Major Power Rankings: 2024 Open Championship Field

This article is part of our Major Power Rankings series.

2024 Open Championship Power Rankings

Below are RotoWire's rankings for the 2024 Open Championship. 

This list is an asset for any fantasy or gaming format, including wagers, season-long fantasy leagues, PGA DFS -- even office pools.

The 152nd Open Championship will be played at Royal Troon Golf Club in Ayrshire, Scotland. Royal Troon dates to 1878, when it began as a five-hole course. There are now 45 holes on the property and the Old Course will be in play -- no, not that Old Course. Five-time Open champion James Braid oversaw a course renovation before the first Open Championship there in 1923, including adding nearly six dozen bunkers. Very little has changed since then, other than the length.

Troon is located on the southwestern edge of Scotland hard by the Firth of Clyde, some 30 miles southwest of Glasgow and not all that far from Northern Ireland. As with all Open links courses, weather will be its primary defense.

The course will play as a par-71 at 7,385 yards on the scorecard, nearly 200 yards longer than when Troon last played host to the Open in 2016. More than half the holes have been lengthened since then, notably the fourth going from 555 to 599 yards and the 17th from 220 to 242.

Troon is home to the longest and shortest holes in the Open rota. That would be the 623-yard sixth known as "Turnberry" and the famed 123-yard eighth known as "The Postage Stamp," with the green surrounded by five bunkers. It could play as short as 99 yards. It is where 71-year-old Gene Sarazen famously had a hole-in-one in 1973. 

The front nine will play some 300 yards shorter than the back. That's because of the 11 par-4s, the five shortest are on the front and the six longest are on a brutally hard back nine, perhaps the hardest in the world if the wind blows.

This will be the 10th time that Troon has played host to the Open. The most recent was the now-famous 2016 duel between Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson won by the Swede at a record 20-under after a final-round 63 to the American's 65. Don't mistake that for a birdie-fest. The third-place finisher, J.B. Holmes, was 14 shots behind Stenson and Troon ranked and the fourth hardest course on the PGA Tour that year. It played at 71/7,190 yards then. The cut was 4-over. About 40 players in that field are here eight years later.

Before that, you have to go all the way back to 2004, when one of the most unheralded major champions ever emerged in the name of Todd Hamilton. He defeated Ernie Els in a four-hole playoff after they tied at 10-under. The course was 71/7,175 then. The cut was 3-over. Elven players from the tournament are in this year's field.

The previous Troon winners were Justin Leonard in 1997, Mark Calcavecchia in 1989, Tom Watson in 1982, Tom Weiskopf in 1973, Arnold Palmer in 1962, Bobby Locke in 1950 and Arthur Havers in 1923.

Now, for the all-important weather forecast, albeit almost a week before the tournament starts. There already has been a lot of rain at Troon leading up to the Open. That will thicken the rough. More wet and windy conditions are forecast. Temperatures will top out in the low 60s, showers could happen at any time every day and the wind will be blowing double digits with gusts to 20 mph over the final three days.

2024 Open Championship Field and Rankings

These rankings were formulated before the completion of the Genesis Scottish Open and LIV Andalucia in Spain. Three spots in the Troon field were being held for the highest Scottish finishers not already exempt. It appears the field will exceed 156 and top out at 159. Twenty former Open champs and 11 amateurs are in the field. Amateurs are denoted with (a).

Unlike most PGA Tour events, the top 70 and ties will make the 36-hole cut. 

The 2024 Open Championship Power Rankings are broken down into five categories:

• Favorites
• Contenders
• Making the Cut
• Borderline
• Long Shots

Field changes and news updates will be noted in the comments at the bottom.

FAVORITES

1. Scottie Scheffler
Scheffler is No. 1 because, well, he has to be. But there is more uncertainty for him here than at the other three majors -- and we need to remember, he still has won only one of those three. A bit surprisingly, this will be only the fourth Open for Scheffler and, while he's finished top-25 every time, his best is only T8 in his 2021 debut. As great as this season has been for Scheffler, how historically great can it really be if he wins only one major? History is on the line this week for him at Royal Troon.

2. Xander Schauffele
Schauffele clearly has been the second-best player in the world this season. If you go by just the majors, he's been better than Scheffler. Besides winning his first major at the PGA Championship, he's finished top-10 in the other two, and only Bryson DeChambeau can also say that. This will be Schauffele's seventh Open. He's never missed a cut and has four top-25s, but just one top-10. That was as shared runner-up to Francesco Molinari in 2018.

3. Rory McIlroy
This was written before the playing of the Scottish Open, which was McIlroy's first tournament since his crushing defeat at the U.S. Open. He's come back from golf heartache before, perhaps as well as anyone, but that ending at Pinehurst No. 2 struck different. We shall see. Since last winning the Open now 10 years ago, McIlroy has finished top-5 five times, plus last year he tied for sixth. He finished fifth at Troon in 2016.

4. Bryson DeChambeau
This will be DeChambeau's seventh Open Championship. He's finished in the top-30 just once (T8 in 2022) and missed two cuts. But you likely have to disregard all that with the way he has played this year. DeChambeau won the U.S. Open, was runner-up at the PGA Championship and tied for sixth at the Masters.

