The Open Championship has, truthful often down the years, been arsenic overmuch a conflict with the elements arsenic it has the plaything for the world's apical golfers.
Recent Royal Birkdale Opens person been nary different. When the Southport venue past staged the game's oldest title successful 2017, play was concisely suspended during the 2nd circular due to the fact that of dense upwind and rain.
In 2008, astatine the extremity of a week mostly dominated by horrendous weather, Padraig Harrington prevailed with a winning people of 3 implicit par, 4 shots wide of Ian Poulter.
This week, however, it is shaping up to beryllium a overmuch antithetic test, with steadfast and fiery conditions expected astatine a sun-baked Birkdale.
"The people is primed for an astonishing week. It's arsenic linksy arsenic links gets," 2014 champion Rory McIlroy told BBC Sport's Iain Carter.
"It's a batch antithetic than erstwhile I was present a fewer weeks agone [for a signifier round]. It's not rather arsenic green, the unsmooth isn't rather arsenic juicy - it's inactive long, the fescue, but it's a small thinner due to the fact that of the upwind we've had."
With the unsmooth having been "burnt out" by the sun, McIlroy - who changeable 73-64 implicit the play to decorativeness tied seventh astatine past week's Scottish Open - is approaching the week with an attacking mindset.
"I deliberation I tin play the people a small much aggressively than I could, truthful I'm excited by that possibility, but it's a large test," added the six-time large winner, who finished associated 4th astatine Birkdale successful 2017.
"The changes they've made to the play people implicit the past fewer years, I deliberation it's going to beryllium a large play tourney that tests each aspects of the game."
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