If those new to Royal Birkdale had been wondering how the course will play in strong winds, they were given a taster yesterday on the third day of practice for the 137th Open Championship.

Phil Mickelson, the world No2 and a relatively poor player in the wind - hence an Open record in which he has only one top-ten finish in 14 attempts as a professional - played only nine holes and headed off to fine-tune his short game instead.

With Butch Harmon by his side, Mickelson had been working on hitting the ball low in what can amount to 30mph winds. Put the ball too high here and it could blow a long way off line and into deep trouble. Not only that, but the sense of continual buffeting can take its toll.

The 1st hole was a case in point. With a strong northwesterly blowing straight across the fairway, players were faced with a tricky tee-shot. With a landing area barely 25 yards across, a wicked, steep-faced bunker on the left, and out of bounds 15 yards to the right of the fairway, the hole showed no mercy. If it plays the same way when the tournament gets under way tomorrow, shoulders may be slumping sooner than most would have expected.

Among those to suffer immediately from the stiff crosswinds was Ross Fisher. One of the straightest and longest hitters on tour - and the winner of the European Open in testing weather conditions at the London Club in Kent two weeks ago - the Englishman's first shot flew on the wind and ended in a deep bush and out of bounds.

He was not alone. Damien McGrane, of Ireland, hit two balls well to the right, and few players reached the 450-yard par-four hole in regulation. Sergio García came up short and Padraig Harrington, despite splitting the fairway, found a bunker to the right of the green. Scarily, the conditions did not seem anywhere near as bad as they may become.

One group seen to be working hard included Paul Casey and Ian Poulter, the Europe Ryder Cup team-mates. Casey is desperately seeking a return to form, having fallen to No48 in the world, and was not to be distracted from the job in hand. Poulter, meanwhile, was happy to pass the time with television crews and to discuss the conditions. “It seemed that we were playing every hole into the wind,” Poulter said. “It's a really tough course, but a great course.” He was not far wrong. Only four holes played downwind - the 3rd, 13th, 17th and 18th.

While there was some protection in the lee of some of the greens, such as the 2nd, others seemed exposed and chilly. On the 8th, for example, J.B. Holmes and Robert Allenby might have been playing in March winds, with their trousers flapping like flags around their legs.

One player unconcerned by the wind is Graeme McDowell, the winner of the Barclays Scottish Open at Loch Lomond on Sunday. The Northern Irishman rates Birkdale as one of his top five links courses and, having been brought up playing at Royal Portrush, fancies his chances this week.

“With my upbringing in Portrush, links golf has always been in my blood,” he said. “I'm a pretty good wind player and my short game comes flooding back to me when I get on to links turf like this.”

Much is being made of the redesigned 17th green. It has attracted plenty of attention and many raised eyebrows. “It's a bit tricked up,” McDowell said. “It's a funky little green that is out of character with the rest of the golf course. The rest of the greens aren't that difficult and all of a sudden you walk on the 17th and you go, 'who designed this?'”