Muirfield Golf Club opened in 1892 and has hosted 15 Open Championships. Only the best players of their era have won Opens at Muirfield.
Harry Vardon, James Braid, Ted Ray, Walter Hagen, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson, Nick Faldo and Ernie Els have all won Open Championships at Muirfield.
The course requires a full tool box of shots and does not look kindly on inexperienced young golfers.
The young golfers of today enter the world of professional golf with a ton of amateur experience and most have traveled to various parts of the world to play.
Here are five young players that definitely have a chance to go against tradition and win at historic Muirfield.
Jordan Spieth, just 19-years-old, won the John Deere Classic to earn a spot in the 2013 Open Championship field. He is in his rookie season on the PGA Tour and his win will give him a two-year exemption and full PGA Tour membership.
He has now earned over $2 million and has performed brilliantly this year in an attempt to gain his tour card. He is the youngest player to win a PGA Tour event in over 80 years.
Russell Henley won the first full field event of the year at the Sony Open in Hawaii. It was also his first official event as a PGA Tour member. He has three top-10 finishes this year and is No. 16 on the FedEx Cup rankings and No. 56 in the world.
He is a proven magician with a putter and that is a very handy skill to have in a major championship.
Billy Horschel kept knocking on the door until he busted it down and got a win at the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. In addition to his win, he has a runner-up, a third and four other top-10 finishes. He has earned over $3 million this year and is No. 5 on the FedEx Cup rankings.
He plays aggressively with a lot of confidence and wants to win. He does not play for second place or the amount of the check.
Branden Grace had four world-wide wins in 2012. He is coming off a runner-up finish to Phil Mickelson at the Scottis Open last week.
Grace won the 2012 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship last October. It is played over three of the best links courses in the world Kings Barns, Carnoustie and St. Andrews.
Grace is playing well right now and knows how to play links style golf courses.
When you talk of young players you can’t omit Rory McIlroy. Although he has two major victories already, he is still only 24 years old.
Muirfield will demand a full arsenal of golf shots to post low scores. McIlroy is one of the best at every aspect of the game. He is especially adept with his long irons.
Muirfield playing hard and fast will require long irons off many tee boxes to keep the ball in the fairway.
McIlroy has not had a great year thus far in 2013. This could very well be the week he turns it around and picks up his third major title.