The 115th U.S. Open Championship begins Thursday morning at Chambers Bay, a one-of-a-kind course on the banks of the Puget Sound that has made headlines recently for its high degree of difficulty and seemingly disheveled greens.
Chambers Bay will be challenging, sure, but the 156 golfers set to hit the links this weekend are no slouches. So who will come out on top? We’ve tabbed five golfers who we think have the best chance of winning golf’s second major of 2015.
1. Rory McIlroy
The guy is the top-ranked golfer in the world for a reason, and he’s coming off a two-week break that should have him well-rested and ready to take on Chambers Bay. Sure, McIlroy underperformed in his two most recent tournaments — the BMW PGA Championship and the Irish Open — and he’ll have a massive target on his back as the world No. 1. But the Irishman still is the favorite to win any tournament he enters, and this weekend will be no different.
2. Jordan Spieth
Another young gun with loads of potential, Spieth represents the best challenge to Rory’s throne. The Texas native capped his white-hot spring with a dominant wire-to-wire victory in the 2015 Masters, and he most recently earned a top-3 finish at the Memorial. Spieth also has a secret weapon: His caddie, Michael Greller, used to be a local looper at Chambers Bay and has caddied at the course more than 40 times. Incredible talent plus experience is a formula for success.
3. Phil Mickelson
If there ever was an opportunity for Mickelson to complete his career Grand Slam, this is it. Shortly after an impressive T-2nd showing at this year’s Masters, Lefty paid a visit to Chambers Bay and said he “really liked it.” We’ve seen Mickelson fail to come out on top in big situations before, but if his short game is dominant as usual, it’s a pretty safe bet he’ll be in the thick of things on Sunday.
4. Rickie Fowler
Yes, Fowler missed the cut at the Memorial just two weeks ago. But he also showed guts with a huge win at The Players Championship in May, and he didn’t finish lower than fifth in any major last year. It’s only a matter of time before the 26-year-old captures his first major, and Fowler has admitted he loves playing on wide-open links like the one he’ll see at Chambers Bay this weekend. His time could be now.
5. Dustin Johnson
OK, so Johnson is a bit of a wild card. But Chambers Bay plays right into his hands. The 30-year-old has one of the longest drives on the PGA Tour, and according to Golf.com, Chambers Bay is the first U.S. Open course in history to measure more than 7,900 yards. If Johnson — who finished a career-best sixth in this year’s Masters — can keep his monster drives on the fairway, watch out.
Honorable Mention: Tiger Woods
Will Tiger come close to winning this tournament? Judging by his latest outing, probably not. But you can’t completely ignore one of the greatest golfers of all time, no matter how washed-up he may appear. If Woods somehow finds his groove in the opening rounds, the rest of the field should be very concerned.
Thumbnail photo via Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports Images
