British Open 2012: Full Coverage Leading Up To Tournament

British Open Odds 2012: Tiger Woods Remains Favorite Entering First Round

With the 2012 British Open ready to tee off Thursday, Tiger Woods remains the favorite.

Woods entered the week as the initial odds-on favorite at Royal Lytham, and the sharps have not changed their stance on the world's most recognizable golfer. His odds to win the Claret Jug this weekend have risen slightly, though, from 8-1 from 13-2 as of Wednesday evening.

Following Woods are a trio of golfers from the United Kingdom, as Lee Westwood (14-1), Luke Donald (14-1) and Rory McIlroy (16-1) will all look win their first British Open, with two-time winner Padraig Harrington (18-1) rounding out the oddsmakers' top five.

Here's the latest odds to win at The Open Championship:

Tiger Woods 8-1

Lee Westwood 14-1

Luke Donald 14-1

Rory McIlroy 16-1

Padraig Harrington 18-1

Francesco Molinari 30-1

Graeme McDowell 30-1

Justin Rose 30-1

Martin Kaymer 33-1

Phil Mickelson 33-1

Sergio Garcia 33-1

Louis Oosthuizen 35-1

Adam Scott 40-1

Dustin Johnson 40-1

Ernie Els 40-1

Ian Poulter 40-1

Rickie Fowler 40-1

Jason Dufner 40-1

Bubba Watson 40-1

Hunter Mahan 40-1

Jim Furyk 40-1

Matt Kuchar 40-1

Peter Hanson 50-1

Charl Schwartzel 50-1

Paul Lawrie 50-1

Fredrik Jacobson 50-1

Geoff Ogilvy 50-1

George Coetzee 50-1

Nick Watney 50-1

Nicolas Colsaerts 50-1

Ross Fisher 50-1

For the latest odds, check out Oddsshark.

For more on the tournament, stick with our 2012 British Open StoryStream. For more from around the world of golf, head over to SB Nation's golf hub page.

British Open 2012: Tee Times And Groupings For Thursday

The 2012 British Open tees off on Thursday, but it'll be a really early morning for those Americans who want to catch the action from Royal Lytham and St. Annes live. The first and second day British Open pairings are set, but what groups are really worth watching?

The most obvious must-see group for the avid golf fan includes both 2012 Masters champion Bubba Watson and world No. 3 Lee Westwood, still in search of his first major. It goes off at 4:20 a.m. Eastern, or not too early. And if you want to catch Tiger Woods, you're in luck: he tees off with Justin Rose and Sergio Garcia just 22 minutes later at 4:42 a.m. EDT.

Defending British Open champion Darren Clarke is in a compelling group with Ernie Els and Zach Johnson (both of whom have major titles), and that threesome goes off at 4:09 a.m., which isn't that much earlier than Watson and Westwood.

But if you want a good night's sleep on Wednesday, you'll still be able to catch a couple of premier groups. Rory McIlroy, Louis Oosthuizen and Keegan Bradley form one triumvirate of players with majors at 9:21 a.m., and Phil Mickelson headlines a group with world No. 1 Luke Donald and U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy that tees off at 9:43 a.m. EDT.

Of course, if you want to wake up earlier, or not go to sleep at all, there will be plenty of action for you beginning in the wee hours of Thursday morning. Here's the full listing of 2012 British Open first round groupings and tee times.

