The Open: Big names in danger of missing the cut

The 2026 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Golf Club is underway. 

After 18 holes of the final men's major of the year, America's Jackson Suber is out in front. 

Suber fired a stunning five-under 65 on Thursday to snatch a one-shot lead in Southport.

Related:

• The Open cut, explained

It was all the more impressive given the unheralded Suber has only played 27 holes of links golf in his life. 

Several big names are stalking Suber at the top of the leaderboard, with his compatriots Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau nicely positioned after round one. 

Former Open champions Collin Morikawa and Henrik Stenson have also started brightly. 

At the other end of the leaderboard, several big names need to make some birdies if they are to avoid the 36-hole cut.

The top 70 players and ties will make it through to the weekend. 

GolfMagic has decided to take a look at those who will need some birdies tomorrow. 

Big names in danger of missing the cut at The Open

Marco Penge +2

Penge's promising start unravelled with a run of dropped shots that left him giving back momentum and sitting on the projected cut line.

Patrick Reed +2

Reed was unable to build on his birdie chances, with too many bogeys cancelling out his good work and leaving him with little margin for error.

Adam Scott +2

Not a disastrous opening round from the former Masters champion but will need to keep the mistakes to a minimum. 

Matt Fitzpatrick +2

Mixed moments of quality with costly errors.

Rory McIlroy +2

Admitted he struggled with the pace of the greens early on.

An unlikely birdie at the 18th will have given the Northern Irishman renewed optimism as he looks to take advantage of what are expected to be benign conditions tomorrow morning.

Wyndham Clark +2

The 2026 U.S. Open champion will still fancy his chances of booking a tee time on Saturday but, as is so often the case at The Open, thinks can head south pretty quickly. 

Jordan Spieth +3

Has anyone mentioned that Jordan Spieth won the Claret Jug here when The Open was last staged here in 2017?

Something about the bogey of his life?

Back then Spieth was predicted to have a hall of fame career but sadly his career is fizzling out. 

When was the last time he seriously contended in a major?

Cameron Smith +3

The 2022 Open champion decided to sack his long-time golf coach earlier in the season following a spell of six consecutive missed cuts in the majors. 

He snapped the streak at the US PGA Championship but backed it up with another early exit at the U.S. Open. 

Smith is in danger of having the weekend off here. 

Jason Day +3

Jason Day turned heads earlier in the week when he arrived for his practice rounds dressed in full camouflage. 

Unfortunately, his scorecard could blend into the missed-cut list.

Brian Harman +4

The 2023 Open champion made the turn in one-over but struggled on the back nine. 

Justin Rose +5

A simply forgettable day for the 46-year-old Englishman, who made seven bogeys on Thursday.