Southport, UK. The 21st century is now past the quarter point and this week’s Open Championship at Royal Birkdale provides the opportunity to assess the five most impactful events taking place since 2000.
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Tiger Woods / 2000 / St. Andrews
Woods started the first just one-shot behind leader Ernie Els who scored a 65. After 36 holes it was Tiger taking the top spot with a two-day total of 133. Woods would continue his march to his first Claret Jug with weekend rounds of 67-69 and a final four-round tally of 269 — besting the four-round total of 270 scored by Nick Faldo in 1990 on the Old Course. Woods set the record at that time of -19 for 72 holes — later surpassed by Jason Day when winning the 2015 PGA Championship.
With the victory, Woods became the fifth golfer and also youngest ever to complete a career Grand Slam — winning the Open Championship, PGA Championship, Masters and US Open in the course of a career — and beating Jack Nicklaus’ record by two years.
He went on to complete the “Tiger Slam” – holding all four major championships simultaneously, as this Open Championship was preceded by the 2000 US Open at Pebble Beach (winning by a record 15 shots) and then followed by the 2000 PGA Championship at Valhalla and the 2001 Masters at Augusta National.
Woods became the sixth to win the US Open and the Open Championship in the same year, joining fellow Americans –Bobby Jones (1926, 1930), Gene Sarazen (1932), Ben Hogan (1953), Lee Trevino (1971) and Tom Watson (1982). Woods also became the second player after Nicklaus to win both an Open Championship at St Andrews and a US Open at Pebble Beach. One other noteworthy statistic from Tiger’s Open win in 2000 — at no point did he ever find his ball snared by one of the bunkers at the Old Course.
In a word — brilliant.
Tom Watson / 2009 / Turnberry
What would have been the most unbelievable golf story of all-time came ever so close to happening.
Five-time Open winner Tom Watson displayed vintage golf throughout the event and the 59-year-old was seeking to become the first golfer to have secured a major championship title after reaching 50.
Watson had won at Turnberry previously in his memorable “Duel in the Sun” encounter with Jack Nicklaus in 1977.
The American’s last major win had come in the Open in 1983 when claiming the Claret Jug at Royal Birkdale.
Watson secured the outright lead after a birdie on the penultimate par-5 hole. Needing just a par on the final hole to secure his record-tying sixth Open title, his 8-iron approach hit the green but took a hard bounce before coming to rest just over the back of the green.
Watson’s winning par-putt failed miserably to find the hole and the resulting bogey pushed him into a four-hole aggregate playoff against Stewart Cink.
The playoff was anticlimactic. Watson reverted to being an ageing golfer. With no remaining energy to push onward, it was Cink who ultimately prevailed. For 71 plus holes Watson was on the precipice in achieving the greatest triumph in sports history. And when the midnight hour struck, the Cinderella story ended.
Phil Mickelson / 2013 / Muirfield
The attainment of the famed Claret Jug seemed to be out of reach for Mickelson. The talented left-hander had long questioned if he had the capacity to play links golf at the elite level via the Open Championship.
Coming into the 2013 event at Muirfield, Mickelson had again failed to secure a final round lead late during the final round of the US Open held at Merion. Many questions faced Mickelson when arriving in Scotland.
Starting the final round five shots behind leader Lee Westwood, Mickelson scored a superlative 66 capped with two closing birdies at the par-5 17th and par-4 18th holes.
The win bolstered Mickelson’s standing and he added a final exclamation point when returning to the winner’s circle in a major event when becoming the first 50-year-old in winning the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah.
The win at Muirfield remains the most notable win in Phil’s talented and turbulent career.
Henrik Stenson & Phil Mickelson / 2016 / Royal Troon
The clash between Sweden’s Henrik Stenson and America’s Phil Mickelson was a remarkable tussle given the low scoring each man demonstrated.
The event jumpstarted with Mickelson having an 18-foot putt for birdie on the 18th during the first round for a record round of 62 in a major championship. The putt barely missed.
But that was only the start of the fireworks that would happen at Royal Troon.
The two golfers would separate themselves from the rest of the field and entering the final round it was Stenson who led by one.
In what earned instant acclaim as one of the greatest final-round duels in major championship history, Stenson broke the aggregate scoring record for all majors while establishing a new Open Championship record on his way to his first career major win.
In the final pairing with Mickelson, Stenson began the round with a one-shot advantage. Mickelson quickly jumped into the lead with a birdie at the first while Stenson three-putted for bogey. Stenson rebounded with five birdies on the front nine while Mickelson recorded a birdie and an eagle at the par-5 fourth, giving Stenson back a one-shot lead at the turn.
Both birdied the tenth, then Stenson made bogey at the eleventh and they were tied again. Both parred the next two holes, then Stenson recorded three consecutive birdies, including a 51-foot putt from off the green on the 15th to open up a two-shot lead. Mickelson narrowly missed an eagle putt on the 16th while Stenson got up and down from the greenside rough for a birdie to maintain the advantage.
With another birdie at the 18th, Stenson tied the major championship scoring record at 63 (−8). Runner-up Mickelson shot 267 to equal the previous Open record set by Greg Norman in 1983. Eleven strokes behind Mickelson in solo third was J.B. Holmes at 278 (−6).
Many had long believed the epic clash between Nicklaus and Watson at Turnberry in 1977 could never be exceeded for the sheer golf skills demonstrated.
The Stenson / Mickelson battle clearly rates with it.
Shane Lowry (2019) / Royal Portrush
Only once in the history of the Open Championship had the game’s oldest event been played outside of England or Scotland. That lone time came in 1951 when Royal Portrush served in the host role.
The Northern Ireland layout returned to center stage when hosting the 2019 championship.
Much was expected of countryman Rory McIlroy given his stature in the game and his long-time involvement with Portrush having set the previous course record before turning professional.
But McIlroy started poorly with an opening tee shot that sailed out-of-bounds, resulting in a quadruple bogey eight on the first hole and 79 score. Even with a second round 65, McIlroy failed to secure a weekend time frame when missing the cut.
The honor of Ireland fell upon the shoulders of Shane Lowry.
Lowry demonstrated superior shotmaking — setting the new course record of 63 – post 2016 renovation — and going into the final round with a four-shot lead.
Lowry scored a final round 72 and with that a six-shot win. The euphoria and emotions rose to a crescendo when an Irishman hoisted the famed Claret Jug on native soil.
Related: The ten most impactful Opens since World War II
M. James Ward
A long-time member of both the GWAA and MGWA. The 68-year-old has covered all facets in golf since 1980 — including reporting on over 100 major championships and 13 Ryder Cup matches. His writings have appeared in various outlets. On a personal level, has played over 2,000 courses globally and is lead reviewer for Top 100 Golf Courses.
Previously served for 17 years as national course rating panelist for Golf Digest. Has also personally competed in USGA Championships. Resides in the metro New York City area with his wife Celeste. Favorite quote paraphrased for golf — “You are what your golf score says you are.”