It has been great entertainment watching the first two rounds of The Open from Royal Birkdale.

The elements have played their role and the venerable old layout is every bit as tough as I'm sure the R&A hoped it would be.

And why shouldn't it be? Golf is played outside. And that's where the elements dwell.

I think we have become too used - certainly in North America - to target golf courses, domed stadiums and perfect weather for our sports events.

The conditions at Royal Birkdale this week take an already brutally tough game and elevate the difficulty several notches.

Many players this morning in the early going of round three were experiencing two to six club winds. Forecasts for afternoon play were ominous: wind gusts up to 45 or 50 miles an hour.

Rocco Mediate put it best when asked on the practice tee this morning if his game plan was to play par golf and let the field come back to him (Mediate was a superb 2 over at the time).

His reply: "Hold steady?! We're just going to try and survive out there!"

Rocco is one of the highlights at Royal Birkdale. His rousing U-S Open and playoff with Tiger Woods was a real victory for Mediate.

And, ever since, he's been playing wonderful golf.

Sergio Garcia, however, is still troubled by his putter. You'll recall how it let him down on the 18th hole at Carnoustie last year as a two foot par putt for the victory lipped out.

He has supposedly been working hard on his putting stroke since then but you wouldn't know it. He was below average in putts per hole at the U-S Open and he's below average at Royal Birkdale.

In the past two days watching him on television, I have seen him miss at least four short putts for either par or birdie. He will never win a major until he can master his putting stroke.

Retief Goosen, on the other hand, seems to have a handle on the windy conditions; his putts are beautifully stroked and often finding the cup from 20 or 30 feet. As a result, he is above average in putts per hole at The Open and is one to watch in Sunday's final round.

And what about David Duval? He is swinging and striking the ball as well as he did when he was world number one in the early 1990s. He believes he's ready to win again and he began round three at 2 over par - before taking a triple bogey on the first hole. His is a story line to watch, as well.

Then, of course, there's Greg Norman. I believe it was Ian Poulter who commented that Norman has the body of a 23 year old and the mind of a 53 year old, the perfect combination to win The Open.

Indeed, when the body is working without pain or injury, the older, more seasoned mind always has the advantage. Witness Jack Nicklaus winning the 1986 Masters at 46 or Julius Boros winning the 1968 PGA Championship at 48.

So, as we head into the final round tomorrow at Royal Birkdale, we might see another mighty battle involving Rocco Mediate or perhaps Greg Norman will rewrite history. Maybe it will be Duval taking on Goosen down the stretch.

I always love the majors. By the way, several websites are carrying live video coverage of the last three holes. Canadian sports site, TSN, is one of them.

And The Open's website has live streaming radio coverage. Gotta love the web.