Thus far, the 152nd Open Championship has been quite the test. It has left players like Tyrrell Hatton to complain about the setup, Max Homa to need a lengthy putt on his final hole just to make the cut, and embarrass countless others. Through 36 holes, there are only 10 golfers under par of the 156 that played the tournament.
It has been that difficult.
That is not to say that Royal Troon is not getable. Irishman and 2019 Champion Golfer of the Year, Shane Lowry, has a two stroke lead entering the weekend at 7-under.
There is still a lot of work to do, which Lowry acknowledged after his hot start. Local legend Justin Rose (Englishman) is tied for second two shots back and current World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler lurks at 2-under. Sure enough, there will be plenty of drama to unfold as the final two days play out.
Nevertheless, a number of golf's elite were sent home packing early, missing the cut at the Open Championship.
Wyndham Clark: 16-Over
Wyndham Clark, the 2023 U.S. Open champion, struggled yet again to close his major season.
What began as a great start to his year with a win at Pebble Beach and runner-up finishes to Scheffler has turned sour. Clark missed the cut at the Masters and PGA Championship, finished T56 at the U.S. Open and is leaving Scotland early.
If his opening round 78 did not discourage him, his second round 80 must have. Clark needs to go back to the drawing board and find his form again before trying to help Team USA in the Olympics.
Tiger Woods: 14-Over
Not many expected Tiger Woods to be in contention this week. But there was hope he could at least have a proper showing and quiet all of the retirement talk.
So much for that.
Woods struggled out of the gate and could never get anything going. Tiger missing the weekend of a major is becoming commonplace outside of Augusta National, sadly.
Cameron Smith: 12-Over
Australian and LIV Golf star Cam Smith is the next player on the list.
Despite playing relatively well Friday, his opening round 9-over 80 doomed him. Knowing the conditions of this track, there wasn't much of a chance coming back from that. Smith is still one of the more talented players in the world, but after a solid Masters showing, he has fallen apart.
Rory McIlroy: 11-Over
Rory McIlroy entered the Open Championship with hopes of putting his U.S. Open collapse behind him. So much for that. The Northern Irishman was done in by an opening round 78 and could not recover.
He will have to enter the offseason with questions hanging over his head.
Tony Finau: 10-Over
Tony Finau put together a fantastic first round. He carded an ever par 71 and had his sights set on winning his first major championship. The Friday happened.
Finau went out in 41 and things got no better on the back nine. His quadruple bogey on the par-4 12th ended any hopes of making the weekend.
Viktor Hovland: 10-Over
Viktor Hovland's terrible year continued this week at the Open Championship. After winning the 2023 PGA Tour Championship, his game has completely fallen apart.
Hovland struggled Thursday and things got no better Friday, finishing four shots below the cut line.
The Norwegian star has just one Top-10 this year (PGA Championship) and has now missed the cut in the other three majors.
Ludvig Aberg, Tommy Fleetwood, Bryson DeChambeau: 9-Over
Swedish phenom Ludvig Aberg entered the final major the year looking to put a final stamp on his impressive season. Aberg showed he is going to be a force to be reckoned with for years to come. But this tournament should have been humbling for the 24-year-old.
Aberg went 75-76 over the two days, failing to get any momentum. It might not have been his week, but expect to see Aberg on the top of leaderboards for a long time.
Meanwhile, Tommy Fleetwood once again disappointed. His skills are elite and he has shown that, particularly overseas. But that did not happen this week. The Englishman is still in search of his first PGA Tour win.
Then there is Bryson DeChambeau. Following his win at the U.S. Open, the American star had high hopes of winning another major. Yet, DeChambeau imploded Thursday and could not recover.
Keegan Bradley: 7-Over
The final player on our list is Keegan Bradley. He finished one below the cut line and his inability to take advantage of the par-5's during this Open Championship will be something he remembers for quite some time.
Bradley can at least take solace in the fact that he was just named Team USA Captain for the 2025 Ryder Cup.
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