On top of the world in bid to go one better than Faldo

Faldo spent 97 weeks at the top of the rankings from 1990 to 1994, including throughout the whole of 1993 after his win at Muirfield in July 1992 helped him displace Fred Couples from the summit.

Yet of his six major triumphs, none was achieved when he began the tournament as the top-ranked player on the planet.

He nearly managed it at the 1993 Open at Royal St George’s when, in customary fashion, Faldo pushed his old nemesis Greg Norman all the way in an attempt to get his hands on the Claret Jug for a fourth time.

Fast forward to the present day and Luke Donald becomes the first Englishman since Faldo to come into the Open Championship as the top-ranked golfer in the world.

And as fate would have it, the event is at Sandwich.

Undoubtedly in the form of his life with three wins this year – all in big tournaments – Donald is still missing a major championship to his name.

He might have at last shed the ‘Luke Donald disease’ tag he was labelled with by American journalists for winning oodles of money without every really challenging for top honours.

But it remains the one source of frustration for the young Englishman and this week will be an acid test of his credentials.

With Tiger Woods absent for a second major this year and the American challenge slightly diminished, the 33-year-old stands alongside Rory McIlroy and Lee Westwood as favourites to win the Open.

Victorious in Arizona, Wentworth and Scotland this year – the latter just four days ago – all eyes will be on Donald to finally deliver.

He certainly has the game to do so. The laser irons, the irresistible short game, the nerveless clutch putting.

The winning feeling is running through his veins.

But does he have the temperament to stride into the lead and close out the oldest, most famous golf tournament in the world?

He needs the gods to smile on him, as most major winners do.

Not many of the game’s defining championships are turned into the type of processions Woods mastered in his pomp, McIlroy perfected at Congressional last month, and Louis Oosthuizen surprisingly achieved at St Andrews 12 months ago.

In the last dozen majors, several have been won by players who produced golf good enough to put them into contention before being rewarded with a huge slice of good fortune.

Stewart Cink came from nowhere to prosper when Tom Watson fell agonisingly short of writing arguably the greatest sports story ever at Turnberry two years ago.

Charl Schwartzel holed out from the fairway, chipped in and birdied the last four at Augusta earlier this year.

Lucas Glover, meanwhile, excelled over 72 holes at Bethpage Black but has done little since.

Donald, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Paul Casey and Justin Rose must reflect on the ones that got away.

That no Englishman has won a major title since Faldo at Augusta 15 years ago is both hard to fathom and a damning indictment of the lack of a killer instinct when it really matters among the country’s golfers.

They have come close, Donald as often as any with third places at the US PGA Championship in 2007, the Masters two years earlier and a challenge again at Augusta this year.

He also came home fifth at Turnberry two years ago.

“I’ve always wanted to win a major since I turned pro,” said Donald.

“Even before that when I was growing up and watching some of my idols.

“It doesn’t really change whether I’m ranked No 1 or No 100.”

As is to be expected, Donald refutes the history that suggests no man that wins the Scottish Open one week goes on to hoist the Claret Jug seven days later.

Donald says he plays better in a major when he has played well the week before.

In truth, aside from a relatively sub-standard showing at the US Open last year, Donald has played well for a year.

His statistics stack up to suggest he will have a say in the destination of this week’s title – high driving accuracy, a high percentage of greens in regulation, and an average of under 30 putts per round.

He does need the elements to be in his favour, despite getting three rounds of links golf under his belt at Castle Stuart.

The world is similarly waiting for Worksop’s Westwood to deliver.

Six times in the last 13 majors he has contested, he has finished in the top three.

Maybe being on home soil will make the difference.

“It’s named after St George, I guess, so you can’t get much more English than that really,” said the world No 2.

“It’s obviously being played in England, which only happens every now and again, and it’s the biggest championship in the world as far as I’m concerned.

“It would mean everything really to win this championship.

“Strategically, it’s a good golf course. You have to plan your way around it.

“It’s not always driver off every tee, which is quite nice. Downwind there will be a few five-irons or six-irons off tees out there.

“But if the wind gets up the green might become driveable on those holes, so it makes you think constantly and adapt to the situation.

“The rough seems pretty fair. I think because you do get a few freaky bounces out there they’ve not gone silly with the rough this year.

“There’s no excuses out there.”

Since the rankings began in 1986, only Woods has won the Open when starting as world No 1.

Faldo never did. Can Donald?