The Open Championship is the oldest major in golf.
The famous Claret Jug has the names of golfing royalty through the ages. Emotive names such as Nicklaus, Palmer, Player, Watson, Faldo, Vardon, and Woods have all been crowned “Champion Golfer Of The Year” on multiple occasions.
The fabled walk up the eighteenth on Sunday afternoon, the cheers and applause rippling through the grandstands as the champion elect makes his way to the green.
The iconic giant yellow scoreboards help spectators keep track of all the drama on the course. At the end of it all, those scoreboards hail the new champion and entice us to attend the following year’s championship.
There is no other tournament like the Open, played over the finest links courses in the U.K. Players need a mixture of skill, vision, and tenacity to prevail.
As we look forward to the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush this week, we thought we would take the opportunity to celebrate all things related to the Open.
Join us as we dive into:
- The Legacy Of The Open
- The Drama Of Links Golf
- Royal Portrush Awaits: The 2025 Open Championship
- Do Players Change Their Clubs For The Open Championship?
The Legacy Of The Open
The first edition of The Open was played in 1860 at Prestwick Golf Club and featured players such as Old Tom Morris and Willie Park Snr. The golfers gathered at Prestwick following the death of Allan Robertson, who was widely regarded as the best player of the time before his passing.
The objective was not only the chance to commemorate the life of Robertson but to establish who the next “Champion Golfer Of The Year” would be. Eight professionals took part, with the prize being the “Challenge Belt,” a leather belt with silver buckles that the winner would keep for a year until the next championship - the Claret Jug didn’t make an appearance until the 1873 edition.
Willie Park Snr prevailed over Prestwick’s 12-hole layout and would go on to capture the title in 1863 and 1866.
Old Tom Morris finished second to Park in the first edition; however, Morris went on a streak of winning four of the next seven championships, including his victory in 1864 when he was 46 years old. To date, Old Tom Morris is still the oldest winner of The Open.
Morris was surpassed by his son in 1868, Young Tom Morris, who, at the age of 17, still holds the distinction of being the youngest winner of The Open.
From that first decade, in the 1860s, The Open grew in stature and depth of competition. The first edition in 1860 had been solely for professionals, but from 1861, the best amateurs in the game could enter and compete.
This tradition continues to this day, with the winners of the British, American, and European, along with the winners of the English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish champions, all receiving invites.
Amateur players can also qualify via regional and final qualifying to gain entry into The Open Championship.
Arguably, the most famous amateur to capture the Open Championship was the American Bobby Jones.
Jones was an early pioneer as an American player coming to play in the U.K. at a time when the only transport was by boat, which would take anything up to a week, depending on the type of ship.
In 1930, Jones captured what became known as the “impregnable quadrilateral” when, along with winning The Open, Jones also captured the U.S. Open, the British Amateur, and U.S. Amateur titles.
British golfers dominated the Open Championship in its first half-century, with players such as Harry Vardon, James Braid, and J.H. Taylor claiming multiple victories.
Given the length of time it took to make the transatlantic crossing, many Americans opted not to bother making the journey. Jock Hutchison claimed the first American victory in 1920 at St Andrews. Hutchison was born in St Andrews but moved to America and became a citizen during World War I.
Walter Hagen set the pace for American victories, winning in 1922, 1924, 1928, and 1929, making him the most successful American to lift the Claret Jug until Tom Watson came along five decades later.
The great Ben Hogan only played in one Open Championship. In 1953, he made the transatlantic journey to compete at Carnoustie. Carnoustie was seen as a stern test for the American to try and master.
Hogan’s skill was best highlighted at Carnoustie’s par-five sixth hole. Bunkers crept into the fairway on the right side, leaving only a small sliver of fairway to the left. Bailing out to the left was not an option, thanks to out-of-bounds.
Hogan was the only player in the field to take on the high-risk drive and found the narrow strip of fairway every day of the competition before going on to lift the Claret Jug.
In recognition of Hogan’s feat, the sixth hole was re-named “Hogan’s Alley.”
Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus brought a fresh interest in The Open Championship in the 1960s. Palmer and Nicklaus shared five victories between them, Nicklaus edging Palmer three to two after Nicklaus captured his last Open triumph in 1978 at St Andrews.
Golf’s “Big Three” of the 1960s and 1970s featured Palmer and Nicklaus, along with South African golfer Gary Player.
Player recorded three victories at The Open on his way to amassing a total of nine major championships.
In more times, England’s Nick Faldo claimed three Opens. Faldo’s victory at Muirfield in 1992 remains the last time an English player has lifted the Claret Jug.
Scotland hasn’t fared much better. Paul Lawrie was the last Scot to win when he prevailed in a playoff in 1999 at Carnoustie.
