Who Needs a Win the Most at the 2026 Open Championship?

In the blink of an eye, the men's major season has reached its final stop. A number of players will head to Royal Birkdale for next week’s Open Championship hoping to cap off their season with a major championship win. For Rory McIlroy, Aaron Rai and Wyndham Clark, 2026 has been a year that elevated their stature in the game. Another victory would cement Rory as the unassailable best European of all time, Wyndham as an emerging generational major championship player, and Aaron as one of golf's great late bloomers.

There are a handful of players with varying stakes on the line, and joining that group as a major champion would dramatically change the outlook on their season.

Lost Year

These two players are in a class with Rory, where a year without a major victory is an undoubted loss of a season. They play to the highest standard in the game, and this year’s Open will feel even heavier for …

Scottie Scheffler

It’s been a season of close calls for the 30-year-old, including at the Masters and the U.S. Open, where he contended late on Sunday. Scottie has set a ridiculously high standard, and at the onset of 2026, after his dominant 2025, the chance of a no-major year seemed somewhat inconceivable. The odds say he won't get it done (narrowly), and it's a reminder of how fickle the sport can be and how challenging it is to get to the top of the mountain at a major. He now heads to what's widely considered the fairest Open Championship test as the defending Champion Golfer of the Year.

Jon Rahm

The talented Spaniard is on the verge of dropping out of this top tier. The Open will be the 15th major championship since his last win, and since his move to LIV, Rahm has taken a step back with his performance at majors. With that said, Rahm played beautifully at the PGA Championship, and he’s also in the field at this week's Scottish Open. His 3-over 73 placed him T-137 after the first round, but it’s a better major tune-up than what he’s been forced to do the last few years with LIV.

Prime Time Competitors

This group of players has a major and is looking to add another to jump up the legacy rankings.

Justin Rose

There will be a lot of talk about Rose's brilliant major championship debut in 1998 at Royal Birkdale and his close calls at the past two Masters. As an onlooker, it felt like this year's fade on the back nine at Augusta National took something out of Rose, who turns 46 at the end of the month. How many chances does he have left is the big question. The Open is traditionally a championship for the olds, and of all the existing one-time major champions, Rose feels like he deserves a second the most.

Collin Morikawa

What a bounce-back year it's been for Morikawa, who has been a fixture on PGA Tour leaderboards despite a nagging back injury sustained at the Players. With two majors in tow, the 29-year-old could reignite his career discourse by adding a third major trophy to his mantle.

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Xander Schauffele

After winning the 2024 Open Championship, there was an open debate as to whether Schauffele was the best player in the game. An oblique injury has derailed the last two years of his career, and I'm still waiting for that sensational form to return.

Matt Fitzpatrick

The former Northwestern star has been one of the five best players in the game in 2026. Adding a major championship to three PGA Tour wins would vault him into one of the best seasons of the decade (Scottie Scheffler excluded).

Getting Over the Hump

A few months ago, I lamented that it didn't feel like we had a true candidate for best player without a major, like the old days of Monty, Phil, Westy, and Rickie. But a few young players have stepped into the spotlight, and while none of them rival the likes of those four, they have a growing list of bona fides. And as time has told over and over, these things get harder to win the longer you go without one.

Chris Gotterup

The breakout star of the last calendar year. Gotterup's four wins since last year's Scottish Open have placed him in the conversation as one of the best players in the world. His great run at Portrush last year (T-4) gives hope that he has the shot-making and mental makeup to be a great links player.

Cameron Young

The kid from the Bronx has cooled off a bit since he drubbed the field at the sparsely attended Cadillac Championship, but he is one of the 10 best stories of 2026 due to his ascension into the game's elite following his win at the Players. Young has contended at multiple Open Championships in his young career and should be considered on the first page of favorites this year.

Viktor Hovland

No one on this list has as many close calls at major championships as Viktor. After missing the cut at the U.S. Open, Hovland logged lengthy range sessions on Saturday and Sunday at Shinnecock and turned around and won the Travelers the following week, reigniting hope that he can return to the consistent major championship contender of a few years ago. Hovland is a few bounces away from having multiple majors and is, I'd contend, the most decorated player on this list.

Tommy Fleetwood

The hometown hero returns to Royal Birkdale and will carry more pressure and expectations than anyone on this list. Fleetwood hasn't found the form he ended 2025 with, but his last four starts — T-4, T-11, T-11, T-14 — show he's close.

Sam Burns

Coming off a heartbreakingly close call at Shinnecock, the main question is whether Burns can put the disappointment behind him and be ready to go at Royal Birkdale. No player in the past two years has shifted his major championship discourse more than Burns. In his first few years as a pro, he struggled at majors; now he's become a fixture of late weekend tee times. It seems like only a matter of time before the Louisiana native picks one off.

Ludvig Aberg

It's still very early in Ludvig's major championship career, but few players have been so acclimated to playing major championship golf right out of the gates. Aberg has made the cut at the first three majors of the year and will look to contend for the first time at an Open Championship at a course that sets up wonderfully for the young, talented Swede.