Open Championship week has descended upon Royal Birkdale, with the 11th Open contested at the historic English club set to begin on Thursday. On Monday, many pros got their first peek at the newly-renovated links course. One of those competitors, Michael Kim, provided his first-look review to the masses.
And Kim’s review should serve as a warning for the rest of the players in the field.
To sum it up in one word, Kim found the current conditions at Royal Birkdale so “FIRM” as to be worthy of all caps. But he also revealed a surprising take on Birkdale’s many pot bunkers that could prove key to the competition.
Here’s what you should know.
Michael Kim reports on Royal Birkdale setup: ‘It’s brown and it’s FIRM’
Kim, who is playing his fourth Open and eighth straight major this week, snuck in nine holes in his Monday practice round at this 2026 Open Championship.
The back nine was his choice for the first day of prep, and his early report was ominous.
“Guys… it is FIRM out here,” Kim wrote on his popular X account at 8:05 a.m. local time.
When he finished up play, he elaborated on his thoughts with some detailed observations. It appears that the hard, fiery conditions on the course coupled with stiff winds could produce some eye-catching yardages this week.
Look no further than Kim for an example. He claimed he hit a 4-iron 290 yards on Monday… multiple times.
“It’s brown and it’s FIRM. Straight downwind I hit 4i 290 off the tee on a couple holes,” Kim wrote. “Went way left off on 10 by accident with a 3wd and hit it 330 [yards].
If Kim’s early report holds true, we could see pros struggle to navigate the hard humps and bumps that roil the surface of Royal Birkdale, all while winds pummel them from the ocean.
It will also make following Kim’s second piece of strategic advice, involving Royal Birkdale’s pot bunkers, that much more difficult to follow.
Michael Kim’s insight on Open bunkers: ‘Avoid at all costs’
Pot bunkers are as much a part of the Open Championship as they are of links golf. Unlike the style of bunkering found at many American courses, a trip into a pot bunker is almost a guaranteed penalty stroke.
And at least when it comes to Royal Birkdale’s fairway bunkers, Kim’s suggestion matches centuries of links-golf wisdom: “Bad. Avoid at all cost,” Kim wrote on X.
But there is at least one feature at Royal Birkdale that Kim believes will give the pros a break this week as compared to other Open Championships. And it has to do with the greenside bunkers.
Kim wrote being stuck in a greenside bunker this week “isn’t as bad as some of the ones I’ve played in previous Opens.”
“What makes certain links bunkers really tough is that there’s no ramp up to the lip. It’s flat and then almost a 90-degree angle on those lips. That means golf balls get much closer to the lip and I have to get it vertical very quick which is tough,” Kim explained. “The ones here however have a slight uphill ramp to the lips. That not only helps get the ball up quicker when I hit them but also the ball rolls away from them enough where most of the time, I can get them over the lip unless I get really unlucky.”
We’ll see if Kim’s predictions turn out to be true when the 154th Open officially gets underway Thursday, July 16.
