The Open Championship has produced challenging weather over its storied history, but what does the forecast look like for Royal Birkdale over the next week?
The likes of Masters champion Rory McIlroy and defending champion Scottie Scheffler will be battling for the Claret Jug, while this year’s other major winners Aaron Rai and Wyndham Clark will be among the favourites trying to become Champion Golfer of the Year.
Will the weather be kind to players, spectators and volunteers at the 2026 Open Championship? Let’s take a look at the weather for this week’s edition of the event in Southport…
British Open Weather Forecast: The week before
Royal Birkdale was the beneficiary of glorious weather, and another British heatwave in the week before The Open.
There was little rain in the week before The Open. However, these were the days leading up to the championship. While monitoring the forecast in the week before The Open, the forecast for championship week was well over 25 degrees at times, and minimal rain. But let’s get deeper into it.
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The Open Weather Forecast 2026
Highs for tournament week sit around 29 degrees Celsius on a day-to-day basis, and although rain emerged on the radar at one stage, there is little rain to be found in the forecast now.
There is an easterly wind of 22 km/h predicted for day one, and highs of 28 degrees. Will this be enough to deter the best players in the world? The next three days look promising with regard to the sun, too. There is very little chance of rain on day two, July 17, and temperatures are set to be 27 degrees Celsius, so pretty warm.
There is also just a 4% chance of rain on Saturday of Open week, as things stand. Again, will the wind provide a challenge with a westerly breeze of 17 km/h? The final round of The Open could also see another scorching forecast, with highs of 23 degrees.
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Here are some images that depict the forecast…
Royal Birkdale weather in July
The weather on Merseyside in July has seen some huge temperatures. There have been lows of 15 degrees Celsius in early July but, as we will see at The Open and in the week before, the warmth could creep into the high twenties. The average high is about 22 degrees, which is 71 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sunrise and Sunset
The average summer’s day will see around 17 hours of daylight. At this time of year, sunrise in Southport is around 5 am, and sunset is between 9:30 and 10 pm.
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