5. Collin Morikawa
Since becoming a surprise Open winner in his first try at Royal St. George's in 2021, Morikawa has missed the cut in the next two Opens. But he's now again playing close to his best golf, surely his best since 2021. He finished top-5 at both the Masters and PGA Championship and tied for 14th at the U.S. Open. 

6. Jon Rahm
Rahm appears to be recovered from the toe infection that forced him out of the U.S. Open last month. But that doesn't eliminate all questions after he finished T45-MC in the first two majors. Rahm has played exceptionally well at the Open in recent years, tying for second last year and for third in 2021.

7. Ludvig Aberg
This will be Aberg's first Open and just his fourth career major, all played this year. After finishing as runner-up at the Masters, he missed the cut at the PGA and tied for 12th at the U.S. Open. Until the Scottish Open, Aberg had played only one tournament since the U.S. Open. He tied for 27th at the limited-field Travelers. We don't know how much of an issue his injured left knee has or will be (meniscus tear). He played in the Scottish Open, so Troon will be his second straight week on that knee.

8. Tommy Fleetwood
Fleetwood plays well in all the majors and this one might be his best. He's finished in the top-12 in four of the past five Opens, including as distant runner-up to Shane Lowry in 2019 and T4 in 2022. He tied for 10th last year. He missed the cut at Troon in 2016. Fleetwood tied for third at the Masters in April, was T26 at the PGA and T16 at the U.S. Open.

9. Brooks Koepka
We all know what Koepka is capable of doing in majors. But after he failed to finish so much as in the top-25 of any of the first three this year, anyone who says they know how he'll respond this week is just guessing. In a five-year stretch from 2017-2021, Koepka had three top-6s at the Open. Since then? MC and T64. Placing Koepka in the top-10 is out of respect as much as anything else.

10. Tyrrell Hatton

Hatton has had a decent year in the majors, making all three cuts to date with a top-10 at the Masters. He's had some good Open finishes -- T20 last year, T11 the year before and two other top-6s through the years. He's made the cut in 11 straight majors, one of the longest active streaks going. He tied for fifth at Troon in 2016.

CONTENDERS

11. Shane Lowry
Lowry has had a good year in the majors -- he's made all three cuts with a tie for sixth at the PGA and for 19th at the U.S. Open. It's now been five years since his magical Open Championship win at Royal Portrush, where the Open will return to next year. Lowry followed that up with a T12 in his 2021 title defense and T21 in 2022 before missing the cut last year, as he did in 2016 at Troon. He's missed the cut in only one event all year -- at the Amex way back in January.

12. Hideki Matsuyama
Matsuyama has had some very good Opens, beginning with a tie for sixth in his 2013 debut. He's had three top-20s since then, including T13 last year, though he did miss the cut last time at Royal Troon in 2016. Matsuyama coming off a tie for sixth at the U.S. Open and he won at Riviera in what has been a bounce-back season without any of the serious back/neck issues that plagued him in recent years.

13. Cameron Smith
Smith certainly has the tools to win at Open -- as he did in 2022 at St Andrews. He's made seven straight cuts in majors since then, with three top-10s. But he tied for 33rd last year in his Open title defense. Like with a lot of LIV guys, they are harder to gauge, though you have to respect their resumes.

14. Viktor Hovland
Hovland is set for his fourth Open and he's been good if not great in the first three: T12, T4 and last year's T13. In light of his extreme chipping issues, that's quite impressive. This season overall has been a downer for Hovland, who has missed the cut in two majors, though that was sandwiched around a tie for third at the PGA.

15. Tony Finau
Finau's year has gotten progressively better, as evidenced by his major results: T55 at the Masters, T18 at the PGA and T3 at the U.S. Open. He's also finished second in Houston, eighth at the Memorial and, most recently, fifth at the Travelers. Finau's great stretch of majors a few years back included a T9 at the Open in 2018 and a solo third a year later, but he's slid since then, including a missed cut last year. He tied for 18th at Troon in 2016.

16. Tom Kim
Kim has made the cut in his past five majors and eight of his past nine, a stretch that included an Open runner-up last year. He also tied for 47th in his Open debut in 2022. Kim has turned around a terrible start to 2024 with better results over the past couple of months, including top-5s at the Canadian Open and Travelers.

17. Robert MacIntyre
The Scotsman has proven to be quite good at making major cuts -- 12 of 14 in his career. He's never missed in four Opens, two of which ended in top-10s. MacIntyre broke through for his first PGA Tour win at the Canadian Open last month after tying for eighth at the PGA. He missed the cut at the U.S. Open.

18. Cameron Young
Young hasn't won a PGA Tour event yet, but he has numerous runners-up, including at the 2022 Open. He then tied for eighth last year. So he has been able to contend even without being a stellar putter. Young has made the cut at all three 2024 majors with a best of T9 at the Masters. He finished top-10 in his two starts prior to the Open at the Travelers and Rocket Mortgage.

19. Patrick Cantlay
Cantlay is coming off a T3 at the U.S. Open, which matched his best major showing ever. His next best was a T8 at the 2022 Open Championship, and he also tied for 12th there two years earlier. Cantlay has made the cut in his past nine majors and six of those resulted in top-15s.

