Open A-Z
From Arnold Palmer to Zimbabwe's Nick Price, Mark Kendall tells you all you need to know with his Open alphabet.
Last Updated: 08/07/13 10:50am
A - Arnold Palmer
'The King' was widely credited with ensuring the status of the Open Championship amongst American players as he made the long journey across the Atlantic at a time when relatively few others did. His back-to-back wins in 1961 and 62 helped convinced many it was a worthwhile undertaking and it has gone on to become a tournament the Americans have dominated.
B - Barry Burn
The famous fast-flowing stream that runs throughout Carnoustie. The 16th is named after it, while its presence has spelt disaster for many a player over the years - none more memorably than Frenchman Jean Van de Velde in 1999.
C - Claret Jug
It's official name is 'The Golf Champion Trophy', but will forever be known as the 'Claret Jug'. Created in 1872 to replace the Challenge Belt, the first name on it is that of Tom Morris Junior. Winners now receive a replica with the original in The Royal and Ancient Golf Clubhouse.
D - Duel in the Sun
Arguably the greatest Open Championship of all time as Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson went head-to-head at a scorching Turnberry in 1977. After identical scores in the first three rounds (68, 67 & 65) the pair engaged in a fabulous final-round shoot-out with Watson - who took the lead for the first time that week with a birdie at the 71st - ultimately winning out by one shot.
E - Ernie Els
One of the game's gentlemen and if any man comes alive around Open time it's the affable South African. Ernie is not only the defending champion after taking victory at Royal Lytham last year, he also won this event the last time it was held at Muirfield in 2002.
F - Faulkner
The flamboyant Englishman was as much renowned for his trailblazing clothes sense (salmon-pink plus fours) and lifestyle away from the course as much as his play on it. But the most significant moment of his career came at Royal Portrush in 1951 when he clinched his only major triumph.
G - Greens
The most famous on the Open Championship itinerary are undoubtedly found on the Old Course at St Andrews where all but four holes (1st, 9th, 17th & 18th) share the huge trademark double greens.
H - Hogan's Alley
The par-five sixth hole at Carnoustie was renamed 'Hogan's Alley' in 2003 after the legendary American who won the Open there in 1953 on his only appearance in the championship. In each of his four rounds in '53, Hogan chose the tight driving line between the fairway bunkers and the out-of-bounds fence and found the fairway each time - his achievement was to be commemorated some half a century later.
I - IBF
Ian Baker-Finch was a surprise winner of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale when closing rounds of 64 & 66 saw him edge Mike Harwood by two shots. However, his game subsequently fell to pieces and he is now almost as famous for hooking his first tee-shot out of bounds at St Andrews in the 1995 Open. Retired from the game altogether after a nightmare first-round 92 at 1997 Open at Troon.
J - Jacklin
Winner in 1969, Tony Jacklin looked on course for another Open triumph three years later but was denied by Lee Trevino who proceeded to chip in no fewer than five times over the course of the final two rounds. When he did so at 17 during the final round it broke Jacklin with many describing it as the shot that ended the Englishman's career as a major contender.
K - Kel Nagle
Arnold Palmer - golf's biggest draw of the time - had already won the US Open and Masters and headed to St Andrews chasing a grand slam in 1960. However, he was to be put in the shade by little-known Australian Nagle who, having never finished in the top ten at a major, walked away with the Claret Jug.
L - Links
The links courses of Scotland are where the game first originated and what makes the Open championship so great for so many. Uneven, undulating fairways, pot bunkers, gusty winds, a lack of trees - it's golf at its most challenging, if not necessarily its most aesthetically beautiful.
M - Muirfield
The famous Open venue hosts for the 16th time this year. It was the scene of Nick Faldo's first major triumph in 1987 when he produced 18 pars in his final round to edge out Paul Azinger who bogeyed his closing two holes. Faldo also won at Muirfield five years later.
N - Nicklaus
Three-times a winner of the Open Championship, 'The Golden Bear' emerged victorious in 1966 (Muirfield), 1970 (St Andrews) and 1978 (St Andrews). Arguably the greatest to ever play the game, Tiger Woods remains four behind his mark of 18 major wins.
