Winners and losers after 36 holes at the British Open

We’re still 36 holes from crowning a new British Open champion, but before we head into the weekend, let’s take a look back on some of the winners and losers from the first two rounds at Royal Lytham and St Annes.

Winners

Tiger Woods — If not for two birdies in his last three holes, Woods likely would’ve ended up on the other side of the list. Through 15 holes on Friday, he had the look of a guy who couldn’t get anything going. He managed to go out in 2-under 30 but bogeyed the 11th and the spent the next four holes spinning his wheels until he rolled in a birdie on the par-4 16th. The hole-out for birdie on the 18th will have people talking up his chances this weekend, but let’s not forget: he’s a cumulative 10-over on the weekend at the majors this year. He’s played well up to this point. Now it’s time to see if he can back up 67-67 with another sub-70 round.

Brandt Snedeker — Three British Open appearances. Three missed cuts. That’s how you could have summed up Brandt Snedeker’s history at golf’s oldest major coming into the week. But that all changed on Friday, thanks to a salty 64 that moved him to 10-under for the tournament, tying him with Nick Faldo for the lowest 36-hole score in tournament history. So what the heck got into the dude from Nashville, Tenn.? Well for one, Snedeker’s rib injury is a thing of the past. He’s swinging the club with as much confidence as anyone in the field and seems to be rolling putts in from all over Lancashire. Also, Snedeker’s no stranger to being in contention at a major. He was in a similar spot at the 2008 Masters but stumbled down the stretch. If he can keep his emotions in check this time around and stay in the moment, he could end up winning this week. He’s certainly playing well enough to do just that at the moment.

Adam Scott — Hard as it is to believe, Adam Scott came into the week with the second-longest active major championship start streak (46), behind Sergio Garcia. It was impressive, sure; but what did he have to show for it? Not a whole lot. For the first time in since his runner-up finish at the Masters, the Aussie is going to be a major factor on the weekend after following up a record-tying 64 with a 3-under 67 that has him one off the pace. With the exception of Snedeker, who was deadly accurate with the putter on Friday, no one is rolling the rock better than the Aussie. Majors usually come down to who makes the most putts and if that ends up being the case at Royal Lytham, Scott could very well leave the course on Sunday with the Claret Jug.

Golfers at 3-over — OK, the 16 guys at 3-over likely won’t be in contention come Sunday afternoon, but they certainly look like winners after a few golfers pushed the cut line from 3-over to 4-over with a couple of costly. They have Aaron Townsend, Aaron Baddeley and Steven Tiley to thank for making the weekend. With the cut line hanging in the balance late in the day, all three dropped shots that pushed the cut line to 3-over and gave Tom Watson, Rickie Fowler, Lee Westwood, John Daly and Keegan Bradley a chance to cash a check.

Thorbjorn Olesen — Remember the name Thorbjorn Olesen, because there’s a good chance you’ll be hearing it a lot in the future. The Dane is just 22 years old, but he already has a European Tour win this year at the Sicilian Open and three top-10 finishes. While everyone was gushing over Snedeker’s 64, Olsesen was tearing up Royal Lytham’s back nine late in the day, picking up birdies on the 17th and 18th to post 4-under 66 — the second lowest round of the day. So what does the kid get for his brilliant round? A spot in the second-to-last group with boyhood idol Tiger Woods. Have fun, kid.

Losers

Rory McIlroy — It feels like we’ve been picking on young Rory for the last couple of majors, but the 23-year-old earned his spot on the losers list once again with a 5-over 75 on Friday. After opening with an impressive 67 that included two birdies in his last three holes, he once again fell apart in the second round and finished at 2-over to just make the weekend. These days it seems like we’re constantly anointing a new “next best golfer” after each major, but for all the names that continue to pass through the door, McIlroy was always a constant. He still remains one of the best in the game, but if he’s ever going to live up to the lofty expectation, he needs stop squandering opportunities.

Phil Mickelson — Phil can certainly talk a good game, but when it comes down to it, he’s never going to win a British Open. Sure, he finished runner-up last year, but that will likely end up being a one-off. Even with a breathless wind, Mickelson still couldn’t capitalize on Royal Lytham’s charity, spending much of the week hitting right-handed bunker shots and going from one side of the fescue to the other. It was tough to watch — especially Friday’s 8-over 78 that included back-to-back double bogeys.

Lee Westwood — Early in the week, we took a look at a few opening round storylines and noted how important it was for Lee Westwood and Luke Donald to get off to a good start. Donald got the memo. But Westwood? His apparently got lost in the mail. The Englishman had sky-high expectations coming into the week, and once again, he failed to live up to them at Royal Lytham. At 39 he still has a couple good years left in him, but the more you hear him make excuses and struggle with his game — after Friday’s round he said: “You can’t have great form all the time.” — the more you start to believe he’ll turn into Colin Montgomerie 2.0 by the end of his career.

The weather — Royal Lytham has the diabolical rough and 206 pot bunkers, but everyone knows the one thing that makes a British Open course is the weather. You just expect to turn on your TV each year and see it raining sideways and the wind gusting 50 mph, but this year was different. A lot different. Instead of battling the elements, the field battered the course. So far this week we’ve seen limp flags, balls checking on a dime and players hitting lofted wedge shots. Through two rounds it feels like we’re watching a PGA Tour event. It’s damn near impossible to predict the weather in the UK, but if the golf gods want to throw fans a bone, they’ll turn on the faucet and crank the fan up to full blast.

Nicolas Colsaerts — Colsaerts has the game to contend and potentially win a U.S. Open or British Open, but for the second straight major, he posted a big number that knocked him out of contention. At Olympic Club it was a final-round 76; on Friday he followed up a brilliant 65 with 77 to fall completely out of the mix. Like McIlroy, he needs to learn how to capitalize on opportunities and not throw them away. Hopefully that changes with experience.

Devil Ball Golf – Golf – Yahoo! Sports