20. Brian Harman
The defending champion. Harman is proof you can adapt to links golf. He missed the cut in four of his five Opens. In the past three, he's gone T19-T6-1. Of course, that also coincides with him becoming a better golfer elsewhere but still. Harman missed the cut at the Masters in April, then went T26 at the PGA and T21 at the U.S. Open.

21. Wyndham Clark
It's been a messy season in the majors for Clark, who missed the cut in the first two before tying for 56th in his U.S. Open title defense. He's been far better outside the majors, with a win, two runners-up, a third and a T9 last time out at the Travelers. Clark made the cut in his first two Opens, including T33 last year.

22. Min Woo Lee
Lee rides six straight major cuts made into the Open, and nine of 12 in his brief career. He was T41 at the Open last year and T21 the year before. He's managed at least one top-25 already in each major, which is pretty impressive. Before playing in Scotland, Lee shared runner-up at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

23. Dean Burmester
Burmester was fourth in the LIV standings, having won a tournament in Miami. He tied for 12th at the PGA Championship and also qualified and made the cut at the U.S. Open. He last played at the Open Championship in 2022 and tied for 11th. It was just his second Open. He also tied for 40th in 2021.

24. Sepp Straka
Straka was one of the four runners-up to Harman last year. They all finished six shots back. He really turned a corner in his career last year with top-10s in two majors and winning his first title at the John Deere. Straka hasn't been quite as successful this year, but he would be in the Tour Championship if it started today.

25. Jordan Spieth
For all the steps back Spieth has taken the past few years, that hasn't been the case at the Open. Since winning in 2017, he's gone T9-T20-2-T8-T23. So, we have to weigh that very fine stretch against a season that's resulted in only three top-25s in 17 starts, none of them in majors. Spieth tied for 30th at Royal Troon in 2016.

MAKING THE CUT

26. Louis Oosthuizen
Oosthuizen is a LIV player who hasn't been in any of the first three majors. But as the 2009 Open champion, he'll get to keep coming till age 60. He was fifth in the LIV standings thanks to a pair of runners-up. Oosthuizen has played in one non-LIV tournament this year, finishing second at an Asian Tour event in February. He tied for 23rd last year at the Open, missed the cut in 2022 and was T3 in 2021. He also missed the cut at Troon in 2016.

27. Jason Day
As part of Day's renaissance season in 2023, he tied for second at the Open. His other top-5 at the Open was in 2015 and he tied for 22nd the next year at Royal Troon. Day has not been as sharp this season as last. He was T30 at the Masters and T43 at the PGA before a missed cut at the U.S. Open. He has four top-10s in 2024, though only one since February.

28. Matt Fitzpatrick
You'd think this world-class Englishman would've had great success in the Open, but that hasn't been the case for Fitzpatrick. Yes, he's made six of eight cuts, but only two were top-25s and the best was a tie for 20th in 2019. It's been largely a down year for Fitzpatrick, having fallen from No. 8 in the OWGR to No. 20. But he has finished fifth at both THE PLAYERS and Memorial with a top-25 at the Masters. He missed the cut at the 2016 Open at Troon.

29. Sahith Theegala
Theegala has missed only one cut in his past eight majors. It happened to have come at last year's Open. But he also tied for 34th in his Open debut in 2022. And now he's a far superior golfer, even from 12 months ago. Theegala has finished T12 at the PGA and T32 at the U.S. Open, part of a season that's seen five top-10s, including two runners-up and a T9 at THE PLAYERS.

30. Byeong Hun An
An played in his first Open Championship 14 years ago and this will be his 10th. Along the way, he made the cut at Royal Troon in 2016 and had his two best finishes in his past two starts: T26 in 2021 and T23 last year. This has been a great bounce-back season for An, with a T16 at the Masters being part of a season with five top-10s and nine top-25s.

31. Akshay Bhatia
Bhatia has had an outstanding season. But he's never played in an Open and chose to skip the Scottish Open tuneup. That wouldn't have fully prepared him for Royal Troon -- but it would've helped to get in some links-style golf. Bhatia won the Valero in the spring. He tied for 16th at the U.S. Open, then fifth at the Travelers before his agonizing runner-up at the Rocket Mortgage.

32. Abraham Ancer
Ancer played in all four majors last year but none so far this year. He made the cut in three of them in 2023. He's made the cut at the past three Opens, including a tie for 11th in 2022. Ancer qualified via final qualifying. He was 10th in the LIV standings with a win at Hong Kong early in the season.

33. Matthieu Pavon
The Frenchman burst into prominence this year at age 31. He won the Farmers at Torrey Pines, tied for 12th at the Masters and for fifth at the U.S. Open. This will be only Pavon's second Open, and the first came seven years ago when he missed the cut.

34. Christiaan Bezuidenhout
The South African qualified thanks to being top-20 in FedExCup Standings after Travelers. That speaks to the season he's been having. Bezuidenhout has 10 top-25s this season, including a T13 at THE PLAYERS, and three top-10s. He has been in four Opens and made the cut the past three times, albeit without a high finish.

35. Nicolai Hojgaard
Hojgaard has already played in three Opens despite being only 23, including way back in 2018. He tied for 23rd last year, part of a run of six straight made cuts in majors, which includes all three this year. Hojgaard has made only six starts since his T16 at the Masters three months ago, none with a top-30 finish.

