Carnoustie Golf Links is in Carnoustie,

Angus, Scotland Angus ( sco, Angus; gd, Aonghas) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross. Main industries include ...

. Carnoustie has four courses – the historic Championship Course, the Burnside Course, the Buddon Links Course and a free-to-play short, five-hole course called The Nestie. Carnoustie Golf Links is one of the venues in the Open Championship rotation and has hosted golf's oldest major on eight occasions ( 1931,

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into ...

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito is chosen President of Yugosl ...

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * J ...

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

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), as well as the Senior Open Championship in

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and 2016 and the

Women's British Open The Women's Open (originally known as the Women's British Open, and still widely referred to by that name outside the UK) is a major championship in women's professional golf. It is recognised by both the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour ...

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrates ...

and

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History

Golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

is recorded as having been played at Carnoustie in the early 16th century. In 1890, the 14th

Earl of Dalhousie Earl of Dalhousie, in the County of Midlothian, is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, held by the Chief of Clan Ramsay. History The family descends from Sir George Ramsay, who represented Kincardineshire in the Scottish Parliament in 1617 ...

, who owned the land, sold the links to the local authority. It had no funds to acquire the property, and public fundraising was undertaken and donated to the council. The original course was of ten holes, crossing and recrossing the Barry Burn; it was designed by Allan Robertson, assisted by

Old Tom Morris Thomas Mitchell Morris (16 June 1821 – 24 May 1908), otherwise known as Old Tom Morris, and The Grand Old Man of Golf, was a Scottish golfer. He was born in St Andrews, Fife, the "home of golf" and location of the St Andrews Links, and died ...

, and opened in 1842. The opening of the coastal railway from

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( gd, Obar Bhrothaig ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the council area of Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast some ENE of Dundee and SSW of Aberdeen. Th ...

in 1838 brought an influx of golfers from as far afield as

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, anxious to tackle the ancient links. This led to a complete restructuring of the course, extended in 1867 by

to the 18 holes which had meanwhile become standardized. Young Tom Morris won a major open event there that same year. Two additional courses have since been added: the Burnside Course and the shorter though equally testing Buddon Links. Carnoustie first played host to

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later t ...

in 1931, after modifications to the course by James Braid in 1926. The winner then was Tommy Armour, from

. Later Open winners at Carnoustie include Henry Cotton of

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in 1937,

Ben Hogan William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory an ...

of the USA in 1953, Gary Player of

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in 1968, Tom Watson of the USA in 1975, Paul Lawrie of

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, Pádraig Harrington of

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and Francesco Molinari of Italy in 2018. The 1975, 1999 and 2007 editions were all won in playoffs. The Championship course was modified significantly (but kept its routing used since 1926) prior to the 1999 Open, with all bunkers being rebuilt, many bunkers both added and eliminated, many green complexes expanded and enhanced, and several new tees being built. A large hotel was also built behind the 18th green of the Championship course.

The Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship (sometimes referred to as the British Amateur or British Amateur Championship outside the UK) is a golf tournament which has been held annually in the United Kingdom since 1885 except during the two World Wars, and in 19 ...

was first hosted by Carnoustie in 1947; the winner was

Willie Turnesa William P. Turnesa (January 20, 1914 – June 16, 2001) was an American amateur golfer, best known for winning two U.S. Amateur titles and the British Amateur. He was one of seven famous golfing brothers; Phil (1896-1987), Frank (1898-1949), ...

. The world's oldest amateur event has returned three times since: 1966 (won by Bobby Cole), 1971 (won by

Steve Melnyk Steven Nicholas Melnyk (born February 26, 1947) is a former American professional golfer and golf sportscaster best known for his success as an amateur golfer. Melnyk won both the U.S. Amateur and British Amateur. Early years Melnyk was born ...

), and 1992 (won by Stephen Dundas). The

British Ladies Amateur The Women's Amateur Championship, previously known as the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship, was founded in 1893 by the Ladies' Golf Union. It is organised by The R&A, which merged with the Ladies' Golf Union in 2017. Until the dawn of th ...

was first hosted by Carnoustie in 1973, and also in 2012. The Senior Open Championship was held at Carnoustie for the first time in 2010, with

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's Bernhard Langer winning. The

was held here for the first time in

; the winner was

Yani Tseng Yani Tseng (; born 23 January 1989) is a Taiwanese professional golfer playing on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She is the youngest player ever, male or female, to win five major championships and was ranked number 1 in the Women's World Golf Ran ...

