Golf Guy's British Open preview

• By Golf Guy
• Jul 18, 2012 12:30 PM ET

As the players get set to tackle Royal Lytham & St. Annes, the Golf Guy gives you a little primer on the 141st Open Championship:

Notable betting odds (The Golf Guy does not condone betting. Unless you like to have some fun in your life):

Tiger Woods 8-1: Pretty good odds – I'll throw a few 'biscuits' on Tiger

Lee Westwood 14-1: Never won a major. Will win a major. Will it be now?

Luke Donald 14-1: One of my favorite players – zero chance to win

Rory McIlroy 16-1: Just hoping he shows up and is in the hunt – but no expectations for some reason

Padraig Harrington 20-1: Slowly getting back into the fold

Graeme McDowell 28-1: Short in stature, tall in growing expectations

Phil Mickelson 33-1: Sadly, I see no hope this year. Happily, I hope I'm dead wrong

Sergio Garcia - 33-1: Would kill (OK, too strong) for Sergio to finally break through

Bubba Watson 40-1: No chance. Granted, I would have said the same thing at Augusta

Darren Clarke 125-1: Repeat? No, will be lucky to break 80 in first two rounds

John Daly 150-1: Stranger things have happened

Tom Watson 200-1: Stranger things almost happened three years ago (damn you, Stewart Cink!)

David Duval 500-1: OK, this is just too strange

And the winner is ...

Pick to win: Westwood

Longshot winner: Thorbjorn Olesen (125-1)

Winning score: 9 under

What would Golf Guy shoot for four days? 141 over

Tidbits

Oldest winner: Old Tom Morris at age 46 in 1867. The youngest? Young Tom Morris, 17, the very next year

Jack Nicklaus named his course in Ohio after the place where he won his first British: Muirfield

Most Open appearances: Gary Player (46). That sounds insane ... 46

Most Open Championship wins: Harry Vardon (6). Tom Watson (5.99)

The word claret refers to a red wine that is produced in the French region of Bordeaux. The word jug comes from what was used to serve the wine at parties. Thus ... the claret jug.

List of winners since the Open was last played at Royal Lytham:

Darren Clarke: 2011 Royal St. George’s

Louis Oosthuizen: 2010 St. Andrews

Stweart Cink: 2009 Turnberry

Padraig Harrington: 2008 Royal Birkdale

Padraig Harrington: 2007 Carnoustie

Tiger Woods: 2006 Royal Liverpool

Tiger Woods: 2005 St. Andrews

Todd Hamilton: 2004 Royal Troon

Ben Curtis: 2003 Royal St. George’s

Ernie Els: 2002 Muirfield

David Duval: 2001 Royal Lytham

History and course:

This will be the 11^th Open Championship to be played at Royal Lytham. The first, played in 1926, was won by Bobby Jones – an amateur. The club was founded in 1886 and is located in Lancashire, England. The course features 205 bunkers and plays as a par 70, with the first hole being a par 3. And I love how the bunkers at many Open courses are referred to as 'pot' bunkers.

Untrue fact about Royal Lytham:

Two golfers were lost in the gorse back in the 1926 Open Championship – and never seen or heard from again.