36. Adam Scott
This will be Scott's 93rd straight major dating to 2001. It also will be his 24th Open and he's made the cut in 18 of them, including 12 of the past 13. He tied for 33rd last year and for 15th in 2022. In the three majors this year, he's gone T22-MC-T32. Scott will turn 44 on the Tuesday before the Open. He tied for 43rd back in 2016 at Royal Troon.

37. Jordan Smith
Smith qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. He's represented himself well in recent majors, tying for 39th at the PGA in May and for 20th at last year's U.S. Open. He's also made the cut at the past two Open Championships. Smith has been ranked as high as 69th in the OWGR, though now he's just inside the top-100 after sharing runner-up at the BMW International Open two weeks ago.

38. Will Zalatoris
With Zalatoris, it's all about his back. He played the Scottish Open after withdrawing from the Rocket Mortgage Classic. If he looked shaky, or worse, there, he'd need a downgrade. Zalatoris has shown what he can do in majors when healthy – he tied for ninth at the Masters in April. Zalatoris has played in two Opens, withdrawing in 2021 and tying for 28th in 2022.

39. Thriston Lawrence
The South African qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. This will be his sixth career major. Lawrence has made the cut in both his Opens. He missed at the PGA in May. He has three runners-up on the DP World Tour in 2024, enough to move him back inside the top 100 of the OWGR.

40. Max Homa
Homa has taken some serious steps backward this season. He's contended really in only one tournament all season. It happened to be the Masters and he tied for third. He was a non-factor in the other two majors and THE PLAYERS. Homa had his best Open last year when he tied for 10th after T40-MC in his first two.

41. Tom McKibbin
The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland is a rising player on the DP World Tour. He won on Tour last year. He had a near-miss last month when he finished second at the Italian Open, which got him into his first Open Championship via the Open Qualifying Series. McKibbin has six top-10s in 2024. He played his first major last month and tied for 41st at the U.S. Open. 

42. Justin Rose
Rose will compete in his 21st Open after making it through final qualifying. He's finished top-25 nine times, though we've started to see some slippage now that the Englishman is in his 40s. He missed the cut last year, didn't play in 2022 and tied for 46th in 2021. Rose did tie for sixth at the PGA in May, though he missed the cut at both other majors. He tied for 22nd at Troon in 2016.

43. Corey Conners
Conners had made three straight cuts at the Open, albeit going in the wrong direction with finishes of T15-T28-T52. He's made the cut in all three majors this season, though this time he went in the right direction: T38 at the Masters, T26 at the PGA and T9 at the U.S. Open. Conners has nine top-25s in 18 starts this season.

44. Ryan Fox
Fox has not had a great rookie season on the PGA Tour. But he's been better lately and always been pretty good at making cuts at majors -- seven in a row, in fact, including last year's Open. He's made five of seven Open cuts overall. Fox qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. He tied for 17th at the BMW International Open a couple of weeks back.

45. Justin Thomas
Where to rank a guy who has been at his worst in the biggest tournaments and quite good most everywhere else? Since Thomas' worst major has always been the Open, lean toward the former. He hasn't done better than T40 the past three years and never better than the T11 in 2019, which was his lone Open top-25. Thomas did have one good major this year, a T8 at the PGA and most recently tied for fifth at the Travelers. He tied for 53rd at Troon in 2016.

46. Matthew Southgate
Southgate's situation is wild. He has a terrific track record in the few Opens he's played in, yet until recently he hadn't made a cut on the DP World Tour since April. But he advanced through final Open qualifying, then tied for fourth at the BMW International Open. He hadn't even finished in the top-25 all year on the European tour. At the Open, Southgate tied for 23rd last year, tied for 12th in 2016 at Royal Troon and for sixth a year later. 

47. Dustin Johnson
Even though Johnson turned 40 last month, he remains more than capable of competing against the best golfers on the biggest stage. The thing is, he hasn't shown that over the past two years since he left for LIV. He's had one top-10 in majors the past two years, at last year's U.S. Open. He missed the cut last year at the Open Championship and two of the three majors this year. Johnson tied for ninth at Royal Troon in 2016.

48. Rickie Fowler
Fowler has been remarkably good in the majors, even while his game fell off for years -- which it has again this year. He's made the cut in 11 of 12 Opens with six top-25s, including last year. One of those made cuts was at Royal Troon in 2016. Fowler made the cut at the Masters and PGA earlier this year before missing at the U.S. Open.

49. Victor Perez
The Frenchman qualified for his fourth Open by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. He tied for 41st last year and for 34th the year before. He missed the cut at both the PGA Championship and U.S. Open this year but has had some good recent results on the PGA Tour, including T16 at the Cognizant, T3 at the Canadian Open and a tie for 12th at the Memorial.

50. Russell Henley
Henley has always struggled at the Open, even as he's gotten to be a better player in recent years. He's made the cut in only four of nine of them. He's missed in three of the past four, including last year. You would think a guy who tied for 23rd at the PGA and for seventh at the U.S. Open could figure out how to play four rounds at Royal Troon.

51. Davis Thompson
Thompson arrives at his first Open on the heels of his breakthrough win at the John Deere. He's had a week to come down off Cloud 9. He's coming off a tie for ninth at the U.S. Open, which was his first made cut in four majors.

