2017 is England’s chance to end 48-year wait to win the Claret Jug says Tony Jacklin, the last Englishman to win The Open

History: Tony Jacklin won the Claret Jug in 1969
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Tony Jimenez18 July 2017

Just once since 1938 has an Englishman won golf’s oldest Major on home soil, but the odds on it happening at the 2017 Open are as short as they have been for a long time.

Tony Jacklin was the last man to achieve the feat when he lifted the famous Claret Jug at Royal Lytham and St Annes in 1969. Before that, you have to go back to when Reg Whitcombe captured the prize at Royal St George’s a year before the outbreak of the Second World War.

However, 12 Englishmen occupy a place in the top 100 of the world rankings, led by former US Open champion Justin Rose at No12, the in-form Tommy Fleetwood at 14 and Arizona-based Paul Casey at 16.

Tyrrell Hatton has made rapid recent progress and occupies 24th spot, while Matthew Fitzpatrick is 40th. Last year’s US Masters winner Danny Willett is 41st and Ross Fisher 43rd.

Luke Donald (91) has failed to qualify, but fellow former world No1 Lee Westwood (57), Chris Wood (63), Andy Sullivan (66) and Ian Poulter (78) will also go into the third Major of the year attempting to become the first English winner of The Open since Nick Faldo triumphed at Muirfield in 1992.

“We’ve never had it so good in ¬England,” said 73-year-old Jacklin ahead of Thursday’s opening round at Royal Birkdale. “We’ve got as big a chance of pulling it off this year as we’ve ever had. We’ve got so many world-class players.”

In an era when there was no such thing as rankings, Jacklin - who defeated New Zealander Bob Charles by two strokes when he landed his first Major victory 48 years ago - had a brief spell when he could justifiably call himself the best player in the world as he followed up his Lytham win by romping to a seven-stroke victory in the US Open at Hazeltine the following year.

“Justin will obviously be our trump card this week,” said the man who went on to become Europe’s most ¬successful Ryder Cup captain of all time, leading teams to two victories and one tie in four matches against the Americans between 1983 and 1989.

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“But I can also see the likes of ¬Fitzpatrick and Sullivan doing well. They are the sort of steady players who could thrive on a course like Birkdale, where you need to plot your way around and show plenty of patience.”

Olympic gold medallist Rose has all the experience in the world although, about to turn 37 at the end of this month, he will believe that a solitary Major triumph — at the 2013 US Open — represents scant reward for a player of his ability.

The world No12 produced the best Open result by a British amateur since 1921 when, at the age of 17, he finished tied fourth at the Southport links where this year’s drama will unfold.

Rose hardly needs added motivation, but his painful head-to-head defeat at the hands of Ryder Cup team-mate Sergio Garcia in the final round of the US Masters in April will act as an extra spur.

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Casey, who turns 40 on Friday, has long thrived on both the PGA and European Tours, while Hatton has surged up the rankings after a string of excellent performances in the past couple of years, including a tie for fifth place in last year’s Open at Royal Troon and a share of 10th position in the 2016 US PGA Championship at Baltusrol, New Jersey.

Fleetwood will be able to count on plenty of home support when he tees it up on Thursday.

The shaggy-haired Southport ¬professional achieved his first ¬European Tour victory in the 2013 Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.

After a spell in the doldrums, he added a second crown almost four years later at the Abu Dhabi Championship before seizing his first Rolex Series title in this month’s French Open.

Fleetwood achieved his best result in a Major when he finished fourth in the US Open at Erin Hills in June and was also runner-up at the World Golf ¬Championship event in Mexico in March.

Jacklin has a particular fondness for this year’s Open venue and says the Southport course is one of his favourites.

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“It brings back such great memories for me,” he said. “I have a special feeling for Birkdale because I was named Most Valuable Player at the 1969 Ryder Cup there. I won the most points that week and, of course, it became famous for Jack Nicklaus’ last-green concession in his halved singles with me that led to the match finishing in a 16-16 tie. I also remember producing one of the best putting displays of my career when I finished third as Lee Trevino won the 1971 Open there.”

Jacklin forged a close relationship with the late, great Seve Ballesteros during his time as Ryder Cup captain and going back to Royal Birkdale as a spectator this week serves as a poignant reminder of the player he referred to as his “one-man army” in those ¬battles against the Americans.

“Birkdale was where Seve introduced himself to world golf, when he finished joint second with Jack Nicklaus in 1976 behind American Johnny Miller,” said Jacklin. “The place has got so much history. It’s a great Open venue.”

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