Tiger Woods has captured three Open titles. His first victory came in 2000 at the height of arguably the most dominant season witnessed in professional golf. Woods lapped the field, claiming a fifteen-stroke margin of victory over the field at St Andrews.
Woods captured his second Open five years later, also at St Andrews, and went on to retain his title in 2006. Victory that year was highly emotional for Woods, who lost his dad earlier in the year.
While the game’s greatest players have their names on the Claret Jug, the courses that the Open is played on are highly deserving of a mention, given that they are some of the greatest links courses Britain has to offer.
The Old Course at St Andrews leads the way, having hosted The Open on 30 occasions, the most recent being the 150th staging in 2022.
Prestwick is next on the list. Prestwick hosted the championship on 24 occasions during the early years. The Ayrshire course last played host to the Open in 1925.
Royal St George's in Kent has held the Open Championship 15 times, making it the most visited course in England.
Royal Portrush is hosting its third Open Championship. Max Faulkner won the event in 1951 before Shane Lowry prevailed in 2019.
The Drama Of Links Golf
Tom Watson initially hated links golf.
Watson struggled to understand the subtleties and imagination required to prevail on links golf courses. However, Watson wasn’t the sort of player to quit, and in time, he mastered the skills needed to shoot good scores.
His perseverance paid off. Watson captured five Open Championships, including the famous “Duel In The Sun” with Jack Nicklaus over a scorched Turnberry in 1977.
Watson saw the game through the air. This is typical of many PGA Tour players, who play courses that are protected from the worst of the elements, allowing them to hit the ball high to land softly on hard greens.
Links golf is more about manipulating the golf ball, hitting low shots to pierce headwinds, and hitting the ball high to take advantage of downwind holes.
Players can also utilise draws and fades to hold the ball up into the prevailing wind to help keep the ball online more effectively.
The most significant differences come around the greens.
Links golf requires more imagination to get the ball close to the hole from off the green.
Humps and hollows around the putting surfaces can require different trajectories and landing spots, which means a player can use anything from a lob wedge to a seven iron to get the ball close to the hole.
Pot bunkers can also wreak havoc on a scorecard and pose significant problems for players. Tiger Woods famously talked about how a key strategy for him at the 2000 Open Championship was to avoid the bunkers, which he successfully did.
Woods’ strategy made perfect sense, especially with infamous dangers like the Road Hole Bunker at the seventeenth hole on the Old Course at St Andrews, ruining many a player’s chances of winning at the home of golf.
As we all know, the weather in July in the U.K. can still be far from settled, to put it mildly; just ask the players who were caught in a storm at Muirfield in 2002 how bad the weather can get playing in The Open Championship - Tiger Woods’ challenge famously ground to a halt on that brutal afternoon, limping home with an 81.
Players and commentators often talk about the differences in conditions that can be experienced during the morning and afternoon waves of play.
Given the size of the field, play begins at 6:30 a.m., and those players can experience little to no wind and complete their rounds as the wind gets up for those players heading out late morning into early afternoon.
Calm weather can return later into the afternoon and evening, allowing players to take advantage of more benign conditions once again.
Players who reach the weekend sometimes do so because they had favourable draws for first and second-round tee times.
Royal Portrush Awaits: The 2025 Open Championship
Royal Portrush comprises two courses, the Valley Links and the Dunluce Links.
The 153rd Open returns to the Dunluce Links, named after the dramatic Dunluce Castle ruins overlooking the Atlantic.
The Dunluce is one of the more hilly Open venues, with the original layout designed by Harry Colt before extensive work was carried out beginning in 2015 to make the course fit for staging the 2019 Open.
The course is also renowned for having the fewest bunkers of any course in the Open rota, sporting only 62 traps across the 18 holes. The one bunker that needs to be avoided is located on the par-five seventh hole and is known as “Big Nellie.”
Players looking to lift the Claret Jug will have to negotiate a challenging closing three holes, starting with the treacherous par three sixteenth known as “Calamity Corner,” which, at 230 yards, makes it a stern test in its own right, but add into the mix that the hole plays into the prevailing wind will mean players are likely reaching for their longest utility iron.
Missing the green short right is not an option since there is a deep ravine ready to gobble up any leaked tee shots.
Hole seventeen is called “Purgatory” before facing the eighteenth, a 474-yard par four known as Babington’s, which requires a tee shot hugging the left side of the fairway to open up the best view of the green.
The Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush will undoubtedly provide a strong test for all the players, but who is likely to have the best opportunities to win?