52. Gordon Sargent (a)
The 21-year-old Vanderbilt star qualified as the 2023 winner of Mark H. McCormack Medal signifying No. 1 in world amateur rankings. He did that while Aberg was still an amateur. He won the NCAA title as a freshman, a rarity. Sargent tied for 39th at the U.S. Open last year but missed the cut this year. He played Walker Cup at St Andrews last year and didn't lose a match. 

53. Romain Langasque
The 29-year-old Frenchman hasn't played in a ton of majors -- just seven so far. But he's made the cut in six of them, including two last year at the U.S. Open and Open Championship, where he tied for 33rd. Langasque qualified this year by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. He was co-runner-up at the Soudal Open in May and also finished top-5 in India.

54. Joaquin Niemann
Niemann was the hottest LIV guy going at the start of the year, fueling thoughts that he could be a force in the majors. It hasn't happened. He tied for 22nd at the Masters and for 39th at the PGA. Niemann has not figured out the Open as yet, missing the cut in two of four tries with no finish inside the top-50. He has played 21 career major and never finished inside the top-15. Let that sink in.

55. Sam Burns
Burns just turned in his best major finish by far with a tie for ninth at the U.S. Open. He had missed the cut in the first two majors this year as well as last year's Open Championship. He made his first two Open cuts, though without a high finish. Burns has been on a bit of a roll the past few months with two top-10s and two top-15s in his past six starts.

56. Sungjae Im
Im has missed the cut in five of his past six majors, including all three this year. The one make? Last year's Open, and it was a tie for 20th, at that. Im has played pretty well this season outside of the majors. He has five top-10s and nine top-25s.

57. Stephan Jaeger
Jaeger is 35 years old and this will be his first Open Championship. He's played in the first three majors this year, improving from MC at the Masters to 76th at the PGA to T21 at the U.S. Open. Jaeger broke through for his first PGA tour title at Houston, one of his eight top-25s on the season.

58. Keegan Bradley
Bradley has had a curious history with the Open. He's playing it worse now than he used to. He had top-20s in three of four years culminating with a T18 in 2016 at Royal Troon. Now, he's missed the cut four years running. Bradley finished top-25 at the first two majors this season before a T32 at the U.S. Open. From now on, he will wear the pressure of being the U.S. Ryder Cup captain.

59. Laurie Canter
Canter played the first two LIV events this year and then that was that. He won the European Open on the DP World Tour last month. He's played in four Opens and made every cut, including a tie for 17th last year. 

60. Thorbjorn Olesen
Olesen has spent most of his time on the PGA Tour this year, though he did win on the DP World Tour back in January. He qualified for the Open by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. Olesen has made the cut at this year's Masters and PGA and has a couple of top-20s at the Valero and Myrtle Beach. He missed the cut at the Open last year and in 2016 at Royal Troon.

61. Adrian Meronk
Before leaving for LIV, Meronk qualified for his third career Open by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. While he has missed all three major cuts so far in 2024, he's made the cut in both his Opens, including a tie for 23rd last year. Meronk finished runner-up last month at LIV Houston.

62. David Puig
The 22-year-old Spaniard playing with LIV qualified by finishing top-5 in the OWGR's International Federation Ranking List. This will be his first Open. He's made the cut at the past two U.S. Opens and has been playing extensively in Asia, where he's won a tournament each of the past two years.

63. Jesper Svensson
The little-known Swede almost cracked the top 100 of the OWGR earlier this year after winning the DP World Tour's Singapore Open (Pavon was in the field). He also finished second in Bahrain at the beginning of the year. Svensson made his made debut in May at the PGA Championship at tied for 53rd. He qualified for his first Open by being in the top-20 of the Race to Dubai standings after the BMW International a couple of weeks back.

64. Emiliano Grillo
Grillo has made the cut only three times in seven Opens -- yet those three were all top-12 finishes. Weird. They included last year's tie for sixth and 2016's tie for 12th at Royal Troon. Grillo has missed only two cuts this season, though they came at the Masters and PGA. He tied for 41st at the U.S. Open. 

65. Guido Migliozzi
The Italian is set for his fourth Open less than a month after winning the KLM Open, which qualified him for Troon. He also finished second at the China Open in May. Migliozzi tied for 64th last year at Royal Liverpool after missing the cut in his first two Opens.

66. Kurt Kitayama
Kitayama has made the cut in 13 of his 16 starts in 2024. But he's had only four top-25s. He made the cut at the first two majors, though neither was a top-25. At the Open, he's made the cut the past two years, but -- you guessed it -- no top-25s. He tied for 60th last year.

67. J.T. Poston
Poston has played in 15 majors and never had a top-25. But he's starting to get the hang of them. He tied for 30th at the Masters and for 32nd at the U.S. Open. And he made the cut last year in his second Open Championship (T41). Poston has missed only two cuts all year, though one was at the PGA Championship.

68. Eric Cole
Cole arrives at his first Open playing his best golf of the season. He's had top-10s at the Rocket Mortgage and John Deere, though they were not exactly high-level events. Cole has missed a lot of cuts -- nine -- including at the PGA Championship and U.S. Open. He tied for 52nd at the Masters.

