​Few people earn their keep at the British Open more than David Lancaster. He serves as the first tee announcer, a role he inherited from the legendary Ivor Robson in 2016. If everything stays on schedule, Lancaster will report for duty at Royal Birkdale this week just before 6:30 a.m. on Thursday and Friday, remaining in position until a little after 4 p.m., dutifully sending off all 156 competitors in the championship. It’s one of the endearing quirks of golf’s oldest tournament. With England enjoying daylight well into the evening in July, the R&A sends every one of the 52 threesomes off the first tee. Augusta National does the same, though it’s simpler there with roughly 100 players in the Masters.
That setup creates a unique sense of anticipation among players about their tee times, and many try to land on the “right side” of the draw in the Open. In any given championship, a favorable start time can be a talking point and, some believe, a potential factor in the result. However, after examining the data from the past several decades, the conclusion is that scheduling isn’t the decisive factor it’s sometimes thought to be. The last 25 years show a near-even split: 13 champions started early, 12 late.
Thursday and Friday at Birkdale will see players teeing off in threesomes. Official tee times haven’t been released yet, so this piece lists all participants currently in the field. Return closer to the start of the tournament and we’ll publish the official times as soon as they’re posted.
From Golf Digest, a broader look at the British Open Preview, the journey to Jordan Spieth’s ascent at Royal Birkdale in 2017, and a roundup of essential information, including the updated field for the championship and various strategic insights about the Open. The field features a diverse mix of veterans and rising talents, including Ludvig Aberg, Angel Ayora, Sam Bairstow, Matthew Baldwin, Josele Ballester, Daniel Berger, Akshay Bhatia, Dan Burnbury, Keegan Bradley, Michael Brennan, Jacob Bridgeman, Daniel Brown, Jack Buchanan (amateur), Sam Burns, Laurie Canter, Patrick Cantlay, Bud Cauley, Eugenio Chacarra, Tiger Christensen, Stewart Cink, Wyndham Clark, Darren Clarke, Eric Cole, Corey Conners, Pierceson Coody, Martin Couvra, M.J. Daffue, Jason Day, Alejandro De Castro Piera (amateur), Bryson DeChambeau, Thomas Detry, Alistair Docherty, Hennie Du Plessis, David Duval, Nicolas Echavarria, Harris English, Matt Fitzpatrick, Alex Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Rickie Fowler, Ryan Fox, Ryan Gerard, Chris Gotterup, Stuart Grehan (amateur), Max Greyserman, Ben Griffin, Lev Grinberg (amateur), Harry Hall, Jeongwoo Ham, Brian Harman, Padraig Harrington, Tyrrell Hatton, Russell Henley, Lucas Herbert, Kazuki Higa, Daniel Hillier, Ryo Hisatsune, Nicolai Hojgaard, Rasmus Hojgaard, Michael Hollick, Max Homa, Billy Horschel, Viktor Hovland, David Howard (amateur), and more.