Throughout The Open’s history, Carnoustie has staged some of the most dramatic and era-defining moments in the annals of the tournament. One glorious example of this was The 104th Open in 1975 – when the winner of the Claret Jug had to be decided in a tense 18-hole playoff.
Tom Watson and Jack Newton were even on the scorecard after 72 holes – both on -9, this meant the two would face off in a playoff for the Championship.
Tom Watson, the American in his Open debut. Jack Newton an Australian making his fifth Open appearance. Both players were 25 years old at the time and they both stood on the edge of history at the beginning of the playoff.
The conditions at Carnoustie were tough, with rain and high winds adding another layer of difficulty to the task ahead of the young players.
Throughout the day’s play, the fans who could attend witnessed the two battle it out, trading the lead and playing some outstanding golf.
The playoff was decided at the last hole. As Tom Watson held his nerve to put pressure on Newton’s final putt. Sadly for Newton, he was just wide of the hole as he realised his chance of winning The Open for that year had passed him by.
By winning, Tom Watson had followed in the footsteps of Ben Hogan (1953) and Tony Lema (1964) as the only winners of The Open on debut since WWII.
It was the last 18-hole play-off in The Open, with a four-hole format later adopted, while Carnoustie would have to wait until 1999 to host again.
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7 Comments
Did You Know: Jack Newton played this entire tournament with a severe ankle injury, which required strapping and injections at the start of every day’s play.
Big fan of Watson's caddy just chilling at 3:48 😂
Jack Newton was a brilliant player ,, career cut short by a serious accident..a brilliant player..
For me golf was never better than it was in the 1970s. That era was the peak of the game — the ideal balance of great players, proper equipment, and course setups.
TIMMY !!!
I still think that all majors should have a 18 hole play-off.
What a great upload from the Open thanks very much for this. Really enjoyed watching Tom Watson win his first Open and Jack Newton who was clearly a cracking golfer before his unfortunate accident.