69. Padraig Harrington
This will be the 27th Open for the 2007 and '08 Champion Golfer of the Year. Harrington has been tearing it up on the Champions Tour, where he was runner-up at the 2022 and '23 Senior Open Championship. He missed the cut at the PGA in May but was three for three in majors last year, including a T64 at the Open. He tied for 36th in 2016 at Royal Troon.

70. Marcel Siem
The 43-year-old German has played in only two majors since 2015. Both were Opens and he made the cut in both, including T41 last year. He qualified for his seventh career Open by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. Siem won the Italian Open last month. 

BORDERLINE

71. Sebastian Soderberg
We bumped Soderberg from the "Making the Cut" section out of caution after he withdrew before the start of the Scottish Open without explanation. He is still scheduled to play Royal Troon. It will be the 33-year-old Swede's first Open after a breakthrough year on the DP World Tour. He has finished second three times, though in one of them he catastrophically lost an eight-shot lead in the final round. Soderberg made the cut at the PGA in May in just his third career major. He qualified for the Open by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings.

72. Brendon Todd
Todd is good at making cuts -- 15 of 19 on the PGA Tour this season and his past three majors, including last year's Open, at which he tied for 49th. He's played Opens sporadically -- just four in his career -- but he's made three cuts, including T12 in 2015. Todd qualified via the Open Qualifying Series with a T6 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

73. Rasmus Hojgaard
The other half of the golf-playing Hojgaard twins qualified for his second open by finishing in the top-30 of last year's Race to Dubai standings. He missed the cut. T68 at 2024 PGA Championship. He made the cut at the PGA Championship in May. Hojgaard's past two starts on the DP World Tour were T14 and T4.

74. Ben Griffin
Griffin was at a career-best 68th in the OWGR after finishing fifth at the John Deere Classic. He also was runner-up at the Canadian Open, where he qualified via the Open Qualifying Series, and has seven top-25s this year. Griffin missed the cut last year in his first Open and he withdrew from the PGA Championship in May.

75. Rikuya Hoshino
Hoshino qualified for his fourth Open by finishing runner-up at the Australian Open late last year, part of the Open Qualifying Series. He then won the Qatar Masters this year. He missed the cut last month at the U.S. Open. Hoshino made the cut at last year's Open Championship. 

76. Matthew Jordan
Jordan was the darling of the 2023 Open, where he was playing at his home course at Royal Liverpool and tied for 10th, immediately earning a return invite this year. That was just his second Open after missing the cut in 2022. Jordan has missed his past two cuts on the DP World Tour but was playing pretty well before that with a T5-T13-T8 in his three prior starts. 

77. Denny McCarthy
McCarthy made his Open debut last year and missed the cut. He made his Masters debut in April and made the cut, as he did at the U.S. Open with a missed cut at the PGA in between. McCarthy has made the cut in 15 of his 17 starts.

78. Harris English
English has made the cut at the first three majors with top-25s in the first two. The Open Championship might be a different story. He's missed the cut the past two years. English has played in only three Opens since the 2016 edition at Royal Troon, where he tied for 46th. This season, he's played 17 times and made 14 cuts with eight top-25s.

79. Henrik Stenson
Stenson won the Open at Troon at age 40. He's now 48 and playing with LIV, where he had one top-10 in his first nine starts. In his six Opens since winning, he's made four of six cuts with three top-25s, including last year's T13.

80. Billy Horschel
Horschel interestingly qualified thanks to his win at the BMW PGA Championship -- the DP World Tour's flagship event -- back in 2021 (not a typo). This will be his 10th Open and he has, to put it kindly, not been great. He's missed six cuts, including last year and also in 2016 at Troon Horschel tied for eighth at the PGA Championship in May and then tied for 41st at the U.S. Open.

81. Mackenzie Hughes
Entering his third Open, Hughes is still trying to make the International Presidents Cup team. It has not gone great. While he did tie for seventh at the Canadian Open, which got him into Troon via the Open Qualifying Series, he's missed three of past five cuts. Hughes missed the cut at both his 2024 majors and last year's Open. In his 2022 debut, however, he tied for sixth.

82. Si Woo Kim
This will be Kim's sixth Open. He's made just two cuts, though one was a tie for 15th two years ago. That speaks to the inconsistency that is Kim. He's gone T30-MC-T32 in the first three majors this season. He's amid a pretty good season with 10 top-25s in 18 starts. But Kim has just one top-10. That's the hallmark of poor putters. 

83. Matt Wallace
Wallace has played mostly on the PGA Tour this year and he has struggled, at least until lately. He's now made five of his past six cuts, including top-5 at the Byron Nelson. And he recently tied for 15th at the KLM Open. Wallace has played in four Opens and made two cuts, though not last year. He qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings.

84. Ewen Ferguson
The Glasgow native qualified after winning the BMW International earlier this month (by being in the top-20 of the Race to Dubai standings. It was his 11th straight made cut, not including one WD. Ferguson played in his first major last year at the Open and missed the cut.

85. Taylor Moore
Moore has had a decent season at which he's been more proficient at playing four rounds than garnering high finishes. He has just six top-25s, though two came at majors -- T20 at the Masters and T12 at the PGA Championship. Moore missed the cut at the U.S. Open, as he did in his first Open Championship last year. He qualified by being top-30 in the 2023 FedExCup Standings.

