To play or not to play in Open preparation?

by Mark Lamport-Stokes, LONDON, July 4 (Reuters) Ernie Els prefers to experience the cut-and-thrust of competition. Tiger Woods generally favours the 'horses-for-courses' approach of practising in Ireland, with a bit of fishing thrown in. In 1953, the ever meticulous Ben Hogan pitched up early and covered all the bases with the precision of a land surveyor.

Walter Hagen, in 1920, adopted an in-your-face strategy, arriving in technicolour glory and making sure his presence was noted by all of his rivals.

Different approaches for different golfing folks but all four methods of preparing for the British Open have proved successful with each of the quartet going on to win the third major championship of the year at least once.

South African Els has made a habit of playing in the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond the week before the Open championship, and will do so again this year when he tees off in Thursday's opening round.

Although some leading players, Woods among them, prefer not to play the Scottish because of its American-style layout, three-times major winner Els likes to experience the edge of competition on the eve of the Open.

"After the majors, the Scottish Open is my favourite event in the world," said the world number three, champion at Loch Lomond in 2000 and 2003.

"I would love to win it for a third time and it's always a bonus if you can find some form the week before a major championship," added the South African, who won his maiden British Open at Muirfield in 2002.

"After I won Loch Lomond in 2000, I had a good Open the week after but Tiger played some different golf at St Andrews."

American Woods romped to victory by eight shots in the 2000 British Open at St Andrews where Els shared second place with Denmark's Thomas Bjorn.

Nine-times major champion Woods, as meticulous as any player in history when it comes to preparation for the big events, more often than not hones his game for the Open on the links courses of Ireland, where he can also get in some fishing.

Accompanied by good friends such as Mark O'Meara, John Cook and Scott McCarron, he likes to get an early feel for the vagaries of bounce on Open-style layouts and the need to work the ball in ocean breezes.

"You've got to hit all shots at a British Open, not just one," said Woods. "You can get suckered into hitting the low ball all day. "One of the things I work on for the British Open is trying to be able to hit the ball really high and really low so I've got a whole arsenal I can work with out there."

Hogan, considered one of the most meticulous players to have played the game, left no stone unturned in his build-up to the 1953 British Open at Carnoustie where he played in the championship for the only time.

Although he disliked Carnoustie's slow-paced greens, the local food and even his Scottish caddie, he made a point of arriving at the course well before the tournament to study all of its nuances. Hogan's research paid off. Despite opening with a 73, he progressively lowered his scoring over the next three rounds on his way to a comfortable four-shot victory.

Many observers felt his closing 68 could have been a 65 if he had come under any genuine pressure on the last day.

Fellow American Hagen, the game's first matinee idol, was a very different story. A larger-than-life character who was equally at ease with golf fans, presidents and royalty, he had already won two U.S. Opens when he decided to play in the British Open for the first time at Deal in 1920.

Although professionals were not allowed to enter the clubhouse, "The Haig" hired a limousine and made sure his chauffeur parked it each day right in front of the clubhouse. Hagen, who also made an impact with his colour coordinated outfits and his black and white brogues, was met by his footman by the 18th green at the end of each round before the pair were whisked away in their Daimler.

Hagen's Open debut was a failure out on the course as he finished 53rd out of the 77 qualifiers but he learned that the art of pitch-and-run shots was an absolute must if success was to be achieved in links course golf.

That lesson was absorbed very quickly and between 1922 and 1929 he produced one of the best stretches in Open history.

Hagen lifted the Claret Jug in 1922, 1924, 1928 and 1929, finished second by a stroke in 1923, did not play in 1925 and 1927 and placed third in 1926.