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British Open: 5 bold predictions for the weekend at The Open Championship

By Cody Williams

Australia's Cameron Smith lines up a putt on the 17th green during his second round on day 2 of The 150th British Open Golf Championship on The Old Course at St Andrews in Scotland on July 15, 2022. - Australia's Cameron Smith surged into the lead in the 150th British Open after a sensational eight-under-par second round of 64 on Friday left him on 13-under for the tournament at the halfway stage. - RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
Australia's Cameron Smith lines up a putt on the 17th green during his second round on day 2 of The 150th British Open Golf Championship on The Old Course at St Andrews in Scotland on July 15, 2022. - Australia's Cameron Smith surged into the lead in the 150th British Open after a sensational eight-under-par second round of 64 on Friday left him on 13-under for the tournament at the halfway stage. - RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images) /
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British Open, Open Championship
Cameron Smith (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Cameron Smith sits atop the British Open leaderboard but there are still 36 holes left and we have bold predictions for Open Championship weekend. 

Now it’s time for The Open Championship to really start. We’ve made it through a grueling first 36 holes of the British Open with slow play being one of the unfortunate narratives of the first two days at St. Andrews. But now with the cut happening, it’s time to determine who will be the Champion Golfer of the Year.

Cameron Smith shot the round of the tournament thus far on Friday to vault into a hefty lead at The Open, sitting at 13-under and with a two-stroke cushion over Cameron Young and a three-stroke lead over Viktor Hovland and a young lad named Rory McIlroy (maybe you’ve heard of him).

With a loaded leaderboard, we’re shaping up for an epic weekend at the Old Course. So let’s dive into what can happen over the final 36 holes with bold predictions for the British Open and what’s about to transpire on the weekend.

British Open: Bold predictions for Open Championship weekend at St. Andrews

5. Cameron Smith is not winning the British Open

What Cameron Smith did on Friday at St. Andrews was wholly remarkable. He played a pristine round of golf on the scorecard, flirting with a record-breaking score and ending with a 64 that put him at 13-under for the championship and firmly in the lead with a two-stroke advantage over Cameron Young.

He’s in the driver’s seat and the favorite to win. And yet, that’s not going to happen.

Smith’s round was exceptionally buoyed by his putting. Per Data Golf, Smith gained an absurd 6.20 strokes putting on Friday and set the record for the most distance of made putts in a round since 2004.

That is not sustainable in the slightest. Even for arguably the best putter in golf, Smith can’t keep that up and the rest of his game was not that sharp. He failed to gain more than 0.95 strokes on Friday with any other part of his game. If the putter comes down to earth even slightly — and it will — he’s going to get caught and won’t be able to stave off the challengers.

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