The Open Championship 2001

Long hitters have been warned by former champion Tom Lehman that the 130th
Open Championship is likely to be decided by accuracy rather than distance
off the tee.

The 42-year-old American, who won the Open when it was last staged at Royal Lytham & St Annes five years ago, said: "One of the reasons I like this course so much is that it does not really favour somebody who can hit it a mile.

"It doesn't favour a player who can bomb it 320 yards unless you can hit it
straight. If you stray offline at 250 yards you'll be penalised and if you stray offline at 350 you'll be penalised. That makes the course so challenging - you have to be hitting the right club off the tee into the right spot.

"It's a bit like Southern Hills where we had last month's US Open. Everything
has to be right on with every club in the bag. There's no course that Tiger Woods can't play and there's no course that Mickelson can't play, but anyone who can keep the ball in play, hit it straight, putt decently and manage his game well is going to have a chance to win this week."

Lehman, who said he had gained between 20 and 40 yards with his driver since switching to the Titleist Pro VI ball at the start of the season, felt that Lytham was playing longer than it had in 1996.

"There's a lot more grass on the course - it's green whereas it was brown five years ago. The ball is still bouncing a bit but not a lot. I never recall being worried about hitting the ball in the rough five years ago - you knew it was real wispy so no matter where it went you could get your club on it and probably smack it out. This time it's thick in some spots and you are going to be spending a lot of time pitching it down the fairway."

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