. Carnoustie is one of the three courses hosting the

Alfred Dunhill Links Championship The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship is one of the richest golf tournaments on the European Tour. It is played in September, on three different links courses, centred on the "home of golf", St Andrews in Fife, Scotland. The tournament is a p ...

, an autumn event on the European Tour; the others are the

Old Course at St Andrews The Old Course at St Andrews, also known as the Old Lady or the Grand Old Lady, is considered the oldest golf course. It is a public course over common land in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland and is held in trust by the St Andrews Links Trust under ...

and

Kingsbarns Kingsbarns is a village and parish in Scotland lies near the eastern coast of Fife, in an area known as the East Neuk, southeast of St Andrews and north of Crail. The name derives from the area being the location of the barns used to store ...

. The Golf Channel's reality series ''

The Big Break ''The Big Break'' is a reality television program broadcast by the Golf Channel. The show's premise was to award an aspiring professional golfer exemptions into selected events or full-season exemptions on lower-level tours. The series debuted on ...

'', in which aspiring golfers compete for exemptions on professional tours and other prizes, filmed its fourth season at Carnoustie in 2005. As that year also saw the

Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...

The K Club The Kildare Hotel and Golf Club (abbreviated The K Club) is a golf and leisure complex in the Republic of Ireland, located at Straffan, County Kildare. It is built on the original grounds of the Straffan estate, incorporating the 1830s Straffan ...

, that year's show was based around a US vs Europe theme, with the two teams competing for European Tour exemptions. In

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, the course is nicknamed "Car-nasty," due to its famous difficulty, especially under adverse weather conditions. Carnoustie is considered to be the most difficult course in the

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rota, and one of the toughest courses in the world. The 1999 Open Championship is best remembered for the collapse of

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

golfer Jean van de Velde, who needed only a double-bogey six on the 72nd hole to win the Open—and proceeded to score a triple-bogey seven, tying Paul Lawrie and

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champion Justin Leonard at 290 (+6). Lawrie won the four-hole aggregate playoff and the championship. The Open Championship was once again contested at Carnoustie in July

. The eight-year absence was far shorter than the lengthy 24 years it took to return to Carnoustie, between 1975 and 1999. Harrington triumphed over García in a four-hole playoff. The 18th hole once again proved itself among the most dramatic and exciting in championship golf. Harrington had a one-shot lead over García as he approached the final hole in the fourth round, but proceeded to put not one but two shots into the Barry Burn, on his way to a double-bogey 6. García, playing in the final pairing of the day, reached the 18th with a one-shot lead over Harrington, but bogeyed the hole after missing a putt from just under ten feet away, setting up the playoff. In the four-hole playoff, which ended on the 18th, Harrington took no chances with a two-shot lead on the 18th; his bogey was enough to defeat García by one shot. The Open Championship returned to Carnoustie in 2018, where Francesco Molinari became the first Italian major winner, and Europe's third consecutive Open champion at Carnoustie. Molinari's final round was a bogey-free 69, which saw off challenges from several players including past champions

Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in PGA Tour wins, ranks second in men's major championships, and holds numerous golf records. * * * Woods is widely regarded as ...

and

Rory McIlroy Rory Daniel McIlroy (born 4 May 1989) is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland who is a member of both the European and PGA Tours. He is the current world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking, and has spent over 100 weeks in ...

. On 17 January 2014, Carnoustie Golf Links appointed its first-ever female chairman, Pat Sawers. Carnoustie Golf Links won the title of World's Best Golf Course 2019 at the World Golf Awards, Abu Dhabi.

The Open Championship

This is a list of

champions at Carnoustie Golf Links: *Note: For multiple winners of The Open Championship, superscript ordinal identifies which in their respective careers.

The Women's British Open

Winners of the

at Carnoustie Golf Links.

The Senior Open

Winner of The Senior Open Championship at Carnoustie Golf Links.

Course

Championship Course

Championship scorecard (as of August 2021):Carnoustie Golf Links, Championship Course
/ref> Lengths of the course for previous Opens (since 1930): *

: , par 71 *

: , par 72 *

: , par 72 * 1931 : , par 72 The 12th hole was played as a par-5 in 1975, and the 18th hole was played as a par-5 in previous Opens (1931−1968). Length of the course for

: , par 72 *

: , par 71 Length of the course for Senior Open Championship * 2016: , par 72 *

: , par 71

Course record

Scorecard

: * The course was par 72 at , with the 12th hole as a par 5 at .

Burnside Course

Buddon Links Course

References

External links

* * {{coord, 56.497, N, 2.717, W, type:landmark, display=title Golf clubs and courses in Angus, Scotland The Open Championship venues 1850 establishments in Scotland Sports venues completed in 1850