Majors are expected to be difficult, but they're not supposed to be a joke. Van de Velde, who triple-bogeyed the 18th at Carnoustie in 1999 then lost to Paul Lawrie in a playoff, had such an awful experience that it's tainted the golf course. The host of the British Open should be known for its champions, not its losers.

In an effort to reshape the image of the Angus County landmark, which sits in a town whose golf history dates back to 1527, the Royal & Ancient has gone easy on the 156 competitors preparing to walk the grounds of the links course near the sandy shores of the North Sea.

Golfers who tested Carnoustie over the weekend reported the roughs gone, the fairways wide and their breathing relieved.

"The rough was very thick. You were having a hard time getting it to the green," Steve Stricker said, recalling the "Carnastiness" of eight years ago. "Now, the rough is not bad at all. You can actually aim at the rough on some of the holes."

Retief Goosen, who finished 10th in 1999 with an 11-over par, smiled on Sunday when he assessed the 2007 British Open Championship course: "You have nothing silly like last time," he remarked.

Although the golfers will still have to contend with the Scottish weather (the forecast calls for temperatures in the high 50s and intermittent light rain through the weekend), most will have the opportunity to put up low scores - something they could only babble about wistfully at Oakmont last month. Handicapping the Open Championship then means narrowing in on golfers who can reach the greens in regulation on a course that measures 7,421 yards and then finish their putts. We all know one guy who fits that tee.

"It's playing great," Tiger Woods said after a practice round on Sunday. "It's really nice, really fair."

What the Royal & Ancient has done is obvious. Carnoustie, like any course, wants to be associated with Woods, not Van de Velde, and it's been set up to unravel that way. The course has been laid out like fresh kill; Tiger just has to go out there and get it.

Questions still surround Woods' state of mind, however. He's four weeks into fatherhood, so there's a chance he will be distracted or overtired as he aims to win the Claret Jug for a third straight year. If he isn't as sharp as usual, another long shot could follow Zach Johnson and Angel Cabrera as a surprise champion of a 2007 major. Or, one of the broad selection of golfers who figure to play well under par this week could emerge. That possibility is perhaps the most significant reason why the Field has overtaken Woods as the favored betting option.

With 118 players lumped in, golf bettors almost have to wager on the Field, especially when it includes the likes of K.J. Choi, one of the hottest players on the PGA Tour. At British Open odds of 11/4, the Field is a slight favorite over Woods (3/1). The other 37 individuals who will enter Thursday's first round with a betting line beside their names range from 12/1 second choice Phil Mickelson to Chad Campbell at 100/1.

"I have a feeling that this Open could be very open, but I have an 'unless'," Thomas Bjorn (80/1) said during play at the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond on Sunday. "It could be very open unless Tiger has spent the last couple of weeks how he normally does before a major. If he has, then he could blow everybody away again."

For one competitor, Carnoustie has gone too far in its reinvention. "A bit too easy," is how David Frost described the course. "I think the fairways are very wide and there's no rough," he said. "So, it's a little bit of a total opposite to what it was in '99."

And that's by design, created with both a dream outcome and the memory of a nightmare in mind.

Random Thoughts on the Week in Sports

• A couple of those British Open long shots worth considering? Lee Westwood (50/1), whose recent visits to a putting doctor have had immediate results, and slump-ridden Mike Weir (80/1), who has shown signs that he's capable of turning around a flaming-out career.
   
• If you're going to lose your 10,000th game, you may as well make it ugly. The Phillies got whacked around real good by Albert Pujols and the Cardinals in the historic 10-2 loss on Sunday. Philadelphia is still one game over .500 (46-45), but, man, all the hype over this milestone has left the players in that clubhouse with the body language of a last-place squad.
   
• Who needs the wild card for excitement? The races in every division except the AL East look like they will be close heading into September.
   
• With the MLB trade deadline approaching, rumors are heating up about where Ken Griffey Jr. will be dealt. Seattle is the romantic's choice, but the Mariners need another starter (maybe San Francisco's Matt Morris) if they're going to catch the Angels. The Mets have coveted Griffey for years and have prospects they can give up.

THE UNDERCARD

• That’s upsetting
  No matter how hard he tried Friday, David Beckham still had trouble spitting out the word "soccer". Interesting symmetry since most of the country has difficulty saying they care for it.
   
• Proof of disorder in the universe
  Gary Sheffield opens his mouth and we all still listen.
   

 

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