Had golf fans been told after the 1998 Open Championship that one player inside the top 10 would still be winning PGA Tour events 27 years later, it is likely that many would have assumed that it would be Tiger Woods approaching three decades of dominance.
Tiger Woods posted a 66 on Sunday at Royal Birkdale to end up in third place. It was his second lowest round of the week in Southport. However, a round of 77 on Saturday put paid to his hopes of winning a second major title.
Woods reached the halfway stage at the 1998 Open Championship tied for second alongside Nick Price and an amateur by the name of Justin Rose.
The English teenager had tied the record for the lowest score by an amateur at The Open with his 66 on Friday. Woods was one of the players who already held that record.
The story of Justin Rose’s incredible performance as an amateur at the 1998 Open Championship
Like Woods, Rose struggled in the treacherous conditions during the third round. His 75 left him five shots off the lead with one round to play.
Of course, one of the most iconic shots of Rose’s career would come in the final round. The 17-year-old holed his approach from the rough on the 72nd hole for birdie to prompt one of the loudest crowd reactions The Open Championship has ever seen.
Rose could only raise his arms and look to the heavens, almost in sheer disbelief at what he had managed to do. It was a moment which hinted that golf had found another superstar – even if it took the 2013 US Open champion some time to find his feet as a professional.
He would finish that week in a tie for fourth and as the low amateur; one shot back of Tiger Woods. Remarkably, it would prove to be Rose’s best finish in The Open Championship until he finished tied for second to Francesco Molinari in 2018.
How the 1998 Open Championship was decided
Like Rose’s victory at the FedEx St. Jude Championship this past week, the 1998 Open Championship was decided in a playoff.
Mark O’Meara had won The Masters earlier in the year. And a 68 in the final round at Birkdale saw him end up tied with Brian Watts.
Watts had a fascinating career, with the majority of his 13 professional wins coming on the Japan Golf Tour. He went into the 1998 Open having missed the cut at six of his previous eight major appearances.
Watts started the final round with a two shot lead. However, he needed some brilliance in the final couple of holes to force his way into the playoff. O’Meara was one of those who applauded his countryman after a sublime bunker shot on the 72nd hole.
It would be O’Meara who triumphed over the additional four holes. He made a birdie on the first, while Watts ended up one over par after a bogey on the final hole.
Incredibly, O’Meara’s wins at The Masters and The Open Championship would prove to be the last of his PGA Tour career. In fact, he would register just one more top 10 in the majors for the remainder of his career.