The seven big Open questions
5. Could we finally have a home winner?
Why is it that no Scots – and very few Englishmen – ever win the Open Championship on home soil any more?
Not since Tony Jacklin beat Bob Charles by two strokes at Royal Lytham in 1969 has a man native to the nation hosting the Open Championship won on home soil. Yes, Paul Lawrie won at Carnoustie in 1999, but he was handed his silver jug
on a silver platter and without wanting to downplay his achievements, it should never have happened – he hasn’t finished higher than T26 at the Open since.
In the 45 Opens since Jacklin, no Englishman has won an Open in England: Nick Faldo’s three wins all came north of the border. Exclude Lawrie and no Scot has won in Scotland since Tommy Armour in 1931. The only Scottish winner since then was Sandy Lyle in 1985, in Kent. It begs the question, why can a home player not win on home soil?
A more global appreciation of links golf would be the obvious answer. Local knowledge counts for little in golf, particularly in the modern era and particularly in The Open. Eighty per cent of all US PGA winners have been Americans, compared with 75% at the Masters and 69% at the US Open. In the Open Championship, only 29% of the winners have been Scots, and almost all of those came in the Open’s infancy, between 1860 and 1893. Unlike The US Open, the real Open usually rewards the game’s best players, particularly on the Old Course and in the modern era. Sandy Lyle stood amongst them, Monty came close, but few other Scottish golfers have had the game to regularly contend.
Might that change this year? Only if the weather levels the playing field. Even then, one look down the list of possible Scottish contenders and it’s hard to pick even a surprise winner. Marc Warren, Richie Ramsay and Russell Knox could all mount a charge, but over four rounds and with Rory, Jordan and Phil breathing hot down their necks? World number 59 Stephen Gallacher looks the best equipped, but sadly the odds are as long as the chance is unlikely.