Everything you always wanted to know about the Open, but didn’t know who to ask.

In our constant search for the downright stupid, odd and generally beguiling, we stumbled across these little gems to get your golfing juices going. That just sounds wrong.

The oldest winner was Old Tom Morris in 1867 who was 46. The youngest was Young Tom Morris in 1868, who was 17. They were father and son. We could dedicate an entire website to the Toms (we’ll do a blog just on them soon, amazing men), but some little snippets to whet your appetite; in 1869 they finished father and son first and second in the Open. Young Tom has the first ever recorded hole-in-one. When Young Tom died, on Christmas Day aged 24, only months after his wife and baby died in childbirth, Old Tom said “People say he died of a broken heart; but if that was true, I wouldn’t be here either.” He outlived his son by 30 years.

St. Andrews has hosted the Open 27 times.

The original prize for the winner was a posh leather belt, but when Young Tom Morris won the tournament three times running he was eligible to keep it for good. So the organisers came up with the idea of the Claret Jug, funded by each of the three original host courses (Prestwick, Musselburgh and St. Andrews). So he won that too, but it wasn’t ready and he had to have a gold medal instead. In 1928 a replica of the Jug was made for the presentations; the original is on permanent display at the R&A clubhouse, along with the leather belt, which the Morris family donated back.

The biggest winning margin was 13 shots, and the next biggest margin 12 shots. Yes, you guessed it, Messrs Morris & Morris.

The first 29 British Opens were all won by Scots. Then there were no Scottish winners until Sandy Lyle in 1985 and Paul Lawrie in 1999. Alba gu bra. (six GoKart golf balls for the first one to translate!)

The first time the Open came to England was at St. George’s in 1894, and was won for the first time by an Englishman, John Henry Taylor. Henry Cotton won there twice, but Scotland triumphed again with Lyle’s victory in 1985. It’s back again in 2011 and we’re already excited (it’s very close to GKHQ).

Lee Trevino (the man is just a walking quote…) on Birkdale; “At fifteen, we put down my bag to look for a ball – found the ball, lost the bag.”

According to one Times’ journalist the clubhouse looks like the main terminal of Entebbe airport. We don’t know about that but we’ve played the course and its truly wonderful, a real test. Get in the wrong bunker and you may as well try and hit it close with the rake.

Tom Watson on links golf – “The key to British links golf is the word ‘frustration’. You can hit the perfect shot and, all of a sudden, it will bounce straight right, or, for no apparent reason jump beyond the hole…If I played over here for four straight weeks I’d be a raving lunatic.”