The British Open has been quite unkind to Henley, but a couple observers are optimistic he'll reverse his trend

By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

          Russell Henley has had plenty of respectable rounds in the Majors.

          Hardly any have come in the British Open.

          Henley’s 10th trip to Royal Troon and the Open Championship have a low bar for a good weekend.

          First, the Stratford and Georgia grad has to make it to the actual weekend, something he hasn’t done five times. His best short trip? A 2-over in 2021. He has averaged being 7 over in those missed cuts.

          Making the cut hasn’t been much better: 15 over, 7 under, 2 over, and 3 under. His best finish is a tie for 20th in 2015.

          He has yet to make two straight cuts, but missed two straight, in 2018 and 2021, not competing in 2019 and 2020.

          Henley tied for 62nd in 2022 with a 3-under 285, but missed last year with a 149.

          In 26 Open rounds, he has four runs below 70 to go with a pair of 80s.

          Henley tees off at 4:25 a.m., Macon time, on Thursday, with Tony Finau and Matthieu Pavon. They go at 9:26 a.m. on Friday. The United Kingdom is five hours ahead of the U.S.

          He last played in the Travelers four weeks ago, finishing tied for 48th after a 5-under 275.

          While not playing with an abundance of consistency, Henley is offering competitive golf. He has made eight straight cuts, since missing The Players Championship (73-73) in mid March.

          In that stretch, the Travelers was his worst finish, to go with four top-15 finishes, and two in the 20s.

          And he’s still ranked highly, 21st in the FedEx Cup and 20th in Official World Golf Rankings.

          But that shaky Open resume has him on few “contender” lists this week, and not many “under the radar” or “keep an eye on” lists, either.

          Except, though, odds-wise, the Washington Post’s Matt Bonesteel isn’t giving up:

          “Russell Henley (+10000)

          “Last year, a short- but accurate-hitting University of Georgia product came from well down the odds board to win the British Open despite only limited major championship pedigree. Why not make it two in a row with Henley trying to replicate Harman’s grand feat from a year ago at Royal Liverpool?

          “Henley has just two top-10 finishes in 39 major championship appearances, but both of them were this season or last season, the latest being a tie for seventh at the U.S. Open. Henley ranks 10th in driving accuracy and 26th in scrambling in PGA Tour play this season, and he has five top-12 finishes since March.”

          And Keith Stewart of Golf Digest is optimistic, putting Henley at No. 19:

          “Russell Henley is another Georgia alumni who played on the same team as Harris English and Brian Harman! Henley’s work in the majors has been impressive this year. Looking ahead to Troon, his accuracy off the tee and on approach will be a weapon. Fully rested since the U.S. Open, I have a strong feeling this dog will be hunting following his Georgia teammate’s win last year.”

          But Jack Milko of SBNation.com is going out on the longest limb, by far, with Henley first on his 3-man dark-horse list:

          “The former Georgia Bulldog is, quite frankly, one of the most underrated players in the world.

          “He has made the cut at all three majors this season, with his best finish being a T-7 at the U.S. Open. He has five top 10s overall and most recently tied for 48th at the Travelers Championship, meaning he arrives in Scotland refreshed and ready to go.

          “Yet, Henley does not have a strong history at The Open. He has missed five of nine cuts and has not finished better than 20th. One MC of those came at Royal Troon in 2016, and he missed another at Royal Liverpool a year ago.

          “Still, Henley does not have many flaws in his game. He keeps it in play, relying on his accuracy more than distance to plot around golf courses. Plus, he is a solid ball-striker, ranking 30th on the PGA Tour in strokes gained: approaching the green.

          “On top of that, Henley has a reliable short game, as he ranks 26th on tour in scrambling percentage and 23rd in strokes gained around the greens. His game on paper matches well to links golf, but the results have not shown it as of yet.

          “Despite that, Henley has the game to flip the script and win golf’s oldest major. He has four PGA Tour victories, but this would mark a career-defining moment for the 110-to-1 longshot.”

          The field is loaded, with 158 players. The cut line is the top 70, with ties. Last year, Georgia alum Brian Harman won with a 13-under. The cut was 3 over, with 76 players making it.

          USA Network has the start of the tournament at 4 a.m. on Thursday.