The 139th Open Championship from the Old Course at St. Andrews

Open Championship week begins today and judging by the tweets of players like Ian Poulter and Stewart Cink, the 150th anniversary edition is shaping up to be a classic. Following Poulter and Cink via their Twitter accounts, it is easy to see they are already having a blast in the land of kilts and bagpipes.

St. Andrews, “The Home of Golf,” plays host to a championship that was first played before the Civil War had even began. The Open was first played on October 17, 1860 at Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire, Scotland. Back then players used persimmon woods and gutta percha golf balls. Eight Scottish professionals vied for the title with Willie Park Sr. defeating Old Tom Morris by two strokes. Now the field is made up of 156 players from countries all over the globe including Japan, Argentina, Spain, South Africa, South Korea, and the United States. Persimmon woods and gutta percha balls only make appearances at museums or old time hickory stick competitions.

As this year’s players pack up their graphite shafted, 460cc titanium drivers and 3 piece golf balls and catch their charter flights to the UK, I eagerly await what is not only my favorite golf major, but my favorite golf tournament. What makes, as we Americans generally call it, the British Open so special to me? Pinpointing one particular aspect is difficult.

As a history buff, I cannot help but be attracted to a championship that started in the 19th century. But it’s more than that. It is links style golf. We don’t often get to see that style of golf played, especially here in the States. Links golf is about shot making and creativity and not just smashing the golf ball as far as you can. It’s about taking the bad with the good. The course isn’t always fair, but that goes for everyone. How you recover from the bad breaks has a lot to do with how you fair in the tournament.

Bad breaks come from the course itself. A yard to the right and you’re in the fairway. A yard to the left and you’re in fescue up to your waist. But bad breaks also come about due to the weather. Scottish weather. English weather. Seaside, coastal weather. Summer in Scotland can be cool and rainy, and often is the week of the Open. There’s nothing like baking in the hot, pounding summer sun here in America and envying those fans dressed in raingear and holding on to each other for dear life so they don’t blow away. The forecast for this week shows highs in the upper 50s and low 60s with a 50-60% chance of rain each day. I’ve promised my wife that when I watch this week, I won’t turn the air conditioner down to 58 and bundle up with a fleece while sipping hot tea. But I’ve thought about it.

The Open Championship is all of these things. It’s hearing Scottish fiddle music played as the TV network goes to break. It’s hearing Ivor Robson, the official starter of the Open, introduce the players at the first tee in his unique style. It’s having tournaments at places called Royal St. George’s, Royal Lytham & St. Anne’s, Carnoustie, and Royal Birkdale. It’s seeing fans eating their fish & chips and devouring massive amounts of ice cream while strolling the windswept links. It’s getting up at 5 a.m. here in Virginia to watch the opening round from Scotland live.

The Open Championship is all of these things and much more. So enjoy this week of golf as Stewart Cink gets set to defend his Open title and Ian Poulter stalks the Claret Jug like a lion. Enjoy this week for it is special – the 139th Open Championship at St. Andrews.