The 146th Open Championship is almost here, and the favorites have been announced. We also have our 20 most likely to win this week at Royal Birkdale, but let's narrow that down to the pool of nine golfers from which I think the eventual winner will come. This is a course that has almost exclusively produced winners who either are already in the Hall of Fame or will be eventually (only Ian Baker-Finch in 1991 is outside of those parameters).

This group of nine was compiled for different reasons, which I'll explain below. Should you trust it? Well, I didn't have Sergio Garcia on my Masters list, but I did have Brooks Koepka on my U.S. Open list. So the choice is yours, but here are the nine golfers I think have a legit shot this week at adding a Claret Jug to the trophy case.

Rickie Fowler: He's a great long iron driver, and he'll stand tall if the weather gets sideways. I don't know that Fowler will win this week, but I think he has the best chance of his career to get his first major championship.

Jordan Spieth: There is moderate concern about a driver that can sometimes get sideways, but on a set of greens that are smaller than they appear, I trust in Spieth's wizardry. If I had to bet my life on one golfer in this field winning a future Open (any of them), it would be on Spieth.

Phil Mickelson: Lefty is carrying two 3-irons and a 64-degree wedge this week, which means he's probably going to win by 12. But really, it would be a nice bookend to his 2013 Open, and it seems like the older he gets, the better he's been at playing this tournament. Those shots of Bones weeping in the fairway with a NBC microphone in his hands are going to be great.

Brooks Koepka: I still can't get over how well he drove the ball at Erin Hills. He has not had an immense history at this tournament, but it's hard to argue against Koepka playing the best golf of his career right now.

Dustin Johnson: I have a feeling D.J. is going to get himself seriously involved this week. If drivers are taken out of players' hands, I love his chances. The way he drives the ball with his irons and woods is perfect for an Open. 

Brandt Snedeker: This is my favorite "not quite a favorite, but I think he's going to play great" pick. Snedeker is not long off the tee, but he is fairly accurate. Remember that outrageous round he shot at Torrey Pines last year to win the Farmers Insurance Open? He's proven himself to be a good bad weather player, and I think he has a real chance at major No. 1 this week.

Tommy Fleetwood: The story here is almost too good to be true. Hollywood would reject a story about the hometown kid rising from his struggles in 2016 to the apex of his sport in 2017. But I think Fleetwood is in such a zone right now that it might not even matter. He might exist outside the arc of this narrative.

Adam Scott: He's just so pure with his iron play. Scott is No. 31 in strokes gained off the tee and No. 15 in approach shots this season. If he hits fairways, he's going to have flat surfaces to hit off of and make magic on these greens. That's his bread and butter. That's how he's made $54 million in his career. In short, as long as he hits fairways, he's going to rake.

Sergio Garcia: Speaking of great drivers of the golf ball without the driver, Garcia has to rank super high on that list. He would fit in nicely to Birkdale's history, too, because if he wins another major, he's a surefire hall of famer.