The Open / Paul Krishnamurty / 11 July 2010 /

Can Stenson rediscover his touch? Can Garcia halt his decline? Or will it be a case of cometh the Open cometh Kaymer? Paul Krishnamurty looks at five players from mainland Europe who could trouble the St Andrews leaderboard next weekend.

Martin Kaymer [36.0]
Last Five Opens: 34/80/-/-/-

One of the game's brightest prospects and a surefire future multiple major winner, Kaymer made little impact on his two previous Open efforts. He has, however, already finished second in a Dunhill Links at St Andrews so should have the tools to cope. Just a few weeks ago, he looked a winner in waiting when making the US Open top-10, and even if his last few rounds have been disappointing, he is good enough to suddenly strike a rich vein of form.

Sergio Garcia [85.0]
Last Five Opens: 38/51/2/5/5

'El Nino' is in grave danger of becoming golf's forgotten man. 18 months ago, everyone was talking about a dual with Tiger Woods for the world number one spot. Now he's down amongst the outsiders, and impossible to fancy on any recent evidence. Perhaps the Open will spark a revival. With six top-10 finishes this century, including fifth at St Andrews, this is certainly his best major, but it's hard to escape the conclusion that he blew his best ever chance at Carnoustie in 2007.

Henrik Stenson [100.00]
Last Five Opens: 13/3/mc/48/34

A former winner of elite titles at Sawgrass and in the WGC Matchplay, Stenson is another genuinely world-class performer battling to turn around a miserable run of form. He took some time to adapt to links, but third and 13th place finishes in the last two Opens suggest he's getting the hang of it. If he can rediscover his touch, Stenson is exactly the type of classy long-hitter who usually thrives at St Andrews. He barely had to use the driver when winning at Sawgrass, and I doubt he'll need the big stick too often this week either.

Alvaro Quiros [120.0]
Last Five Opens: mc/-/-/-/-

Predicting what this huge-hitting Spaniard will do from one week to the next is never straightforward, but my immediate conclusion is that his ultra-attacking style will only rarely prove suitable on a links. Predictably, Quiros missed the cut on his Open debut at Turnberry, but St Andrews will present a very different type of test. There are opportunities galore for the biggest hitters on this layout, so he could plausibly contend if mastering the complexities of scrambling around a links.

Miguel-Angel Jimenez [140.0]
Last Five Opens: 13/mc/12/41/52

With two prestigious wins this season, in the Dubai Desert Classic and Open de France, Jimenez continues to defy the ageing process. 'The Mechanic' has plenty of good efforts in majors to his name, and went well in 12th at the Masters in April. However, he's rarely looked at his best in the Open, with 3rd place in 2001 his sole top-ten. A failure to make the top-10 in eight cracks at the Dunhill Links doesn't bode well for St Andrews, either.

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