Oosthuizen Maintains His Lead, But For How Long?

Louis Oosthuizen has been in this position before, entering a Sunday with the lead in a Major tournament. The issue is that he has a bit of a history when it comes to falling apart on the final day.

Will That History Repeat Itself, Or Can Louis Rise Up?

Will Louis Oosthuizen finally rise up on Sunday? #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/wPI9O7GFXh

— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) July 16, 2021

Oosthuzien certainly hopes to rewrite history. However his recent woes in 2021 alone are enough to indicate a high probability that the man that has been atop the leaderboard at the conclusion of each of the first three rounds may not be the one to claim the Claret Jug.

While it is undeniable that Oosthuzien is having a great year and playing good golf, it’s hard to ignore the fact that he’s finished as the runner-up in two of the other Major tournaments in the US Open and the PGA Championship, and he has a bit of a reputation for “choking” under pressure. Whether you consider these recent finishes to be choking or simply not stepping up to capture the moment, at the end of the day the results speak for themselves.

Will It Even Be Up To Louis?

One of the most impressive iron players I’ve ever seen 😍 what do you see in @collin_morikawa swing? #TheOpen #colinmorikawa #golf #golfswing pic.twitter.com/5YR8efEUpw

— Peter Finch (@PeterFinchGolf) July 17, 2021

Colin Morikawa will have something to say about it, as he sits just one shot off the lead at -11 going into the final round of the tournament. Not enough attention has been given to Morikawa thus far. Instead all eyes have been on the leader, or on the man immediately behind Morikawa on the score card.

.@JordanSpieth‘s history at #TheOpen since 2015:

🔘 Score to par: -37 (1st)
🔘 Rounds in 60s: 14 (1st)
🔘 Rounds inside top 10: 13 (1st)
🔘 Birdies or better: 95 (1st)
🔘 Total one-putts: 159 (1st)

😳 pic.twitter.com/Nheu5L18Yy

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 17, 2021

Jordan Spieth also sits within striking distance at -9, just three shots back. Though if momentum is something you believe in, it does not appear to be on his side given the back to back bogeys Spieth posted to close out his third round of play.

John Rahm Live Bet Has Some Value

John Rahm has been playing beautiful golf in recent weeks, coming off a victory at the US Open. He currently sits -7, five shots behind leader Louis Oosthuzien. Five strokes is a sizeable difference entering the final day, though crazier comebacks have happened.

LIVE BET: RAHM 18/1 $6 to win $108

Will The Weather Make An Appearance?

Conditions on the course have remained relatively good which has allowed for some surprisingly low scores to be posted, especially for the first and second rounds. Day three was a bit more challenging, and average scores increased.

Going into Sunday I expect this trend to continue, which means making up five shots is not an impossibility for Rahm. While it might be difficult for him to post a super low number, perhaps playing consistent and allowing others to fall apart is in play here.

My Bias Always Favors My Bets

Much like any true gambler, my bias will forever favor my bets. In this case, that means I’ll be cheering for Colin Morikawa to walk away with the Claret Jug. Plus if the unthinkable happens and Rahm makes a run, I’ll be all smiles about that as well.