1:30 a.m. ET -- Barry Lane, James Driscoll, Garth Mulroy
1:41 a.m. ET -- Matthew Baldwin, Adilson Da Silva, Tadahiro Takayama
1:52 a.m. ET -- Rafa Echenique, Kodai Ichihara, John Huh
2:03 a.m. ET -- Sandy Lyle, Todd Hamilton, Mark Calcavecchia
2:14 a.m. ET -- Alejandro Canizares, Jeev Milkha Singh, Greg Chalmers
2:25 a.m. ET -- John Daly, Chad Campbell, Michael Hoey
2:36 a.m. ET -- Thongchai Jaidee, Justin Leonard, Simon Khan
2:47 a.m. ET -- David Duval, Raphael Jacquelin, Miguel Angel Jimenez
2:58 a.m. ET -- Stephen Ames, Robert Rock, Kyle Stanley
3:09 a.m. ET -- Stewart Cink, Rafael Cabrera-Bello, Johnson Wagner
3:20 a.m. ET -- Jamie Donaldson, Bill Haas, Y.E. Yang
3:31 a.m. ET -- Davis Love III, Tim Clark, Paul Lawrie
3:42 a.m. ET -- Adam Scott, Alan Dunbar (A), Matt Kuchar
3:58 a.m. ET -- Vijay Singh, Nick Watney, Ian Poulter
4:09 a.m. ET -- Darren Clarke, Ernie Els, Zach Johnson
4:20 a.m. ET -- Lee Westwood, Yoshinori Fujimoto, Bubba Watson
4:31 a.m. ET -- Dustin Johnson, Graeme Mcdowell, Hiroyuki Fujita
4:42 a.m. ET -- Tiger Woods, Justin Rose, Sergio Garcia
4:53 a.m. ET -- Ryo Ishikawa, Martin Kaymer, Tom Watson
5:04 a.m. ET -- Thomas Bjorn, Aaron Baddeley, Charl Schwartzel
5:15 a.m. ET -- Jason Dufner, Martin Laird, Kevin Na
5:26 a.m. ET -- James Morrison, Daniel Chopra, Joost Luiten
5:37 a.m. ET -- Thorbjorn Olesen, Troy Matteson, Thomas Aiken
5:48 a.m. ET -- Brad Kennedy, Mardan Mamat, Steven Tiley
5:59 a.m. ET -- Warren Bennett, Aaron Townsend, Grant Veenstra
6:10 a.m. ET -- Dale Whitnell, Sam Walker, Elliot Saltman
6:31 a.m. ET -- Bob Estes, Steven O'Hara, Brendan Jones
6:42 a.m. ET -- Juvic Pagunsan, Scott Pinckney, Nicholas Cullen
6:53 a.m. ET -- Steven Alker, Lee Slattery, Russ Cochran
7:04 a.m. ET -- Tom Lehman, Pablo Larrazabal, Greg Owen
7:15 a.m. ET -- Marcel Siem, George Coetzee, Chez Reavie
7:26 a.m. ET -- Marcus Fraser, Lucas Glover, Gregory Havret
7:37 a.m. ET -- Charles Howell III, Paul Broadhurst, Richard Sterne
7:48 a.m. ET -- Carl Pettersson, K.T. Kim, Gary Woodland
7:59 a.m. ET -- Ben Curtis, Paul Casey, Trevor Immelman
8:10 a.m. ET -- Robert Karlsson, Mark Wilson, Branden Grace
8:21 a.m. ET -- Harris English, Simon Dyson, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano
8:32 a.m. ET -- Angel Cabrera, K.J. Choi, Ross Fisher
8:43 a.m. ET -- Jonathan Byrd, Sang-Moon Bae, Alvaro Quiros
8:59 a.m. ET -- Nicolas Colsaerts, Hunter Mahan, John Senden
9:10 a.m. ET -- Bo Van Pelt, Francesco Molinari, Toshinori Muto
9:21 a.m. ET -- Rory McIlroy, Louis Oosthuizen, Keegan Bradley
9:32 a.m. ET -- Rickie Fowler, Padraig Harrington, Manuel Trappel (A)
9:43 a.m. ET -- Luke Donald, Phil Mickelson, Geoff Ogilvy
9:54 a.m. ET -- Steve Stricker, Toru Taniguchi, Anders Hansen
10:05 a.m. ET -- Peter Hanson, Retief Goosen, Robert Allenby
10:16 a.m. ET -- Jim Furyk, Koumei Oda, Fredrik Jacobson
10:27 a.m. ET -- Marc Leishman, Brandt Snedeker, Alexander Noren
10:38 a.m. ET -- Andres Romero, Jbe Kruger, Richie Ramsay
10:49 a.m. ET -- Ted Potter Jr, Ian Keenan, Andrew Georgiou
11:00 a.m. ET -- Troy Kelly, Morten Orum Madsen, Anirban Lahiri
11:11 a.m. ET -- Prayad Marksaeng, Justin Hicks, Ashley Hall

For more on the tournament, stick with our 2012 British Open StoryStream. For more from around the world of golf, head over to SB Nation's golf hub page.

