Having watched some of the world's best golfers struggle around the course, I was wondering if it's good for golf or not.

What would you rather have, only a handful of players breaking par for the four days, or the winner being twenty under par?

It was nice to see the players not having it their own way, but some of them just didn't seem to be with it!

And the world's top two golfer missing the cut, who would have thought that!

Ricky Fowler is looking like a future bet for the Open, as he seems to have the game to play on a links course.

So, go on then, make it hard for the pro's or not?

Russ

I had moments where I got a bit bored, strike me down, which may be down to the tough conditions especially when it rained! But watching Darren Clarke the last 2 days made it great for me and once again the final day of the Open lived up to expectations with Mickleson almost on fire and Rickie showing what a true star he will be. Who cares about the world number 1 and 2 missing the cut

Any golf tournament that doesnt need to mention Tiger to get people tuning in is good for golf in the long term.

After watching Rory's post round interview earlier it occured to me that this could be bad for the game, when he was talking about not changing his style of golf for 1 tournament a year. It then dawned on me that the main problem with Links golf is that there isn't enough of it. It is, after all, an integral part of the game and there should be more, yearly tour events played on British links.

RSG played as a par 70 this week so level par was 280. Most courses on Pro Tours today are par 72. DC would then have finished -13 and the 'cut' would have been -1.

It wouldn't change anything, just numbers in a book.

BTW, well done DC.

TheLyth

LOVE IT !  The wind, the rain, the humps and bumps the rock hard greens, the luck of the draw the knee high rough. It all part of the open and long may it remain so.

Thought the rough could have been a bit nearer the fairway. Do they always have a 1st cut on links?

Dave CAC handed Geordie.

It was a true test of golf.  Watching the USPGA snooze fest on Sky at the moment, perfect weather, perfect greens, perfect fairways, a lot of players on -15 upwards - just what kind of challenge is that?  They drive the ball 300 yards plus and then wedge it to the green.  Par 5's are shoe-in birdies.  Miss the fairway and it's an inconvenience not a punishment.

Compare that to the open, where even Dustin Johnson (one of the longest pro's out) was forced to attempt to play a three-shot-to-the green par 5 of around 490 yards into the teeth of a gale.  In his attempt to do this he toed his second OB because he knew he had to drill a low lay-up to get a shot to the green.  Don't get me wrong, I thought he played spectacularly well (and was a true gentleman in defeat) but being forced into a shot he would never have to attempt on the US tour was such a refreshing change from the usual target golf we normally get served up.  Dare I say it, but it made him look as human any one of us.

So why should the pro's have it any easier than the rest of us?  I would rather them seem to be as error prone as us hackers, and it's much a more of a test of professionalism to be able to adapt to conditions than having it handed to them on a plate.  DC adapted and won, simple as that.   

For me, it was great for golf.

Watching them mess up through poor club/shot selection, poor acounting of the conditions was great.

They aren't machines! They are flesh and blood just like us normal golfers!

Even showed that the winner needed luck on his side occasionaly.

Easy golf is boring golf.

For me the Open was proper golf. I like the fact that the worlds #1 & #2 didn't make the cut. i don''t think the majority of golf fans want to see target golf in perfect conditions, they want to see players struggle, be forced out of their confort zone and play shots they wouldn't normally have to.

As sat morning hackers that's what seperates them from us surely - they should be able to take on the conditions much better than us (saying that my 15 over in the worst of the weather yesterday  may have got me in the top 50!).

I can't say I was envious of those guys battling it out in the wind or the rain, but from the comfort of my warm sofa it was the most enjoyable tournament since the ryder cup; a similarly soggy battle of the worlds best golfers.

As Ernie Els stated in the lead up to the weekend there is much more enjoyment for player and spectator in a course where an even par is a good result, I'm looking forward to reading his reflections from the weekend on his website, no doubt dissapointed in his result but playing with the youngs guns of fowler and mcilroy must have been fun.

Congratulations of course go to Darrren for a well deserved win but for me the best of the weekends viewing was watching Tom Watson strolling the course with a beaming smile from tee to green despite the appalling conditions; a man who truly loves playing the game and can still compete with the best into his sixties.

I was lucky enough to go on two days, the Friday and the Sunday. I mostly followed the Rory, Ricky and Ernie group on the Friday, and spent most of Sunday in the grandstand behind the 16th green.

I am definitely in the camp that likes to see players being inventive with their shotmaking. Fowler seemed to relish the shotmaking side of links golf, which was good to see in a young American.

Totally agree with Steve about Tom Watson. He was the highlight for me too, especially watching him from a couple of feet away warming up on the practice ground on the Sunday. Great swing and tempo.

Watson's play also highlighted the worst part of The Open for me: pace of play. On one occasion I timed how long both him and Immelman (his Sunday partner) took from the moment they teed up to the moment they struck the ball. Watson took 12 seconds, Immelman took 32. Seems the nicer the weather the longer players spend over shots. Play was markedly quicker on the Saturday. Watson, however, played at the same pace regardless of the weather.

Stu Govan complaining about the pace of play, I've heard it all now

32 secs......that's about 10mins quicker then you (so I've heard!) http://www.golfshake.com/scripts/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/shades_smile.gif
" title="cool" />

Floody I have speeded up and am now Golfshake's Mr Fast.

(I can see this thread going off-topic...)

Mr FAST, is that an anagram for

Fatigue

After

Stuarts

Tee shot

Mr FAST, is that an anagram for

Fatigue

After

Stuarts

Tee shot

For me it was golf how it should be, I also agree with the 'who cares' if the world no. 1 & 2 miss the cut.

When the players are scoring really well you do not get to see any of the shots they play apart from the birie putts on the greens because there are so many of them, who wants to spend hours just watching putts roll in?