The Open: Paul Casey backs England's golfers to make an impact at The Open

Paul Casey has backed his fellow English golfers to give home fans something to cheer about during this week’s Open Championship at Hoylake.

With England’s footballers, rugby players and cricketers all struggling to varying degrees so far in 2014, Casey says it is up to the golfers to take up the challenge.

Justin Rose is in red-hot form as he comes in on the back of two straight tournament wins and is looking to become the first English winner of an Open on English soil since Tony Jacklin in 1969.

Casey believes Rose has an excellent chance but warned he is not the only Englishman capable of mustering a challenge.

"Hopefully playing in England can bring out the best in us," Casey said. "We've got nothing else to cheer about at the moment!

"I think Justin will take the focus, as he should as a major champion and recent winner. He has to be one of the favourites.

"(Ian) Poulter is always good for a punt at the Open, Lee (Westwood) as well (they finished joint third at Muirfield last year). Luke (Donald) is great at links golf.

“Maybe I can fly under the radar a bit and pop up on the leaderboard on Sunday. I have been playing some great stuff but I think the English in general have."

Casey enters the tournament quietly confident after finding some excellent form of late and he believes his game is well-suited to playing links golf.

"My Open record has never been great but I can play great golf round a links course," said the 36-year-old.

"You need things to go your way.  I had the right side of the draw at St Andrews but Rory McIlroy had no chance.

“He plays a great round of golf (an opening 63) and has no chance, shooting 80 in a gale in the second round.

"I was probably more confident back then but I am playing good golf now."

Casey finished 71st at Hoylake in 2006 but was seventh at Birkdale two years later and third at St Andrews in 2010.

Casey has thrown away his yardage book from Hoylake in 2006 due to the course changes and different conditions, with a repeat of the heat which dried out the course not expected.

"I've forgotten how burnt it was," he said.

"I do remember the problems we had with the heat; nobody could sleep at night, people were buying fans and sticking tin foil to the windows trying to keep the heat out of the windows.

"I was sticking my pillow case in the freezer and then pulling it out, but it didn't work very well."