ESPN’s Wall-To-Wall British Open Coverage: A Chris Berman-Free Zone

ESPN cranks it up for the British Open. But, sorry, Chris Berman fans (all three of you): Boomer is not a member of the Open Championship broadcast team.

No Slow Play Allowed At British Open -- Unless, Well, You Know

British Open 2012: Live Streaming Option Available Starting Thursday

Across the pond, the 2012 British Open begins in the early hours on Thursday, and if you don't have a television available to catch ESPN's broadcast, there are a few other options to follow the tournament's action. ESPN's online streaming component at WatchESPN will begin its coverage at 3:30 a.m. EDT, and that's certainly a great option for the diehard fans out there.

The first wave of ESPN3 coverage covers just Holes 9-11, but 30 minutes later, BBC's coverage will be available on the streaming service. There will also be Spanish language coverage and a focus on the first and eighteenth holes.

Now, if ESPN3 is not an option, either, the next best choice would be to download the Open Championship's official mobile app. It offers a three-hole live stream, live scoring updates and video highlights among its various features.

For more on the tournament, stick with our 2012 British Open StoryStream. For more from around the world of golf, head over to SB Nation's golf hub page.

British Open 2012: Rory McIlroy Ready To Play Without Pressure

We already know that Tiger, Phil and Bubba will garner a heavy following from the British Open gallery and that Luke Donald and Lee Westwood will be monitored closely by the local fans and media.

So what does that mean for golf's budding superstar ,Rory McIlroy?

A chance to relax, more or less, as he prepares for golf's third major of the season.

"It's been lovely just going about my business," McIlroy said during a media session Tuesday. "It's been nice to sort of prepare and there's definitely not the madness that was going on last year."

Already a one-time major winner, McIlroy, 23, seems to prefer it that way.

After a disappointing 25th place finish the 2011 British Open, McIlroy struggled to compete as the center of attention, especially on a quirky Royal St. George's track that brings with it unique weather conditions.

Since then in major championship play, McIlroy has finished 64th in the 2011 PGA Championship, 40th in the 2012 Masters, and didn't even see the weekend in June's U.S. Open.

Still, there's no doubt McIlroy will be one of the few golfers we're all tracking on the leaderboard beginning Thursday morning, but the raw pressure some of his competitors will be facing will likely put the Northern Ireland native at ease as he looks to capture the Claret Jug at Royal Lytham.

Rory McIlroy Whistles A Different Tune About Foul-Weather Golf

Rory McIlroy has made no secret of his dislike for playing golf in conditions better suited for American football. This year, though, the young man from Northern Ireland believes he can conquer the wet weather expected at Royal Lytham.

British Open 2012: Tiger Woods Plans Aggressive Attack

Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelson plan to play it safe at the British Open. Tiger Woods, well, not so much.

British Open 2012: R&A Chief Defends Conditions At Royal Lytham

Guess what, boys? It's gonna rain during the British Open and the rough at Royal Lytham will only get rougher.

2012 British Open Tee Times And Groupings: Tiger Woods Paired With Justin Rose, Sergio Garcia

The British Open gets underway on Thursday, and just like the other majors, the first and second day pairings have been set up with a select few loaded groups for everyone's viewing pleasure. Lee Westwood, the No. 3 golfer in the world and arguably the most accomplished active player to never win a major, is paired with Yoshinori Fujimoto and Masters champion Bubba Watson for the first two days. Going off the tee 22 minutes after them on Thursday is Tiger Woods, along with Justin Rose and Sergio Garcia.

Reigning champion Darren Clarke is in a group with fellow major winners Ernie Els and Zach Johnson. Rory McIlroy is also in a group with two fellow major winners, Louis Oosthuizen and Keegan Bradley. Phil Mickelson is in a high profile group as well, along with former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy and world No. 1 Luke Donald.

