CARNOUSTIE, Scotland (AP) - The Latest from the British Open (all times local):
5:15 p.m.
Dustin Johnson won another trophy on Tuesday without even hitting a shot.
Johnson was presented the Mark H. McCormack Award for being No. 1 in the world ranking for the most weeks last year. Johnson reached No. 1 with his victory in the Genesis Open at Riviera on Feb. 19 and kept it the rest of the year.
He is in good shape to win it again in 2018. Johnson already has been No. 1 for all but four weeks that Justin Thomas occupied the top spot.
Johnson still has a long way to go to catch Tiger Woods, who won the award 14 times.
Johnson already has won twice this season on the PGA Tour, at the Sentry Tournament of Champions and FedEx St. Jude Classic.
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4:20 p.m.
Bryson DeChambeau has always done things his own way, including playing clubs that are all the same length and using a protractor to help him read greens.
But when DeChambeau and his caddie started measuring a hill on the green with some sort of a level during a practice round Tuesday, Tiger Woods had seen enough.
“It’s downhill,” Woods yelled across the green with a smile as DeChambeau and his caddie spent several minutes taking careful measurements.
DeChambeau’s playing style is unique, but so far successful. He is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, and finished tied for 25th at the U.S. Open. He is playing in his second British Open, missing the cut last year at Royal Birkdale.
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2:40 p.m.
Justin Thomas is one of those players who doesn’t want to hold a major championship trophy until he’s won it.
He made an exception with the claret jug.
Thomas was staying in a house with Zach Johnson two years ago at Troon, right before Johnson had to return it from his British Open victory in 2015 at St. Andrews. Thomas not only held it, he drank wine from it.
But he has reason to believe there won’t be a jinx. He also held the Wanamaker Trophy before winning the PGA Championship.
Thomas recalls being about 9 years old when he held the trophy belonging to 2001 PGA champion David Toms. Thomas’ father was on the PGA of America board, and Thomas says he saw the trophy at a function. He asked Toms for a picture, an autograph and then says Toms let him hold it.
Thomas won the PGA Championship last year at Quail Hollow for his first major.
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1:45 p.m.
Justin Rose’s best finish at a British Open remains his tie for fourth at Royal Birkdale in 1998, when he was an amateur. He doesn’t understand why.
Rose says “I’m kind of comfortable with how bad my record’s been here … and I don’t feel like there’s a reason for it either.”
The thing is, Rose feels comfortable playing links golf. He won the Scottish Open in 2014 on a links course at Royal Aberdeen and has done well at the Dunhill Links Championship, played at St. Andrews, Kingsbarns and Carnoustie every year on the European Tour.
Rose, the Olympic champion and 2013 U.S. Open winner, is ranked No. 3 and can get to No. 1 for the first time if he wins at Carnoustie this week.
He says “I’ve really said that I want to get to world No. 1 by winning golf tournaments. There could be opportunities in the next six months - I could get there by finishing seventh somewhere because there’s always permutations - but I want to get to world No. 1 by winning.”
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12:55 p.m.
Tiger Woods doesn’t feel as old at the oldest championship in golf.
Woods is back at the British Open for the first time in three years, and he believes his confidence and his chances of winning are getting better as the year goes on. He missed the last two Opens while recovering from multiple back surgeries.
The three-time champion has missed links golf.
Woods says the British Open offers him his best chance to win because it’s the next one on the calendar. Over time, he also believes it’s his best major because links golf requires as much thinking as raw power possessed by players nearly half his age.
He points to Tom Watson and Greg Norman playing in the final group while in their 50s.
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