The Open Championship cut line isn't as daunting as it is in some of the other major championships as the Top 70 and ties make it into the weekend after 36 holes. That's the good news coming into the tournament. But once the players got out to play Royal Portrush for the British Open this week, the number of players didn't matter anymore. It became about making the cut line number in tough conditions on a demanding tract in order to see the weekend at The Open.
Someone like Bryson DeChambeau was certainly feeling that pressure early on. In his first round, nothing was going right for him, which made sense considering his less than stellar history at The Open throughout his career. However, after shooting 7-over in the first round, he definitely appeared in danger of missing the cut. But to his credit, he showed up a new man on Friday to fight back to the right side of the British Open cut line.
Other players, however, aren't so lucky — whether they're still on the course fighting to see the weekend or are in the locker room sweating it out. So let's dive into both what The Open Championship cut line could be, and which big-name players might be in trouble of not getting to that score after 36 holes.
2025 Open Championship cut line
In a shock toward the end of the second round, scoring picked back up and made the cut line +1. There was better than a 90% chance that The Open cut line was going to be +2 on Friday afternoon with the late wave out on the course, so that seemed near certain. But a late rush of scoring ultimately pushed it to +1, which means the like of Bryson DeChambeau, Corey Conners and Sepp Straka made the cut on the number. Others, however, weren't so lucky.
Notable players to miss the cut at The Open
Here's a look at some of the biggest names to miss the +1 cut at The Open Championship this week. And frankly, some of the biggest names weren't even close.
- T71. Joaquin Niemann (+2)
- T71. Jason Day (+2)
- T71. Ben Griffin (+2)
- T79. Tom Kim (+3)
- T79. Patrick Cantlay (+3)
- T114. Patrick Reed (+5)
- T122. Stephan Jaeger (+6)
- T130. Brooks Koepka (+7)
- T130. Collin Morikawa (+7)
- T137. Cameron Smith (+8)
By far the biggest shock from this group was Morikawa, who missed the cut ultimately by six strokes. He entered the week at The Open as one of the favorites and didn't even make it to see the weekend. Portrush was a course that should've played to his strengths, and he simply couldn't capitalize. As his caddy shuffling continues, one has to wonder if he'll get things right.
Beyond that, the next biggest surprises might be the quartet of LIV Golf stars, Niemann, Reed, Koepka and Smith, who were unable to make it to the weekend.