The Open Championship 2022 – Roundup

Cameron Smith produced one of the all-time great rounds in the Open Championship history. This time, to pip Rory McIlroy to glory at St. Andrews.

McIlroy was chasing his fifth major and a first in eight years. He opened up a two-shot lead by the turn.

Beginning the day four strokes behind leaders Rory McIlroy and Viktor Hovland, Australian sensation Cameron Smith rode a final round to the title, to be the Champion Golfer of the Year as the victor at the 150th Open Championship. 

Smith (-20) matched the lowest score to par in major championship history. Also, his 30 on the back nine Sunday was the lowest score across the final half of a round for any major champion.

The Open Championship 2022 Round-Up

Playing spoiler to McIlroy, Smith was able to right the wrongs of his third round with a brilliant 8-under 64. 

He gained nearly 10 strokes putting through the first two days and rode his hot putting stroke again on Sunday. 

It was a middling start to his final round as he turned in 2 under before catching fire on the front part of his inward nine. 

Five straight birdies marked a personal best in his major championship career, and he once again proved when the lights are the brightest, his game shines. 

He took down Jon Rahm at the Tournament of Champions, made 10 birdies in the final round of the Players Championship to secure the biggest payday in golf, and stared down all of St. Andrews to raise the Claret Jug. 

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Good for the fourth runner-up finish of his rookie campaign, Cameron Smith looks like anything but a neophyte when stepping onto a major championship venue. 

He has now finished on the podium at Riviera, Southern Hills, and St. Andrews. 

The first win of his PGA Tour career is surely around the corner. Smith would have signed up for a final round of 7-under 65 at the beginning of the day, but he will be kicking himself for some silly mistakes. 

Smith three-putted No. 1, had to take an unplayable on the short par-4 ninth, and left birdie opportunities short on Nos. 15 and 17 and finished in second despite these blunders.

If the Master’s runner-up was pure jubilation, this has to feel like an ultimate defeat for Rory McIlroy. 

Possessing the 54-hole lead in a major championship for the first time in eight years. This time, it was McIlroy’s lack of aggression and enhanced level of maturity may have served as the thorn in his side. 

Unable to get anything going on the greens, the four-time major winner two-putted the final 39 holes of his championship to fall two strokes behind Smith. 

McIlroy became the only player in 2022 to finish inside the top 10 of each major championship, but at this point in his career, he won’t take any solace in close calls. 

Rory has not won a major championship in eight years and now has 17 top-10 finishes in 31 such events played across that time.

The Open Champion’s Sunday run

Making amends for the disappointment of his third round, Smith was simply brilliant as he rediscovered the putting magic that first led him to the 36-hole lead. 

He scored eight birdies with no bogeys on Sunday, starting with a 34 on the front before going low on five consecutive holes from Nos. 10-14 as he took advantage of every scoring opportunity at the Old Course on his way to wrestling the lead away from McIlroy.

Despite the birdie barrage, it was a par save on the 17th that Smith may look back upon as the defining moment of his championship.

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Behind the Road Hole bunker in two, he utilized his greatest weapon — the putter — to get up and down on the most difficult hole at St. Andrews.

Taking the wind out of the sails of McIlroy, Smith became the first major champion in modern history to sign for two rounds of 64 or lower. 

His aggressive play cost him in the third round but it was exactly what propelled him to victory on Sunday as he joined Jack Nicklaus (1978) as the only man to win the Players Championship and The Open in the same year.

For this edition, The Open Championship amounted to a purse of 14 million dollars.