World’s top golfers still have plenty to prove at British Open after uneven years

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — Scottie Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 player, has gone nearly two months without winning a major championship.

Xander Schauffele, the defending British Open champion, has only one top 10 finish all year so far.

Shane Lowry is six years removed from his greatest golf moment, which took place at Royal Portrush, when he lifted the Claret Jug as the 2019 British Open winner. This week, he returns to the scene of that glory as the 153rd Open begins there on Thursday.

Xander Schauffele, who famously flamed out with a missed cut in that 2019 Open at Portrush, a home game for him as a native of Northern Ireland, has been trying to navigate through the monthslong hangover after winning the Masters and completing the coveted career Grand Slam.