Open Aftermath: What next for three St Andrews heroes?

General / Paul Krishnamurty / 20 July 2010 / Leave a Comment

Louis Oosthuizen celebrates his Open win

"Oosthuizen was already a man on the up, and winning the Claret Jug could be the making of him."

St Andrews witnessed one of the unlikeliest Open winners of all time at the weekend. But how can Louis Oosthuizen build on his success and what does the future hold for Lee Westwood and Rickie Fowler? Paul Krishnamurty reports.

Louis Oosthuizen

Available at over [500.00] pre-tournament, Oosthuizen ranks as one of the unlikeliest major winners of all-time. In fairness though, his triumph represented far less of a shock than the Opens won by Paul Lawrie, Ben Curtis and Todd Hamilton. At least Louis has been a fairly frequent contender in decent European Tour events over the past couple of seasons.

Moreover, just like his friend Charl Schwartzel, he's been tipped for stardom ever since his teenage days in South Africa. Oosthuizen was already a man on the up, and winning the Claret Jug could be the making of him. He drives long and putts well, which will stand him in good stead for the higher class of event for which he'll now be eligible.

More titles this year are well within range, especially in Europe, but for the next few weeks I would steer a wide berth. Just as Graeme McDowell has taken a few weeks to find his range following the euphoria of his US Open win, Louis could be forgiven for taking his foot off the pedal and enjoying the moment. This week's outing in Scandinavia will be particularly difficult, and he will do extremely well to outscore this week's matchbet opponent, the consistent KJ Choi.

Recommended Bet: Back KJ Choi to beat Louis Oosthuizen @ [1.9] in tournament matchbet

Lee Westwood

With top-3 finishes in four of the last five majors, Lee must be wondering what he has to do to break his duck. His run is reminiscent of Colin Montgomerie's spate of near-misses, when he too was European golf's leading candidate. Like Colin, some have been down to an unconvincing finish, some to the fact he's run into a player in unbeatable form. Either way, players only get so many chances before the next generation comes of age. On that score, competition has never been tougher.

One accolade that does look well within range is for Westwood to retain his Race to Dubai crown. Last week's efforts lifted him into second place, only E150,000 behind McDowell, and well clear of last year's closest rivals; Casey, Kaymer and McIlroy. One more decent win between now and November, and he's sure to head to the Dubai finale in first or second place. I doubt we'll see [4.2] for much longer.

Recommended Bet: Back Lee Westwood to win the Race to Dubai @ [4.2]

Rickie Fowler

Speaking of the next generation, one of the most eyecatching performances at St Andrews came from Rickie Fowler. After opening with a disastrous 79 on the 'easy' first day, Fowler shot 67/71/67 around the Old Course to finish 14th. That marks an outstanding Open debut for an American rookie with less than one year's PGA Tour experience.

Long-term, I'm taking big prices about future major success, because the sky really is the limit. His form in the States is outstanding, reminiscent of Phil Mickelson's early days. More immediately, he's stayed in Europe for an extra week to play the Scandinavian Masters, for which he rates a [21.0] chance. We've already seen with Luke Donald and Y E Yang this year how PGA Tour form reads better on the European Tour, so this could be the week Rickie wins his first professional title.

Recommended Bet: Back Rickie Fowler to win the Scandinavian Masters @ [21.0]