Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – 2024 Open Championship

2024 Open Championship Fantasy Sleeper Report

Links golf has a habit of bringing the best our of certain players on TOUR, and Robert MacIntyre fully lent into that notion as he landed the Scottish Open title on Sunday – his second PGA TOUR title in his last five starts.

A huge eagle at 16 – aided by the help of a rules steward after MacIntyre stood on a sprinkler head – was a slice of good fortune, but there was nothing lucky about the clutch birdie at 18 that sent the home fans into raptures….the Scot had bested Adam Scott by a single stroke to win his home championship.

Embed from Getty Images

You may have noticed from the leaderboard at the Scottish Open that these Links golf courses can be a fantastic leveller – not everybody, not even the best in the business, find playing in these conditions easy.

Royal Troon, we suspect, will follow in that lineage. Forget the low scores of Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson here in 2016 – only 17 players finished under par here in that edition of the British Open, and it seems as though course officials have done their best to make the layout play even more difficult in 2024, with the fescue rough left to grow and the lengthening of some holes….including the Par 5 sixth, which will play as the longest hole in British Open history at 623 yards.

It will play to around 7,385 yards for its Par 71, so it’s certainly long enough and particularly when you consider that the back nine plays almost exclusively into the prevailing wind.  

Stenson and Mickelson served up a Sunday for the ages here in 2016, swapping birdies and par saves while leaving the rest of the field in their dust. In the end, Stenson just about had enough to hold off Lefty and clinch a maiden major championship.

Of course, our defending champion is Brian Harman – the veteran left-hander ending a six-year wait for a title in spectacular fashion at Royal Liverpool, lapping the field in a week in which nobody else was able to cope with the tough conditions quite like him.

Historically, British Open champions have been easy enough to shortlist – those in form, with Links pedigree, a high world ranking and who teed it up in the Scottish Open the week before.

Unfortunately, that rather trims the likelihood of a long odds winner, but at least the tough conditions – very much unique to these rugged coastal layouts of the U.K. – can act as something of a leveller. 

You don’t need us to tell you that the field is a strong one for the final major of the year, with the best that the PGA TOUR, LIV Golf, and the DP World Tour all vying for supremacy.

But even so, Links golf has a habit of throwing up shocks and surprises – so can we get a long odds winner over the line courtesy of our British Open sleeper shortlist?

[membership level=”0″]

You must be a Premium Member to view our exclusive fantasy golf picks.

Already a member?  Sign in Here.

[/membership]

[membership level=”1,2,3″]

Tom Kim – 50/1 – Tom Kim romped home with a round of -6 on Sunday; confirming that his love affair with the Links remains an ongoing concern.

The Korean hopped around Royal Liverpool on one leg after injuring his ankle 12 months ago, yet he still finished T2 behind Brian Harman to confirm his love of these conditions.

Another fine turn at the Scottish Open confirms as much, and don’t forget it was only three starts ago that Kim had the Travelers Championship sewn up – until a late charge from Scottie Scheffler deprived him of another PGA TOUR title.

So the form is there….as is the love of these unique Links conditions.

Min-Woo Lee – 55/1 – With an unerring ability to keep his ball in play, Min-Woo Lee has the ideal game for Links golf.

He can hit below the wind off the tee with a low stinger, while his length with driver in hand also allows him to approach rock-hard and super-fast greens with plenty of loft. And his chipping and scrambling game is both inventive and reliable.

With that build up, it’s helpful that Lee backs it up with solid results. He won the Scottish Open in 2021, finished T7 at the Irish Open, and won his home Australian PGA Championship – a tournament played in conditions not all that dissimilar to what is expected on the coast of Scotland, albeit a heck of a lot warmer. 

Brian Harman – 66/1 – You have to go back to 2008 for the last time that a player won back-to-back editions of the British Open – Padraig Harrington the man for the job, if you were wondering.

Tiger had actually doubled up on the Links in 2005-06 as well, so winning back to back at the British Open isn’t as unlikely as it seems.

Brian Harman isn’t a prolific champion like those two guys, but he showcased at last year’s edition at Royal Liverpool how minimizing mistakes, and deploying an outstanding short game, can be a successful plan of attack on the Links.

The left-hander looked in good nick at the Scottish Open last week, and would have finished higher than T21 but for a cold flatstick – but we know that’s a rarity for Harman, so there’s very chance he performs much better on the greens this week.

Sungjae Im – 66/1 – Sungjae Im was right there after 54 holes at the Scottish Open, and it was only an uncharacteristically leaky final round with the flatstick that cost him a more sustained run at the title.

Nevertheless, the Korean should head to Royal Troon full of confidence after another strong showing – that’s now five finishes of T12 or better within his last six starts worldwide.

Im produced his best effort at the British Open last year in a T20 turn, but we’re willing to stake that he’s got far better in the locker – remember, this is a guy who once finished T2 at The Masters. He can mix it with the very best under the highest pressure, of that there’s no mistake.

Wyndham Clark – 70/1 – We have previously mused on these pages that Wyndham Clark has the ideal game for the Links, although he took his time to show it at the Scottish Open.

But that came on Sunday, when he cruised home with a fine round of -8, in which he hit his approaches close from all angles and distances and made some putts into the bargain.

If nothing else, Clark will head to Royal Troon with complete confidence restored, and that could be a deadly weapon at a layout that will test the all-round game – not a place for those lacking in self-belief.

[/membership]

Want more of this week’s fantasy predictions? Check out our full fantasy preview for the Open Championship here.

Fantasy Golf Predictions This Season (2024)

Cover photo via Instagram