Royal Troon’s Old Course was founded in 1878, expanded to 18 holes 10 years later and re-designed by five-time Champion Golfer James Braid ahead of its first Open in 1923. This month it will host its tenth Open Championship, with the star-studded field hoping to join the likes of Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson and Bobby Loclke as champions at the iconic property.
1. Royal Status
In addition to being a key venue on The Open rota, Royal Troon stands out as the only golf club in Great Britain to receive Royal status during Queen Elizabeth II’s long reign.
2. Longer
Overall, the course will play 195 yards longer this year compared to 2016 when Sweden’s Henrik Stenson held off Phil Mickelson in one of the greatest duels in Open history.
3. Longest hole in history
The sixth hole will measure a whopping 623 yards, making it the longest hole in Open Championship history.
4. Stamp Duty!
The field is faced with one of the shortest holes with the iconic par-three Postage Stamp eighth potentially coming in at 99 yards with a forward tee and pin positioned close to the front of the green.
5. Crowd Appeal
This year’s total attendance is expected to be 250,000 — the third highest for an Open, behind only the 150th Open at St Andrews in 2022 and the 261,180 who attended Royal Liverpool last year.
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6. Going low
Six of the nine Opens at Royal Troon have been wonder by double digit scores under par.
7. Record Memory
Mickelson and Stenson share the course record after both men carded 63 at the 2016 Open Championship.
Pete Cowen talks about how Stenson’s 2016 Open was unbeatable
https://worldwide.golf/columns/the-official-pete-cowen-column-open-focus/
