Collin Morikawa and Max Homa Will Play First Two Rounds Together at The Open

Fellow Cal grads Collin Morikawa and Max Homa will play together along with Tyrrell Hatton on Thursday and Friday at the 151st Open Championship at Royal Liverpool Golf Club at Hoylake, England.

They will tee off at 7:10 a.m. PT on Thursday, then 2:09 a.m. PT on Friday.

Not unexpectedly, rain is in the forecast for Thursday’s first round.

"[The rough] is spotty," Morikawa told reporters. "Some places are really bad. Some places you can get a really good lie. Obviously, if it's wet, it changes a lot.

“There's some spots out there where you might be chipping out sideways. but also a foot away the ball might be sitting up and you might be able to go for the green. Things got to go your way.”

Morikawa, ranked No. 19 in the world, hasn’t won a tournament over the past two years, since capturing The Open at Royal St. George’s in 2021. No. 8 Homa, with two victories this season, still is searching for his first win at a major.

A total of four ex-Cal golfers are set to tee it up at The Open.

Byeong Hun An climbed from No. 131 in the world rankings last week to No. 85 after finishing in a tie for third at the Scottish Open. An will play the first two rounds with Ryan Fox and Lucas Herbert, actually teeing off Wednesday at 10:57 p.m. PT, then 3:58 a.m. PT on Friday.

Michael Kim, who turned pro out of Cal in 2013 and is ranked 134th in the world, will play alongside Callum Shinkwin and Kazuki Higa in the first round at 3:58 a.m. PT Thursday and in the second round Thursday at 10:57 p.m. PT.

Rory McIlroy, coming off a victory last week at the Scottish Open, is attempting to end a nine-year drought without winning a major. McIlroy will team with Masters champion Jon Rahm and former No. 1 Justin Rose over the first two rounds.

Defending champion Cameron Smith is matched with U.S. Open champ Wyndham Clark and Xander Schauffele. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler will play in the same group with Tommy Fleetwood and Adam Scott.

Brentley Romine of the Golf Channel ranked all 156 entries in The Open. Here are some highlights, including where he placed the four Golden Bears:

1. Rory McIlroy: Not worried about the wind one bit after seeing those two final irons shots that won him Scottish Open. Reigning Open champ at Liverpool thanks to his 12-under play on the par-5s, he’s posted four top-5s at Opens since then. He’s the betting favorite this year as he enters with seven straight worldwide top-7s, including Sunday’s Scottish win and a runner-up at the U.S. Open. Expect another elite driving week and potential second claret jug.

2. Scottie Scheffler: Considering he’s now gone 19 straight weeks of T-12 or better, he’s the safest bet in the field. Building a nice Open foundation with finishes of T-8 and T-21 the past two years. Of the top four players in Data Golf’s expected major wins category this season, Scheffler is only one of the four without a major title this year. And he’s just ahead of Rory McIlroy and leading the Tour in strokes gained off the tee while also ranking No. 1 in approach and No. 5 around the green.

3. Brooks Koepka: I’d be shocked if he doesn’t contend. Made his first Open cut at Hoylake in 2014 (T-67), and prior to last year’s MC, he had finished in the top 10 in four of five Open starts. Loves the challenge, especially when weather is less than ideal. And he’s kicking himself after T-17 at U.S. Open.

14. Collin Morikawa: Backed up win in Open debut at St. George’s with MC at St. Andrews last year. And there’s the back injury. But he’s resting up by not playing the Scottish, and don’t believe all the down-year talk. He still has been T-26 or better in the first three majors and is still an absolute flusher (second in strokes gained approach). Perfect buy-low guy.

29. Max Homa: Just getting used to this championship with a T-40 in 2021 and MC last year playing alongside Tiger Woods at St. Andrews. MC at U.S. Open hurt, and he’s not been as good in majors as regular Tour events so far in his career, but he looked good at Scottish (T-12).

50. Byeong Hun An: T-3 at Scottish secures his ninth career Open start. Respectable record in this championship, as he’s made 5 of 8 cuts with three finishes of T-32 or better, including in each of past two editions. Had three straight top-25s on Tour before run of MC, MC, T-51 leasing into Scottish.

86. Michael Kim: First Open start since making debut at Carnoustie and placing T-35 in 2018. MCs in four major starts since. Cooled off since T-6 at Colonial. Slightly positive strokes gained in all three tee-to-green facets.

156. John Daly: His last top 50 at The Open? 2010.

Cover photo of 2021 Open champion Collin Morikawa by Kyle Terada, USA Today

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo

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