In many ways, it felt like only a matter of time until Xander Schauffele won a major title. After all, the 30-year-old has been knocking on the door for years; he finished T2 at The Open back in 2018, he’s had two top-3 finishes at The Masters, and between 2017 and 2022 he did not finish outside the top 7 at the US Open. Still, even in his wildest dreams, at the start of 2024 the American could scarcely have imagined picking up not one but two major titles this year.
And yet, that’s exactly what’s happened. First, the PGA Championship in May, an event in which he’d previously only cracked into the top 10 once before. A solid top-7 showing followed at the US Open in June, before he came out on top with a 2-stroke victory at a classic iteration of The Open at Royal Troon, braving the elements and all the toughest tests that links golf could throw at him.
From 13-20 July 2025, Schauffele will return to the United Kingdom to defend his Claret Jug, with the world’s oldest golf competition heading to Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland. The Open was last held there in 2019, with Irishman Shane Lowry sending the home crowd wild with his 6-stroke victory in an impressive spectacle.
The ballot for next year’s competition is already open, and fans have until 15:00 BST on Wednesday 31 July to apply for general admission Grounds tickets, with adult ticket prices ranging from GBP £25 for the first practice round through to £130 for the final day.
If you’d like to guarantee your place at the competition, you can do so in style by purchasing a hospitality ticket. A wide range of options are available, from Ticket Plus (which includes a £25 food voucher to be spent on-site and starts at £130) through to the fully inclusive Champions package (which starts at £2,280).
For more information on the tickets available for next year’s Open Championship, click here.
