The Duel in the Sun between Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus at Turnberry in 1997 has been voted The Open's greatest finish in Glenmorangie's vote
1977 Duel in the Sun Crowned The Open's Greatest Finish
After two months of voting for The Open's greatest finish, Glenmorangie, The Spirit of The Open, has announced that 1977's Duel in the Sun came up trumps.
The Duel in the Sun saw two of the game's greats, Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus, go toe-to-toe over the final 36 holes which Watson won by a stroke.
Watson's 65, to Nicklaus' 66, saw him end at 12-under-par, one clear of Nicklaus and 11 clear of third placed Herbert Green.
This comes immediately after the 2016 Open where Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson's battle was compared to 1977 at Turnberry.
Stenson shot a final round 63, to Mickelson's 65, to win by three strokes. It was the best final round score in a major by a winner as the Swede finished 14 shots clear of third placed JB Holmes.
Marc Hoellinger, President and CEO of The Glenmorangie Company, commented: “We have been delighted with the public’s reaction to this debate. The Open’s Greatest Finishes campaign has seized the imagination of golf aficionados worldwide and sparked a lot of interesting conversations. We at Glenmorangie know all about great finishes through our award-winning whisky and recognise the ‘Duel In the Sun’ to be well-deserving of the title of The Open’s Greatest Finish.”
Full breakdown of The Open’s Greatest Finishes:
1970, St Andrews - Jack Nicklaus defeats Doug Sanders by a single stroke in their mammoth 18-hole play off
1972, Muirfield - Lee Trevino lands his second Open title in a tight finish ahead of Tony Jacklin and Jack Nicklaus , chipping in on the penultimate hole to secure a crucial par
1977, Turnberry – Tom Watson edges out Jack Nicklaus in a titanic battle forever referred to as the ‘Duel in the Sun’
1984, St. Andrews – Seve Ballesteros ends the challenge of Tom Watson by holing a magic 15ft putt on the 18th before rejoicing with the iconic fist pump celebration
1995, St. Andrews – Constantino Rocca produced one of the truly great shots in the history of The Open at the 72nd hole of The Open, sinking an uphill put from the edge of the green to force a play-off with John Daly
1999, Carnoustie – Jean Van De Velde's meltdown, wasting a three-shot advantage on the final hole which included visiting the Barry Burn before losing in a three-way play-off to Paul Lawrie
2000, St. Andrews – Tiger Woods completes the career Grand Slam by obliterating a stellar field to win by eight shots, breaking a multitude of records in the process
2007, Carnoustie – Padraig Harrington comes from six shots behind on the final day to defeat Sergio Garcia in a four-hole playoff after Sergio fails to make a par on the 18th
2009, Turnberry – 59-year-old Tom Watson wound back the clock and set up a golfing fairytale with a putt to win his sixth open, to the distress of all he missed and duly lost out in a four-hole play-off to Stewart Cink
2013, Muirfield – Phil Mickelson charged through the field, posting a round of 66 on the final day, which in included four fantastic birdies in the final six holes