It’s hard to look past world number one Scottie Scheffler. Scheffler proved he is capable of winning majors outside of the Masters by capturing this year’s PGA Championship. Scheffler can conjure up shots and manipulate the golf ball arguably better than any other player in the world right now.
Rory McIlroy’s historic victory at the Masters and completing the grand slam of major championships is a big reason why the R&A is forecasting a record-breaking 278,000 fans at Royal Portrush.
Will McIlroy thrive under the “Rory mania” that’s bound to greet him?
McIlroy’s form has wavered since winning the Masters. His gamer Qi10 driver was deemed non-conforming at the U.S. PGA, forcing a switch before reverting again. A solid finish at the Genesis Scottish Open suggests promise, especially with home support behind him.
A strong showing at last week’s Genesis Scottish Open could be a more positive sign, and the home support will carry him.
The Irish fans will also strongly back the 2019 champion, Shane Lowry. Lowry’s game is well-suited to the challenges of links golf, and the memories of his 2019 triumph are sure to spur him on this week.
If we are looking at any dark horses to pick, Collin Morikawa could be a good bet.
The American is still considered one of the best iron players in the game. He also flights the ball lower than many of his peers, which could be a massive advantage if the wind blows during the tournament.
Xander Schauffele is the defending champion, having captured his second major at Royal Troon last year. 2024 is difficult to follow up on, but the American will be keen to hold onto the Claret Jug for another year.
Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau have been LIV Golf’s most consistent major players, with DeChambeau adding a second U.S. Open at Pinehurst last year. Rahm has won in Ireland previously and isn’t put off if the weather turns unpleasant.
Tyrell Hatton could be another player from LIV Golf who could be in the mix on Sunday. The Englishman can display a fiery temperament but has the game to be in contention on Sunday afternoon.
Do Players Change Their Clubs For The Open Championship?
When you look at how most pros set up their golf bags for standard tournaments on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, you’ll see many of them carrying high-lofted fairway woods.
As we’ve covered in previous blogs, high-lofted fairway woods allow players to launch the ball higher with more spin, helping to create a trajectory where the ball can land more softly on extra-fast greens.
When it comes to The Open, the greens are generally slower than most regular events by being more exposed to the elements. These same exposed conditions mean that players need to flight the ball more effectively to negate some of the conditions they’ll face.
What this means is that players will switch out their high-lofted fairway woods for driving irons, which will help keep the ball under the wind while offering the player similar distances to maintain consistent distance gapping in their bag.
Driving irons often become useful from the tee, where players can keep the ball lower and maximise any run from the fairways.
One advantage of the current crop of driving irons, such as Titleist’s new U-505 or T250 Utility and Ping’s IDI driving iron, is how easily they can be blended with the rest of the player’s irons to create a more uniform look, which players can get very comfortable with.
One additional department players will look to change potentially is their wedges.
Links turf typically means tight lies where the ball needs to be nipped off the hard-pan lies common on any links courses.
Wedges with too much bounce mean that even the best players can struggle to make consistent contact, where the danger is the leading edge and sole skidding on the hard ground, leading to thinner contact with the ball.
Switching to lower-bounce wedges helps players with the ball-turf interaction, allowing them to get maximum control over the most delicate shots around the greens.
It’s often thought that players will also opt for drivers with lower lofts, which will keep the ball more under control, especially into the wind.
The fact is that players don’t change their drivers specifically for The Open Championship.
Each player has their driver dialled in to create the ideal launch and spin windows. Any alteration to combat conditions can adversely affect these numbers and can throw a player’s ability to judge carry distances or run-out distances to fairway hazards.
More players are now opting to use a mini-driver, which can be employed off the tee to avoid fairway hazards or can be used off the deck for the longest approach shots.
As we reach the height of the golf season, we often see many golfers coming into our fitting studio at Nine By Nine Golf looking to add a driving iron or opt for lower-bounce wedges.
With driving irons, if you are looking to add one to the bag as an alternative to a lofted fairway wood, there are two key metrics we look for.
The first is ensuring consistent distance gaping, and the second is to ensure we generate the correct launch and spin numbers, which we can measure with our launch monitor.
There are some great driving iron options from manufacturers such as Callaway, Cobra, Titleist, Mizuno, and PING to consider.
With wedges, custom-fitting is essential to understand whether wedges with lower bounce will benefit your game.
Our experienced fitters can determine your angle of attack via the launch monitor. Still, the fitter will also want to know if you frequently play on links-style courses, which, when they are fast and bumpy, can be ideal conditions for lower-bounce wedges.
You might not be aiming to lift the Claret Jug, but if you have serious ambitions of lifting some competitive silverware over the coming months and want to improve your equipment set-up to do so, book a custom-fitting session with Nine By Nine Golf.