LONG SHOTS

86. Adam Hadwin
5th Open. MC last time in 2021. Qualified via Open Qualifying Series at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. T53 at 2024 Masters, T60 at 2024 PGA, MC at 2024 U.S. Open. 

87. Yannik Paul
2nd. Open. MC in 2023. Qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings.

88. Chris Kirk
5th Open. MC in 2023. MC in at Troon in 2016. Qualified via top-50 OWGR. T16 at 2024 Masters. MC at 2024 PGA. T26 at 2024 U.S. Open.

89. Stewart Cink
25th Open. Won 2009 Open Championship. T23 in 2023. Splits time on PGA OUR and PGA Tour Champions.

90. Maverick McNealy
2nd Open. MC in 2017. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Canadian Open. T23 at 2024 PGA Championship.

91. Andy Ogletree
1st Open. Qualified via top-5 in the OWGR's International Federation Ranking List. MC at 2024 PGA Championship.

92. Austin Eckroat
1st Open. Qualified via top-50 OWGR. MC at 2024 Masters. T18 at 2024 PGA. 74th at 2024 U.S. Open. Won Cognizant Classic in March.

93. Alexander Bjork
6th Open. 4 MCs. T41 in 2023. Qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. 2024 PGA Tour member. T39 at 2024 PGA Championship.

94. Tom Hoge
3rd Open. MCs in 2022, '23. Qualified by being top-20 in the FedExCup Standings after the Travelers. T23 at 2024 PGA. MC at 2024 U.S. Open.

95. Sam Horsfield
3rd. Open. MC in 2022. Qualified via Final Qualifying. LIV Golf.

96. Jorge Campillo
5th Open. 4 MCs. Qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. Top-25s in three straight 2024 PGA Tour events: T18 at Puntacana, T24 at the Byron Nelson, T4 at Myrtle Beach.

97. Joost Luiten
10th Open. T71 in 2023. Qualified by finishing top-30 in 2023 Race to Dubai standings.

98. Adam Schenk
2nd Open. MC in 2023. Qualified via top-50 OWGR. T12 at 2024 Masters. MCs at 2024 PGA and U.S. Open.

99. Tiger Woods
23rd Open. MCs in past two in 2019, '22. T60 at 2024 Masters. MCs at 2024 PGA Championship and U.S. Open.

100. Lucas Glover
11th Open. MC last time in 2021. Qualified via top-50 OWGR.

101. John Catlin
3rd Open. MCs in 2021, '22. Qualified via Open Qualifying Series at Malaysian Open. Won two Asian Tour events in 2024. American playing mostly in Asia. Recently joined LIV Golf.

102. Sean Crocker
2nd Open. T47 in 2018. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Italian Open. American playing on DP World Tour.

103. Ryo Hisatsune
1st. Open. Qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. MC at 2024 Masters. T18 at 2024 PGA Championship.

104. Keita Nakajima
3rd. Open. MCs in 2022, '23. Qualified via top-5 in OWGR's International Federation Ranking List. Won once on Indian Tour in 2024 and three times on Japan Tour in 2023.

105. Nick Taylor
2nd Open. MC in 2023. Qualified via top-50 OWGR. MC in past eight majors, including six the past two years.

106. Vincent Norrman
1st Open. Qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings.

107. Sami Valimaki
2nd Open. T68 in 2023. Qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. MC at 2024 PGA Championship.

108. Gary Woodland
12th Open. T55 in 2023. T12 in 2016 at Troon. Qualified as 2019 U.S. Open winner. MCs at 2024 Masters and U.S. Open. T60 at 2024 PGA Championship.

109. Mason Andersen
1st Open. Qualified as winner of 2024 Argentina Open, a Korn Ferry Tour event. 27-year-old American.

110. Phil Mickelson
30th Open. 2013 winner. Runner-up at Troon in 2016. MC in past four Opens. T43 at 2024 Masters. MCs at 2024 PGA Championship and U.S. Open.

111. Nacho Elvira
2nd open. MC in 2023. Won Soudal Open in May. Qualified by being in top-20 of the Race to Dubai standings after the BMW International.

112. Matteo Manassero
7th Open. 4 MCs, including 1016 at Troon. 18th major but has played only two since 2016. Won a shared DP World Tour/Sunshine Tour event in March. Qualified by being in top-20 of the Race to Dubai standings after the BMW International.

113. C.T. Pan
4th Open. 3 MCs. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the John Deere. MC at 2024 PGA Championship.

114. Zach Johnson
19th Open. 2015 winner. T55 in 2023. T12 in 2016 at Troon. MC at 2024 Masters.

115. Tommy Morrison (a)
1st Open. Qualified as 2024 European Amateur champion, the first American to win the tournament. 19-year-old, 6-foot-9 University of Texas Longhorn.

116. Yuto Katsuragawa
2nd Open. T47 in 2022. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Mizuno Open. Won on Japan Tour earlier this year.

117. Shubhankar Sharma
4th Open. 3 made cuts, including T8 in 2023 to qualify this year. DP World Tour player. Once ranked 64th OWGR now around 200th.

