Final round weather at Royal Troon calls for more benign conditions: it’s anyones Open

Meteorologists predict an easier weather day at The Open on Sunday, meaning that anyone within a few shots of the lead can win.

For the third straight round, weather played quite a role at The Open Championship on Saturday.

A hard rain coupled with a strong prevailing breeze stymied the contenders at Royal Troon, as those on top of the leaderboard struggled to survive the difficult conditions. Shane Lowry even complained about the course setup, but frankly, the R&A could do nothing about Mother Nature’s decision to exact her will on the field in the afternoon. She let up in the morning, allowing numerous players to shoot up the leaderboard in softer conditions.

Nevertheless, Open Championship contestants and fans should expect to see weather more like what we saw on Saturday morning than Saturday afternoon.

The breeze will shift back to a southwest wind on Sunday—the same direction the players faced on Thursday and Friday. The first six holes will play into a hurting cross breeze, while the challenging back nine will primarily play downwind. Gusts will blow anywhere between 18 and 22 miles per hour throughout the day, but as the contenders reach the stretch run in the early evening, the wind should dwindle somewhat. Forecasters believe gusts will simmer to about 15 miles per hour in the late afternoon.

A slight chance of precipitation exists, but breaks of sun should shine across Royal Troon throughout the day. The high temperature is slated for 62 degrees, meaning Sunday is forecasted to be a beautiful Scottish summer day ripe for links golf—the perfect day to determine the Champion Golfer of the Year.

But this forecast means that anyone within four or five shots of the lead will have a chance to go out and take the lead away from Billy Horschel, who currently sits alone at 4-under-par atop the leaderboard. Perhaps Scottie Scheffler makes a run up from 2-under, or maybe Justin Thomas, as he did at the 2022 PGA Championship, comes from four shots behind at even to win his third major. Regardless, Sunday should be a great day at Royal Troon in what will undoubtedly cap a fantastic week for golf’s oldest major.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.