Thomas Bjorn insists Rory McIlroy provides the X Factor at The Open. And the triumphant 2018 Ryder Cup captain is adamant his old European charge is the individual who can really light up the entire 150th Championship at St Andrews. Bjorn was runner-up to a rampant Tiger Woods in 2000 as the American romped around the Old Course to chalk up the first of his two wins at the Home of Golf.
However, with the 46-year-old struggling to compete to his highest levels due to injuries, it is McIlroy who has the better chance to stamp his class all over the showpiece. Bjorn believes Rory can be the story with time running out for the Northern Irishman to achieve the Holy Grail of lifting a Claret Jug at St Andrews.
The Dane believes even McIlroy’s rivals are inspired when he’s on it as he brings a vibrancy and spark. Bjorn said: “Rory is X-Factor and that is because everybody gets excited when he plays well.
“Even the other players get excited and we don’t really get excited about much! There is a different feeling. The only one who really had that before was Tiger.
“In a friendly and positive way, Tiger annoyed us all because he was so good, but you also saw it as an opportunity to go up against the best when they are playing their best. Rory brings a different dynamic to the game.
“People love him. People want to see him do well and get so disappointed when he doesn’t and it’s impossible to put your finger on it. You couldn’t say what the exact reason is why he has that magnetism and generates those feelings, but he does.”
McIlroy came third on his St Andrews debut in 2010 and was favourite to defend his title at the Old Course in 2015 before a nightmare ankle injury sustained playing five-a-side football with his pals forced him to miss out.
At the age of 33, Bjorn fears time is running out for the 2014 Champion at Royal Liverpool to win one at the Home of Golf. Although players can stay competitive at Seniors Tour age in Opens due to the links set-up, being at the peak of your powers these days is key.
Bjorn said: “I think he understands that an Open championship at St Andrews is just unique. He’s at an age now where he might have this one and then one more before he starts struggling to win one.
“It’s a great opportunity. He’s playing well going into it and I just hope he gets off to a great start so we can all enjoy him being there and thereabouts.”
Bjorn may be aware of the power of McIlroy, but it’s the power of the Championship as a whole that really gets his juices flowing.
The man who skippered Europe to success over the United States at Le Golf National almost four years ago says this tournament should be a celebration of everything that golf stands for.
As LIV Series arguments cause controversy and consternation within the changing rooms of professional golf, the values of St Andrews, the Royal and Ancient and the history of the game should be front and centre of proceedings over the coming four days.
Bjorn is here working for TV and said: “As a player, you determine your favourite events. It’s the Open. And then it goes to a completely different level when it’s an Open at St Andrews.
“It’s just a very, very unique experience. There is a buzz and there is something inside you that makes you forget to enjoy your last tone. It is a very special week for the players.
“When you walk over that Swilcan Bridge, you should remember who has walked over it.
“Everybody who has ever been something in golf has walked over it and that’ll be the same in the future. You shouldn’t be running around thinking: Oh this is St Andrews and losing your focus, but you can have your moments.
“And when you walk over that bridge for the final time, whether it is Friday or Sunday, you should have the greatest have stood on this Bridge. The greatest have said goodbye to the game. Just take it in and realise how privileged you are to be in this position.
“It might just make you think more about the game of golf and how to play as opposed to where it is at the moment when it seems the only thing that gets talked about is money.
“That’s what this Championship should do. It’s what it should all be about. About the Championship, the game, what the institutions who run the game do for it. A lot of times, we forget how much good the R&A does. In the professional game, we tend to think of it just for The Open.
“But we forget where we came from. As a kid, the R&A were behind so many things. It allowed me to become the player I did and so many others, too. We should celebrate that because the R&A deserve it.
“We don’t always agree with them and them not with us. Or the professional and amateur games might be far away from each other at times. But that simply doesn’t matter this week. The things we have in common are far greater than the things that drive us apart. That’s what we should remember at the 150th Open.”
Thomas Bjorn was speaking on behalf of online betting guide OLBG. Go to https://www.olbg. com/blogs/thomas-bjorn
