All is right again in the world of golf now that the top field of competition is returning to Royal Liverpool, Hoylake, for the British Open.

Phil Mickelson will be looking for consecutive victories in order to take home the Claret Jug -- and perhaps once again drink alarmingly expensive bottles of wine from it.

Mickelson reportedly poured a bottle of 1990 Romanee-Conti into it after his last win, a bottle estimated at $40,000, into the trophy from which he "sipped."

"One of the things that I stressed is that we have to treat the Claret Jug with reverence and respect that it deserves and only put good stuff in it. There was no bad stuff allowed," Mickelson said. "And that was the best bottle that was ever put in there."

The Mickelson repeat attempt may be overshadowed by the return of Tiger Woods to the PGA Tour. The British Open will be Woods' first major in sometime after suffering a pinched nerve that required back surgery.

The injury has plagued Woods, causing disappointing outings and a loss of enthusiasm from the average golf fan.

"Once I started getting stronger, more stable, I could work on my explosiveness, and start getting my speed back. Each and every week I've gotten stronger and faster," Woods said. "Probably not quite at the level that I think I can be at as far as my explosion through the golf ball, but I'm pretty, pretty darn close."

Eight years ago, Woods held up the Claret Jug in a bittersweet moment. His father had passed away two months earlier, but Woods was able to pull through, putting on a brilliant and forever remembered performance.

If Woods is to rekindle the magic of past majors, he has to get his swing back on point.

Contrary to popular belief, golf is a physical sport, and a back injury can be a career ender. When a player drives the ball they are using their entire bodies to create the torque necessary to drive a ball 300 yards. The repetitive motion after years of being a professional take their toll on the human body.

With the attention turned to the aging superstars of Mickelson and Woods, it's important not to forget that Adam Scott is ranked No. 1 in the world.

Although Scott hasn't had a major win in a couple years, he needs to defend his ranking. Scott is a consistent player who is always around the top five, but he needs to take the next big step. A win at the British Open would secure Scott the No.1 ranking for sometime to come.

The British Open can be seen on ESPN beginning with Round 1 on Thursday at 1 a.m. (PT). The major can also be live streamed on

https://espn.go.com/watchespn/index.