Michael Campbell will be aiming to consumate his love affair with links golf at Royal Liverpool this week.

Campbell is a massive fan of the seaside courses the Open Championship are always played on and hopes those feelings will be reinforced by events at Hoylake.

The Brighton-based Kiwi is desperate to add a second major to the US Open title he won last year and admits the Claret Jug is the one trophy he covets more than any other.

Despite never having played at Royal Liverpool until last week Campbell believes the unique challenges of the course offers him a great opportunity to fulfil his dream.

He said: "I look forward to this more than any other event, even more than the Masters.

"It's an amazing style of golf playing links golf as the wind can switch just ten degrees and you've got a totally different challenge. If I had my way we would be on links about every second week of the year.

"I'm really looking forward to this year's Open and, after playing a few practice rounds last week, I am really excited about my chances."

Despite his love for links golf Campbell has a chequered history in the Open.

He burst on to the scene in his second appearance at the event in 1995 when he led going into the final round at St Andrews only to miss out on a play-off by one shot.

Since then he has only finished inside the top 20 once when he was tied for fifth place a massive seven shots behind champion Tiger Woods at the same course 12 months ago.

Five missed cuts in 11 attempts is hardly the kind of record to suggest an end to his drought but Campbell is hoping an intensive reconnaissance mission at a course which has not staged the Open since Argentinean Roberto de Vincenzo lifted the Claret Jug in 1967 will give him the edge over the rest of the field.

The 37-year-old has also hit back at criticism of Royal Liverpool from certain sections of the American media who say the course is not worthy of staging such a big tournament.

Campbell said: "It's just amazing to come to a course like this and to be competing in a British Open that hasn't been staged at Royal Liverpool since 1967. It's a great lay-out and it's going to make for a great Open Championship.

"It's exciting, too, because there are only a couple of guys who have ever played in serious competition at Hoylake while there is certainly no one competing this week who played in the last Open here. That's why I feel it is going to be a real 'open' Open.

"The weather was great last week when I was up there for two days and I've been told that we are going to have much more of the same so Hoylake is going to be hard and bouncy and fiery. There'll be a lot of two-irons off the tee just to make sure you keep the ball in play."

Campbell, whose odds have tumbled from 66-1 to 33-1, can be sure of a big crowd on the first two days after being paired with local player Nick Dougherty and popular Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez.