Greg Norman’s ‘disappointing’ snub, Tiger Woods’ retirement imminent: The Open preview

Golf icon Greg Norman wasn’t invited for a prestigious champions’ event in a snub that has been labelled “petty” and “disappointing”.

The last of the year’s four golf majors, The Open Championship, takes place this weekend at the home of golf, St Andrews in Scotland.

It is the 150th anniversary of The Open and it will be a historic occasion with modern day golf legacies on the line.

Watch every round of The 150th Open Championship 15th - 18th July EXCLUSIVELY LIVE on FOX SPORTS available on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

From Greg Norman’s snub, to Tiger Woods’ possible retirement, Aussies in the mix and Rory McIlroy out to break a drought at majors, there’s plenty to discuss.

News.com.au caught up with Fox Sports golf expert Paul Gow to break it down. Here’s everything you need to know about The Open Championship.

Greg Norman’s ‘disappointing’ snub

Australian golf legend and two-time Open champion Norman wasn’t invited to attend the Champions Dinner and four-hole Celebration of Champions challenge.

It was a clear snub from the R&A St Andrews golf club in response to Norman’s involvement in LIV Golf, as the CEO and face of the rebel Saudi-backed series causing a divide in men’s golf.

“I’m disappointed. I would have thought the R&A would have stayed above it all given their position in world golf,” Norman told Australian Golf Digest.

“(It’s) petty, as all I have done is promote and grow the game of golf globally, on and off the golf course, for more than four decades.”

Gow believes while not everyone agrees with Norman’s rebel tour, as a former winner he deserved to be invited to the champions celebrations.

“It was disappointing actually,” Gow told news.com.au.

“I can see where the R&A are coming from because they don’t want fanfare. This is the 150th Open.

“The Open started back in 1860, they’ve got all this way along and they wanted the Champions Dinner and the four-hole event that they played to be special and not be overdone by the media.

Greg Norman is on the outer with golf’s establishment. (Photo by Adrian DENNIS / AFP)

“And if Greg turned up, which he normally does with a bit of a fanfare, it would have taken the attention away from the situation.

“I’m disappointed that Norman wasn’t there because he’s a two-time winner, he’s our last Australian that has won The Open Championship, which is 29 years ago.

“It’s pretty disappointing as a fan of Greg Norman. We might not all agree on what he’s doing at the moment but he’s still an Open champion and I believe he should have been invited.”

Predictions, best Aussie chances

Cam Smith’s form has been mixed since The Masters but Gow believes the 28-year-old is right in the mix and is Australia’s best chance to win the claret jug.

“This is a crafty type of golf course and Cam Smith is a crafty player,” he said.

“He’s a big chance and bookmakers will tell you that.”

Gow also rates fellow Aussie Marc Leishman as an equally strong chance to win.

“Marc Leishman is one of our massive chances,” he said.

“In 2015, he should have won The Open Championship but got beaten in a playoff and made a bogey that really cost him.

“I think he’ll be going back there with a point to prove somewhat. The golf course suits him. He’s just one of those players who can map his way around the golf course.

“Adam Scott’s always in with a chance but from there our two next best are Min Woo Lee and Lucas Herbert — two of the young guns who have taken the world alight.”

Rory McIlroy is one of the favourites to win The Open Championship. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP)

Favourites and smokeys

Gow rates Rory McIlroy as “a massive chance” to win and also talked up “the hottest player in the world” Xander Schauffele, who won last week’s Scottish Open — but warns it’s a tough task to back it up with victory at The Open.

“I like Tommy Fleetwood, who hasn’t played all that well in the last couple of years but every time he gets to The Open Championship he starts to play really well,” Gow added.

“As an absolute roughy way out there — there’s a guy called Thomas Pieters, the Belgian player who’s won six times on the European Tour, who I like.

“This is by far the toughest field to pick from because this event is always weather-related.

“The way the golf course is situated, the wind can actually switch around so you can play into the wind on the way out and into the wind on the way back. If you’re on the wrong side of the draw, it can hurt you.”

Could this be Tiger Woods’ last ever tournament?

After he skipped the US Open, the sight of Tiger Woods going around a course in Ireland in a cart didn’t fill fans with a lot of confidence about the golf legend’s hopes to extend his career.

Gow believes The Open could be one last hurrah for Woods and the 15-time major winner may well retire from golf afterwards.

Could this be the last time we see Tiger Woods at a major? (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

“I guess one of the parts of the story this week is Tiger Woods,” he said.

“This could be his last event. He got himself up for The Masters, he tried to play the PGA Championship but didn’t finish, he didn’t play the US Open because he tried to get his body right for this event.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if after this event Tiger Woods is done. Only if he made the cut, he might say, ‘It’s time for me to hang ‘em up’, because I think it takes quite an effort to get to the golf course these days.”

Every round of every Golf Major is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo Sports.