Open Championship 2026 favourites include two Englishman and LIV superstar 

The fourth and final major of the year is already upon us as The Open Championship takes centre-stage.

Scottie Scheffler claimed Claret Jug glory at Royal Portrush last summer, easing to a four-shot victory over Harris English.

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Scheffler is the big favourite to win yet again with the 154th Open being held at the iconic Royal Birkdale.

Rory McIlroy, the current Masters champion and Open winner in 2014, is among Scheffler’s main challengers yet again.

And there are plenty of top European names being tipped to contend on the Merseyside links.

Here are the top five favourites for The 2026 Open according to talkSPORT Bet.

Scottie Scheffler 5/1 

Scheffler has had a curious season so far.

Despite playing more brilliant golf and his worst finish being T24 all year, Scheffler’s season has been labelled a disappointment.

He won the first event of his year by blitzing the American Express in January and has since had eight top five finishes.

He has come second at The Masters, RBC Heritage, Cadillac Championship and most recently, the Travelers Championship and will be eager to return to the winner’s circle.

Scheffler was a class above the rest at Portrush last year and will hope a return to the links can bring a change in luck and earn another win.

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Rory McIlroy 7/1 

McIlroy’s pared-back schedule has seen him play just 11 events all year, including the three majors.

His back-to-back win at Augusta is, of course, the highlight of his year so far but he has also done well at the PGA Championship, the Genesis and the Dubai Invitational.

The 37-year-old will now be eyeing another major title.

He won the Open in 2014, was T4 at Birkdale when it was last held there in 2017 and came T7 at Portrush last summer.

Should McIlroy claim another Claret Jug, he will only be another US Open title away from completing the Double Grand Slam.

He has made no secrets of focusing all his energy on the majors these days and he’ll likely be a factor once again.

Tommy Fleetwood 16/1 

Local lad Fleetwood is arguably the best current player without a major title to his name.

Born just a few miles from Royal Birkdale, Fleetwood will be calling upon his insider knowledge of his home course to excel.

Fleetwood hasn’t been at his best in the majors this year – he was T33 at the Masters and missed the cut at the PGA Championship.

But he was just outside the top ten at the US Open last month and has eight other top 15 finishes this season.

He has been brilliant in the PGA Tour’s Signature Events all year and it would seem that his next big win is not far away.

He would certainly be a very popular Open champion.

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Jon Rahm 18/1 

Rahm’s brilliant form this year took a big hit as he missed the cut at Shinnecock Hills at last month’s US Open.

Outside of that disappointment, the Spaniard has been excellent.

He has two wins on LIV plus four other runner-ups and was second at the PGA Championship.

Rahm is also, of course, a two-time major champion.

He won the 2021 US Open before claiming Masters glory in 2023 and he also loves the Open, with T3, T2 and T7 finishes in the last five years.

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Matt Fitzpatrick 20/1

Fitzpatrick remains one of the most in-form players in world golf and is due another major run.

Since his US Open win in 2022, Fitzpatrick has only three top tens in the 16 majors since.

But he is flying this year with three victories on the PGA Tour plus being runner-up at The Players and the Canadian Open and was fourth last time out at the Travelers.

While he does not have the best record on links, Fitzy is now getting to grips with it having been T4 at the Scottish Open and T4 again at Portrush last summer.

England has not had an Open winner since Nick Faldo in 1992 but Fitzpatrick will be looking to change that at Birkdale.