O - O'Meara
Mark O'Meara was always a prolific winner on the US PGA Tour, but passed his 40th birthday without having won a major. That changed in 1998 when, having already emerged victorious at Augusta, he claimed his second biggie of the season as he clinched the Open at Birkdale. O'Meara was quick to attribute this resurgence to his friendship with his playing partner, and one of the game's emerging stars - a certain Tiger Woods.
P - Park
Willie Park Snr was the winner of the inaugural Open Championship in 1860, coming out on top in a field that featured only eight entrants. He went on to add three further successes in the tournament in 1863, 1866 and 1875.
Q - Qualifier
The last man to qualify for, and then win, the Open Championship was Paul Lawrie on the tournament's last visit to Carnoustie back in 1999. The Scot - Europe's last major victor - took advantage after another qualifier, Jean Van de Velde, suffered a final-hole meltdown and went on to emerge triumphant in a play-off.
R - Royal
Seven royal golf clubs have played host to the Open Championship since its inception in 1860; Royal St George's, Royal Troon, Royal Birkdale, Royal Lytham & St Annes, Royal Liverpool, Royal Cinque Ports, Royal Portrush. (The final two on this list are no longer on the Open rota.)
S - Seve
The Spaniard burst onto the international scene with a second-place finish in the 1976 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale as a 19-year-old and would go on to become a legend of the event with three wins in total. Ballesteros led by two shots after the third round at Birkdale, but had to settle for a share of second with Jack Nicklaus after a final round of 74 left him six shots behind winner Johnny Miller. But he made amends in 1979 at Royal Lytham as he became the youngest winner of the tournament in the 20th century as well as the first golfer from continental Europe to win a major since Frenchman Arnaud Massy in 1907. Ballesteros also triumphed at St Andrews in 1984 and at Royal Lytham again in 1988 and added a further three top-ten finishes to establish himself as one of the all time Open greats.
T - Turnberry
Many regard the Ailsa Course at Turnberry as one of the most underused Open venues on the rota. The oldest major has only been held at the Scottish course on four occasions (1977, 1986 & 1994 and 2009).
U - Umbrella
An all too frequent sight at the only major championship to be held outside of America. Some feel adverse weather is an integral part of the Open Championship, but all too often heavy rain and strong winds can have perhaps too big a bearing on where the title goes. The Open should always be the ultimate test, but scenes like the Saturday at Muirfield in 2002, when competitors were caught in huge deluges, rarely prove a treat for players or spectators.
V - Van de Velde
The Frenchman who earned a place in sports infamy with his catastrophic meltdown at Carnoustie in 1999. Needing only a double-bogey six at the 18th to win, Van de Velde contrived to take seven and promptly lost in a play-off to Paul Lawrie.
W - Woods
Tiger has posted three Open wins (St Andrews 2000 & 2005 and Royal Hoylake 2006) and was third at Royal Lytham last year and also at Royal Birkdale in 1998. Few will forget the emotional scenes at Hoylake in 2006 when, following the death of his inspirational father Earl, he broke down after clinching victory.
X - X = Disqualification
X is the dreaded letter that appeared next to Mark Roe following his disqualification at the Open Championship in 2003. Roe's blunder came hot on the heels of a course-record 67 at Royal St George's that had him discussing his chances of victory in a television interview. His happiness soon evaporated as playing partner Jesper Parnevik informed him they had both been disqualified for failing to exchange cards at the start of the round.
Y - Youngest winner
This accolade goes to 'Young Tom Morris' who claimed the 1868 Open Championship at the tender age of 17. Son of 'Old Tom Morris' - whom he beat into second place at the 1869 Championship - Young was regarded as one of the pioneers of professional golf and recorded a total of four Open triumphs (1868, 69, 70 & 72). His story, though, was ultimately a tragic one as he died on Christmas day in 1875 at the age of just 24.
Z - Zimbabwe
Only one man from Zimbabwe can boast an Open Championship victory and that is Nick Price. Born in South Africa to English parents, Price spent his formative years in Zimbabwe - then known as Rhodesia - and went on to become the world's number one player in the mid-nineties. His defining moment in Open Championship history came at Turnberry in 1994 when he holed an incredible 50-foot putt for eagle on 17 to deny Jesper Parnevik.