1:19 a.m. ET -- Barry Lane, James Driscoll
1:30 a.m. ET -- Richard Finch, Garth Mulroy
1:41 a.m. ET -- Matthew Baldwin, Adilson Da Silva, Tadahiro Takayama
1:52 a.m. ET -- Rafa Echenique, Kodai Ichihara, John Huh
2:03 a.m. ET -- Sandy Lyle, Todd Hamilton, Mark Calcavecchia
2:14 a.m. ET -- Alejandro Canizares, Jeev Milkha Singh, Greg Chalmers
2:25 a.m. ET -- John Daly, Chad Campbell, Michael Hoey
2:36 a.m. ET -- Thongchai Jaidee, Justin Leonard, Simon Khan
2:47 a.m. ET -- David Duval, Raphael Jacquelin, Miguel Angel Jimenez
2:58 a.m. ET -- Stephen Ames, Robert Rock, Kyle Stanley
3:09 a.m. ET -- Stewart Cink, Rafael Cabrera-Bello, Johnson Wagner
3:20 a.m. ET -- Jamie Donaldson, Bill Haas, Ye Yang
3:31 a.m. ET -- Davis Love III, Tim Clark, Paul Lawrie
3:42 a.m. ET -- Adam Scott, Alan Dunbar (A), Matt Kuchar
3:58 a.m. ET -- Vijay Singh, Nick Watney, Ian Poulter
4:09 a.m. ET -- Darren Clarke, Ernie Els, Zach Johnson
4:20 a.m. ET -- Lee Westwood, Yoshinori Fujimoto, Bubba Watson
4:31 a.m. ET -- Dustin Johnson, Graeme Mcdowell, Hiroyuki Fujita
4:42 a.m. ET -- Tiger Woods, Justin Rose, Sergio Garcia
4:53 a.m. ET -- Ryo Ishikawa, Martin Kaymer, Tom Watson
5:04 a.m. ET -- Thomas Bjorn, Aaron Baddeley, Charl Schwartzel
5:15 a.m. ET -- Jason Dufner, Martin Laird, Kevin Na
5:26 a.m. ET -- James Morrison, Daniel Chopra, Joost Luiten
5:37 a.m. ET -- Thorbjorn Olesen, Troy Matteson, Thomas Aiken
5:48 a.m. ET -- Brad Kennedy, Mardan Mamat, Steven Tiley
5:59 a.m. ET -- Warren Bennett, Aaron Townsend, Grant Veenstra
6:10 a.m. ET -- Dale Whitnell, Sam Walker, Elliot Saltman
6:31 a.m. ET -- Bob Estes, Steven O'Hara, Brendan Jones
6:42 a.m. ET -- Juvic Pagunsan, Scott Pinckney, Nicholas Cullen
6:53 a.m. ET -- Steven Alker, Lee Slattery, Russ Cochran
7:04 a.m. ET -- Tom Lehman, Pablo Larrazabal, Greg Owen
7:15 a.m. ET -- Marcel Siem, George Coetzee, Chez Reavie
7:26 a.m. ET -- Marcus Fraser, Lucas Glover, Gregory Havret
7:37 a.m. ET -- Charles Howell III, Paul Broadhurst, Richard Sterne
7:48 a.m. ET -- Carl Pettersson, K.T. Kim, Gary Woodland
7:59 a.m. ET -- Ben Curtis, Paul Casey, Trevor Immelman
8:10 a.m. ET -- Robert Karlsson, Mark Wilson, Branden Grace
8:21 a.m. ET -- Harris English, Simon Dyson, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano
8:32 a.m. ET -- Angel Cabrera, K.J. Choi, Ross Fisher
8:43 a.m. ET -- Jonathan Byrd, Sang-Moon Bae, Alvaro Quiros
8:59 a.m. ET -- Nicolas Colsaerts, Hunter Mahan, John Senden
9:10 a.m. ET -- Bo Van Pelt, Francesco Molinari, Toshinori Muto
9:21 a.m. ET -- Rory McIlroy, Louis Oosthuizen, Keegan Bradley
9:32 a.m. ET -- Rickie Fowler, Padraig Harrington, Manuel Trappel (A)
9:43 a.m. ET -- Luke Donald, Phil Mickelson, Geoff Ogilvy
9:54 a.m. ET -- Steve Stricker, Toru Taniguchi, Anders Hansen
10:05 a.m. ET -- Peter Hanson, Retief Goosen, Robert Allenby
10:16 a.m. ET -- Jim Furyk, Koumei Oda, Fredrik Jacobson
10:27 a.m. ET -- Marc Leishman, Brandt Snedeker, Alexander Noren
10:38 a.m. ET -- Andres Romero, Jbe Kruger, Richie Ramsay
10:49 a.m. ET -- Ted Potter Jr, Ian Keenan, Andrew Georgiou
11:00 a.m. ET -- Troy Kelly, Morten Orum Madsen, Anirban Lahiri
11:11 a.m. ET -- Prayad Marksaeng, Justin Hicks, Ashley Hall