118. Francesco Molinari
16th Open. Won 2018 Open Championship. T15 in 2022. T36 in 2016 at Troon. 

119. Daniel Hillier
3rd Open. 2 MCs. Qualified by finishing top-30 in the 2023 Race to Dubai standings. Won DP World Tour's British Masters last year.

120. Young-han Song
2nd Open. T62 in 2017. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series as runner-up at the Korea Open last month. Once ranked No. 69 OWGR now around 200th.

121. Dan Bradbury
2nd Open. MC in 2023. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Joburg Open. Former Florida State Seminole.

122. Daniel Brown
1st. Open. Qualified via final qualifying. Won DP World Tour's IPSA Handa World Invitational last year.

123. Joe Dean
2nd Open. T70 in 2017. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series as runner-up at the KLM Open last month.

124. Minkyu Kim
2nd Open. MC in 2022. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series by winning the Korea Open last month.

125. Ryosuke Kinoshita
2nd Open. T69 in 2021. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Mizuno Open. Once ranked 69th OWGR but now around 300th.

126. Jacob Skov Olesen (a)
1st Open. Qualified as 2023 British Amateur winner. 25-year-old from Denmark and formerly University of Arkansas.

127. Guntaek Koh
1st Open. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Mizuno Open. 4-time winner on Korean Tour in past 15 months.

128. Ryan van Velzen
1st Open. Qualified via top-5 in OWGR's International Federation Ranking List. 22-year-old South African.

129. Masahiro Kawamura
2nd Open. T39 in 2018. Qualified via final qualifying. Plays on DP Worl Tour.

130. Denwit David Boriboonsub
1st Open. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Malaysian Open. 20-year-old from Thailand. Won three times on Asian tours last year, including defeating runner-up Stenson at Saudi Open.

131. Darren Fichardt
7th Open. 6 MCs. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Joburg Open. 5 DP World Tour wins. 18 Sunshine Tour wins. 49-year-old South African.

132. Michael Hendry
3rd Open. 2 MCs. Qualified via a medical exemption after being unable to compete last year following diagnosis with leukemia. Won on Japan Tour earlier this year. 44-year-old New Zealander.

133. Ernie Els
33rd Open. Won 2002 and 2012 Open Championships. MC past three years. One of only six golfers to win U.S. and British Opens twice each.

134. Angel Hidalgo Portillo
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying thanks to a walk-off eagle on his 36th and final hole of the day. DP World Tour player.

135. Jeunghun Wang
3rd Open. 2 MCs, including 2016 at Troon. Qualified via the Open Qualifying Series at the Malaysian Open. 3-time DP World Tour winner at one time ranked 39th OWGR (now in the 400s).

136. Kazuma Kobori
1st Open. Qualified via top-5 in OWGR's International Federation Ranking List. 22-year-old from Japan who plays on multiple worldwide tours. Missed cut at 2024 PGA Championship.

137. Sam Hutsby
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying. 35-year-old European Challenge Tour player from England.

138. Aguri Iwasaki
1st Open. Qualified by winning the 2023 Japan Open. MC at 2024 Sony Open. Made cut at 2023 ZOZO Championship.

139. Santiago de la Fuente (a)
1st Open. Qualified as winner of 2024 Latin America Amateur championship. 22-year-old from Mexico. Made cut at 2024 Mexico Open. MCs at 2024 Masters and U.S. Open.

140. Jasper Stubbs (a)
1st Open. Qualified as the 2023 Asia-Pacific Amateur winner. 22-year-old from Australia. 

141. Charlie Lindh
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying. Plays on Europe's Challenge Tour. 26-year-old from Sweden.

142. Dominic Clemons (a)
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying. British Amateur runner-up. Scottish Amateur winner. 22-year-old from England.

143. Luis Masaveu (a)
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying with old clubs after losing his bag two weeks earlier. 21-year-old from Spain.

144. Jack McDonald
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying. 31-year-old from Scotland. First played Troon at age 12.

145. Elvis Smylie
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying. Plays on Australasia Tour. 22-year-old Australian whose mother won Wimbledon women's and mixed doubles titles.

146. Matthew Dodd-Berry (a)
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying. 20-year-old from England.

147. Altin van Der Merwe (a)
1st Open. Qualified as winner of first Africa Amateur Championship. 27-year-old from South Africa.

148. Alex Cejka
8th Open. Last played in 2008. Qualified as 2023 Senior Open champion. 53 years old. 

149. Liam Nolan (a)
1st Open. Qualified via final qualifying. 24-year-old from Ireland.

150. Calum Scott (a)
1st Open. Qualified via Open Amateur Series. 20-year-old from Scotland.

151. David Duval

Duval withdrew from The Open Championship.

25th Open. 2001 winner. Last made cut 2015. 52 years old.

152. Jaime Montojo (a)
1st Open Qualified via final qualifying. 19-year-old from Spain.

153. Justin Leonard
23rd Open. 1997 champion. Last made cut 2013. 52 years old.

154. Darren Clarke
32nd Open. 2011 winner. Last made cut 2016 at Troon (T30). 55 years old.

155. John Daly
26th Open. 1995 winner. Last made cut 2012. 58 years old.

156. Todd Hamilton
19th Open. 2004 winner. Last played 2018. Last made cut 2013. 58 years old.

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