Rory McIlroy’s British Open Championship hopes — and his flagging season — have received a timely boost with the news that he’s found a new Nike driver that he says could be “the one”.

The PGA Tour last night announced it will implement the ban on anchored strokes due to come into effect in 2016, ending fears of a destructive split in golf — at least for now.

The last time Darren Clarke had walked up the 18th fairway in a British Open Championship it was on the way to collecting the Claret Jug.

Pádraig Harrington’s bid for a third British Open Championship victory will get off to a late start on Thursday following yesterday’s draw at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

Qualifying for a major championship would be considered a good week’s work in any golfer’s estimation but, instead of basking in his success, Elliot Saltman went out and won a tournament.

With the British Open Championship only two weeks away and another win under his belt, Tiger Woods can achieve yet another milestone this Sunday.

Rory McIlroy will head into this month’s British Open Championship with new-found confidence that he has the game to conquer windy links conditions.

Disappointment has been expressed at the announcement that the 2016 British Open is going to Troon, passing over the claims of Royal Portrush.

None of the three Irish players involved in yesterday’s qualifying rounds over the New and Old courses at Sunningdale made it through to next month’s British Open Championship at Royal Lytham St Annes.

Graeme McDowell will put his Volvo World Matchplay final disappointment behind him at Wentworth tomorrow as he kick-starts a summer of big-time tournaments at the BMW PGA Championship.

THE RETURN of the Irish Open this year to Royal Portrush will act as a dry run for bringing the British Open Championship to the Dunluce links at the famed Antrim links in the future.

SWEDE Alexander Noren produced the joint-best round of the Nordea Masters so far to take the outright lead at Bro Hof Slott Golf Club in Stockholm.

It’s called The Open — always has been and always will be

NO MATTER how many times you have competed in events of the size and status of the British Open Championship, one has to be continually impressed by the scale of the infrastructure supporting the event and the attention to detail, not least in the media centre.

IT was as if they had turned the clocks back 140 years or so, to those days when Old Tom and Young Tom ruled the fairways of Prestwick in the annual British Open Championship.

TO compete in and win the British Open Championship, you must not only beat the best golfers in the world but also be able remain in full control of your emotions.

IT is one of those assessments that is personal to the core, a belief you attach yourself to because you’re comfortable no one can offer evidence to the contrary or shake you from your point of view.

NOT everyone has been as enamoured with this stretch of Kent coastline as William Laidlaw Purves was when he first envisaged a golf links on the humps and hillocks just outside Sandwich in the 1880s.

NIALL TURNER, the former Muskerry golfer was last night left to rue four bogeys he simply couldn’t afford to concede if he was to come through yesterday’s final qualifying rounds for the British Open Championship.

PÁDRAIG HARRINGTON headed for Augusta last night in his newly acquired private plane much encouraged by a top ten finish in the Shell Houston Open.

LEE WESTWOOD, the world’s number three golfer, confirmed last night he will not be playing in the 3 Irish Open at Killarney at the end of the month.

IT says everything about how strong European golf is going into this week’s British Open Championship that Paul Casey, the world number 10, talks of not wanting to be left behind.

TIGER WOODS will tee off at Adare Manor today delighted to start his preparations for the British Open Championship at St Andrews in earnest.

“ON the tee, from Spain, Severiano Ballesteros.”

NOW he has an injury on top of his personal woes, there must be fresh doubt whether Tiger Woods will make the trips across the Atlantic for July’s British Open Championship and October’s Ryder Cup.

RORY McILROY is one of the most recognisable and popular sportsmen on this island but his declaration of intent to represent Britain in the 2016 Olympics, should golf be accepted at next week’s vote of the IOC, is likely to lose him friends on the southern side of the border.

FOR what seems like the umpteenth time in the past few months, Pádraig Harrington attempts to revive his ailing golf career.

TOM WATSON bounced back from his British Open Championship play-off heartache with an opening-round 67 yesterday at The Senior Open Championship.

TOM WATSON says messages of support from American troops he visited in Iraq have helped him put his British Open Championship disappointment into perspective.

AN event that’s hardly on the professional golf radar this week offers Pádraig Harrington his last chance of redemption before heading for Turnberry in search of a third successive British Open Championship.

PHIL MICKELSON and Ernie Els yesterday offered differing views on the absence of world number one Tiger Woods from next week’s British Open Championship.

PHYSICALLY a little out of shape, beaten up mentally after throwing away a winning position in the Scottish Open, missing the cut in the British Open Championship and finishing way down the field in last week’s Bridgestone WGC at Akron, not many would be prepared to wager the mortgage on Phil Mickelson for a second US PGA victory here this week.

PÁDRAIG Harrington might have to start clearing his diary, with local authorities and golf clubs queuing up to hail his historic British Open Championship win.

THE new British Open winner yesterday revealed that he did not like the look of his winning putt at the British Open Championship, despite nervelessly rolling it in for victory.

Jonathan Byrd could not hide his excitement at qualifying for the British Open Championship after birdying three of his final five holes to win the John Deere Classic.

Phil Mickelson was today back up to second in the world rankings just in time for the British Open Championship – but not quite in the manner he wanted.

Seve Ballesteros was due to give a press conference at the British Open Championship this afternoon where he will speak about recent reports of a suicide attempt - reports he strenuously denies.

Colin Montgomerie, hoping to ride into next week’s British Open Championship on the crest of a wave, hit troubled waters at Loch Lomond today – and fell off.

While Luke Donald ponders whether the Scottish Open is the right way for him to prepare for the British Open Championship, Ernie Els has no doubts.

AUSTRALIAN Richard Green received a call-up to the British Open Championship yesterday after American Woody Austin’s decision not to travel to Carnoustie next week.

Swedish golfer Pelle Edberg had almost as much to celebrate as Colin Montgomerie at the K Club.

Jean Van de Velde will not be returning to the scene of his British Open Championship heartbreak in two weeks’ time.

ANGEL CABRERA has been named June’s European Tour Golfer of the Month after becoming the first Argentinian winner of the US Open with victory at Oakmont.

Rory McIlroy (Holywood), Gareth Shaw (Lurgan) and Simon Ward (Co Louth) will represent Ireland in the World Amateur Team Championship for the Eisenhower Trophy which will be played at the De Zalze Golf Club and Stellenbosch Golf Club, near Cape Town, South Africa on October 26 to 29.