For more on the tournament, stick with our 2012 British Open StoryStream. For more from around the world of golf, head over to SB Nation's golf hub page.

British Open 2012: Royal Lytham & St. Annes Is No Walk In The Park

While sometimes deemed 'unconventional' by some golf purists, the site of the 2012 Open Championship offers both a testing and unique challenge for the best players in the world.

British Open 2012: Tom Watson Gears Up For Another Shot At Glory

As any golf fan worth his or her weight in gold will know, Tom Watson loves himself some British Open golf. This week, the 62-year-old Kansas native prepares for what might be another memorable run at Royal Lytham & St. Annes and a sixth British Open championship.

Three years ago at 59 years old, Watson all but made history by falling just short of winning his sixth Open title; however, a shaky putter in regulation ultimately spelled the end of his magical Turnberry run and allowed Stewart Cink to win his first major. Watson's experience playing overseas on the grandest of stages always makes him a strong contender for the title no matter his age.

Watson attributes his continued success over the years to maintaining a competitive edge, which he hopes to bring with him to England this week for the 141st British Open.

“We play this game on a thin edge a lot of times, where it’s between being confident and not being confident," Watson said. "And whenever you let that doubt in there, it takes you below that edge. You need that edge."

British Open Odds 2012: Tiger Woods Favored At Royal Lytham

It's been four years since Tiger Woods won a major, but bookmakers have him as the odds-on favorite to take home the 2012 British Open.

Woods is listed at 13-2 odds to win this week's tournament, meaning that oddsmakers give him nearly twice as good a shot at winning as Brits Luke Donald and Lee Westwood -- who are tied with the second highest odds at 12-1 -- have. Although Woods' major drought is nearly half a decade long, his three wins this year have him tops on the PGA Tour and there's no reason to believe he can't continue his strong play into a major and bring back his fourth Claret Jug.

Here's the latest odds to win at The Open Championship:

Tiger Woods 13/2
Lee Westwood 12/1
Luke Donald 12/1
Padraig Harrington 16/1
Rory McIlroy 16/1
Justin Rose 25/1
Sergio Garcia 28/1
Dustin Johnson 33/1
Francesco Molinari 33/1
Graeme McDowell 33/1
Martin Kaymer 33/1
Phil Mickelson 33/1
Rickie Fowler 35/1
Adam Scott 40/1
Ernie Els 40/1
Hunter Mahan 40/1
Ian Poulter 40/1
Jason Dufner 40/1
Jim Furyk 40/1
Louis Oosthuizen 40/1
Matt Kuchar 40/1
Steve Stricker 40/1
Bubba Watson 50/1
Charl Schwartzel 50/1
Jason Day 50/1
Matteo Manassero 50/1
K.J. Choi 66/1
Nick Watney 66/1
Nicolas Colsaerts 66/1
Peter Hanson 66/1
Ross Fisher 66/1
Alexander Noren 80/1
Fredrik Jacobson 80/1
Henrik Stenson 80/1
Retief Goosen 80/1
Thomas Bjorn 80/1
Zach Johnson 80/1

For the latest odds, check out Oddsshark.

For more on the tournament, stick with our 2012 British Open StoryStream. For more from around the world of golf, head over to SB Nation's golf hub page.

