The 2012 British Open has proved to be just as unpredictable as the ones before it. Some of the world's best players were wildly erratic and fell out of contention early. There are some surprises near the top of the leaderboard, most notably is Brandt Snedeker leading the way after 36 holes. Snedeker and Adam Scott have separated themselves from most of the field, but lurking right behind them is Tiger Woods. Lee Westwood was my pre-tournament favorite to win the Claret Jug, but he flopped to +3 after 2 rounds and will have to wait to become a major champion. My #2 pick was Adam Scott though. He is just 1 stroke back and looks primed to make a run. The weather has been reasonable and should not be a huge factor over the weekend. That means that there may not be too much movement at the top of the leaderboard.
Pre-Tournament Favorites:
Lee Westwood - England
Current Standing: +4, T59
Adam Scott - Australia
Current Standing: -9, 2nd
Phil Mickleson - USA
Current Standing: +11, missed cut
Louis Oosthuizen - South Africa
Current Standing: -1, T19
Retief Goosen - South Africa
Current Standing: E, T27
Luke Donald - England
Current Standing: -2, T13
Padraig Harrington - Ireland
Current Standing: +2, T45
Ernie Els - South Africa
Current Standing: -3, T10
Jason Dufner - USA
Current Standing: -4, T5
Kevin Na - USA
Current Standing: +10, missed cut
New Weekend Picks:
1. Adam Scott - Australia (3 to 1)
Current Standing: -9, 2nd
2. Tiger Woods - USA (3 to 1)
Current Standing: -6, 3rd
3. Brandt Snedeker - USA (4 to 1)
Current Standing: -10, 1st
4. Jason Dufner - USA (16 to 1)
Current Standing: -4, T5
5. Ernie Els - South Africa (35 to 1)
Current Standing: -3, T10
Weekend Prediction - I went into the week thinking that Lee Westwood had a great chance to end his streak of 0 for majors. He wilted in the opening rounds and is not in contention. There is some separation at the top of the leaderboard with Brandt Snedeker and Adam Scott at least 3 strokes ahead of everyone else. But that person that is 3 strokes back of Scott and 4 back of Snedeker is Tiger Woods. The weekend could get interesting. Snedeker has only been this close in a major once before (2008 Masters). If the pressure gets to him we could see a final pairing of Adam Scott and Tiger Woods on Sunday. The drama between Tiger Woods and former caddie Stevie Williams (who is now Adam Scott's caddie) would be intense. With that said, I loved Scott in this tournament from the beginning. He was my #2 favorite before play started, and with Westwood way back, I expect to see Adam Scott sipping from the Claret Jug.
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