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Famous past Opens at St Andrews

Author: Lynda Collins
Date: 15/07/2010
Golf betting

The Open Championship heads back to St Andrews for the first time since 2005, with world number one Tiger Woods boosted by two past successes at the Home of Golf.

Woods has struggled for form since his return to the game after a self-imposed exile, but the 14-time Major champion has been triumphant the last two times that The Open headed to the famous Old Course.

Five years ago Woods led from the start, with a first-round 66 setting him up for a comfortable five-shot victory, while a second-round 67 pushed him to 11-under par at the halfway stage.

The weekend saw the American great shoot more static rounds of 71 and 70, but that proved to be enough, with home favourite Colin Montgomerie unable to mount a serious challenge and having to settle for second place.

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Five years earlier, runaway online betting favourite Woods celebrated magnificent eight-shot success, as he became the youngest golfer ever to win all four of Major championships and only the fifth player to achieve that feat.

This time Woods had to wait until the halfway mark to start his dominance, with Ernie Els leading the field after round one.

Woods was 11-under par after 36 holes after rounds of 67 and 66 and he added a further 67 and a 69 at the weekend to surge well clear of Els and Thomas Bjorn and end on 19 under par, a record for all Major championships.

Prior to Woods' two triumphs at St Andrews, America had enjoyed success in 1995 when the colourful John Daly emerged victorious after a play-off against Italy's Constantino Rocca.

Rocca made most of the headlines with an astonishing long-range putt from the Valley of Sin on the final hole which dropped in to force a play-off, but Daly was not to be denied and was always on top in a four-hole play-off.

The last British golfer to win at St Andrews was Nick Faldo two decades ago, with the Englishman finishing 18-under par and five shots clear of the field to win his second Open title.

Faldo shot a one-under par final round of 71, having forged clear of the pack by shooting 67, 65 and 67 in his first three rounds.

Faldo's long-term Ryder Cup colleague Seve Ballesteros took the honours in 1984, while past winners at St Andrews include greats such as Bobby Locke, Peter Thomson and Jack Nicklaus - who won two of his record 18 Major titles at St Andrews.

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