British Open 2012: Tiger Woods Calls Royal Lytham Roughs 'Almost Unplayable'

Tiger Woods is a huge fan of the site of the 2012 British Open, Royal Lytham, according to The Guardian. But the rainiest summer "in living memory" has made missing the fairway a terrifying proposition for even the world's former most-feared golfer.

"Oh my God," was the instant Woods reaction when asked about the rough. "In some places it is almost unplayable."

[...]

"If it's calm, we can shoot some good scores," he continued. "If it's wet, lush, you've got to be more aggressive. Have to see how it's playing. Some years it's fast and some it's not. The two years I played it was quick. The ball was travelling quite a bit. They've made a few changes in tee boxes, lengthened a few holes but most of the bunker adjustments were made the last time."

Woods played a practice round Sunday because the forecast calls for some heavy rains Monday through Wednesday, meaning he might not get another chance to play before the Open. The tournament sounds like it will be loads of fun for golfers like Woods who have struggled to hit fairways consistently in majors.

For more on the tournament, stick with our 2012 British Open StoryStream. For more from around the world of golf, head over to SB Nation's golf hub page.

British Open 2012: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson Eager To Play Royal Lytham

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson can't wait for the British Open to start.

Phil Mickelson Hopes 2012 British Open Features Abysmal Weather

The British Open, more than any tournament on the American PGA Tour schedule, is regularly determined by the weather. If the weather gets nasty for part of the tournament -- which is almost inevitable -- a combination of luck and player adaptability will be the keys to victory for the winner. Phil Mickelson, who has yet to win the Open Championship, is hoping for some extreme conditions.

"I don't know where that happened along the way, whether it was last year or whether it was five, 10 years ago." But he says he started "to really enjoy the tough weather conditions and I hope that it's that way next week, too."

Mickelson wasn't able to catch Darren Clarke in last year's British Open but put together a solid and consistent set of four rounds, finishing in second place at the end of a very rainy and windy tournament. He's currently in contention at the Scottish Open, where he's three strokes back of Francesco Molinari, but the players haven't faced fierce winds yet at Inverness.

For more on the tournament, stick with our 2012 British Open StoryStream. For more from around the world of golf, head over to SB Nation's golf hub page.

British Open 2012: Pressure Mounting For Luke Donald, Lee Westwood?

Tiger Woods may be the odds-on favorite to win the 2012 British Open at Royal Latham, but he may not enter golf's third major as the player facing the most pressure.

As Luke Donald and Lee Westwood, the No. 1 and No. 3 ranked players in the world, respectively, prepare for next weekend (Donald is currently competing in the 2012 Scottish Open, while Westwood is taking the weekend off) both golfers know that English golf fans will be paying particular attention to both of their country's top stars from the moment they arrive in Lancashire.

At some point, both have to win a major, and with each major that either does not win, the pressure builds.

Donald, to his credit, has been candid on the mounting anxiety he's felt as one of the world's top golfers yet to win a major. As the top-ranked golfer for 52 weeks now, Donald has yet to finish higher than third in a major championship. Westwood has been agonizing close in a number of majors, finishing second or third in all four of the majors at least once since 2008.

Just like Andy Murray faces mounting pressure to win Wimbledon, both Donald and Westwood know that expectations are high for them heading into next weekend's Open Championship. With this major being hosted in England, those expectations are heigtened even further, as no Englishman has won the Open on English soil since Tony Jacklin in 1969.

So while we Americans focus and analyze every shot from Tiger and Phil next weekend, just know that the entire United Kingdom will be closely monitoring Luke and Lee.

British Open 2012: Count Your Clubs At Royal Lytham

The British Open's opening hole at Royal Lytham & St Annes may be a par 3, but it's no gimme. Just ask Ian Woosnam.

Bubba Watson Out Until British Open, But What Of Webb Simpson?

Bubba Watson finds his game -- just in time for his next vacation.

Tiger Woods Favored To Win British Open As His Stock Drops At Home

Tiger Woods floundered in his final two rounds at last week's U.S. Open, but he's the oddsmakers' favorite to hoist the hardware next month at the Brits' national championship.