all week, shooting 67-67-69-68.
• Nick Taylor – 80/1 – T-33rd (-11) – missed out on a top 20 finish by shooting 71 on Sunday.
• Jonathan Byrd – 100/1 – MC (70-74) – Needed a nice round Friday, but shot +3 instead.
• Luke Donald – 150/1 – T-56th (-7) – Started strong with 68-68, faltered with 70-71.

Not a bad week at all in preparation for the British Open.

Once again, Koepka is the favorite for a major. Rightfully so, as he has been playing incredibly at majors over the last 11. Eight of which were top 10 finishes, and four wins. He is nowhere near being eligible for this list.

We will be setting the line for dark horse inclusion at 45-1. This means that 20 golfers’ odds are too high to be included. Some of my personal favorites for this week just miss the list. Thanks to oddsshark as always for their odds.

It’s time for the final major of the year. Ladies and Gentleman, the dark horse candidates for the 148th British Open, at Royal Portrush Golf Club in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.