The 1999 Open Championship will forever be an image burned into the collective memories of the golfing population. Ask anyone about the Open Championship, and the first word to jump into their minds will likely be Van de Velde.

With the Open Championship returning to Carnoustie in 2007, many people insist in reliving each step of Van de Velde’s historic collapse on Carnoustie’s difficult par 4 18th hole. However, the course has a rich history and tradition that extends far beyond the 1999 Open Championship. Taking a brief glance at some of the past Open Champions who have been awarded the Claret Jug at Carnoustie, one would pass over such legends as Tommy Armour, Gary Player, Tom Watson, and Ben Hogan. Read on for a brief glimpse into some of these champions and a brief look at Carnoustie and its history.

1931 – Tommy Armour

Tommy Armour’s incredible golfing history is eclipsed only by his personal story. Armour was born and raised in Edinburgh Scotland. While in college in Edinburgh, World War I began and Armour enlisted in the Scottish Tank Corps. Armour rose from the rank of private to Staff Major thanks to his ability as the fastest gunner in the Corps and feats of heroism such as killing a German officer with his bare hands after his tank had been reduced to rubble. After being hit with mustard gas, Armour lost his left eye and while recovering, found golf as a method for rehabilitation. Armour’s strength was just as famous as his heroism, he was rumored to be able to hold the tip of a pool cue at length with only his thumb and forefinger. After becoming close friends with Walter Hagen, Armour moved to the U.S. and turned professional.

 Tommy Armour had already won the U.S. Open in 1930 when he returned back to Scotland for the 1931 Open Championship at Carnoustie. When the final round began, Armour was five shots behind Jose Jurado of Argentina. The fact that Armour shot the course record of 71 to catch and pass Jurado fit Armour’s personality and story like a glove. However, there is more to the finish than that. The truth is, before there was Jean Van de Velde, there was Jose Jurado. At the 17th hole, Jurardo hit his second shot into the burn and finished with a six. He needed a four at the last to tie Armour for the lead, but not realizing this, he layed up short of the burn and pitched onto the green taking a five. Regardless, Armour’s tremendous play in the final round will always be one of the greatest come back stories in the history of golf.

1975 – Tom Watson

Tom Watson may well be the best links golfer of the modern era. He has won five Open Championships, including the first one he ever entered at Carnoustie Golf Links. Early in his career, Watson was dubbed as a guy who couldn’t close the deal due to his failures in final rounds of the U.S. Open. Although he didn’t have the 54 hole lead at Carnoustie, after the final round, he would not have to bear that image any more.

Scoring conditions were initially very mild at Carnoustie. Warm weather and sunshine lead to low scoring in the first round. Jack Nicklaus was in second place, with Watson four shots behind the leaders. Rain during the second round lead to even lower scoring. However, going into the final round, the weather and the leaderboard changed dramatically. Watson trailed Bobby Cole by three strokes and as the wind began to howl, and players began to struggle. Jack Nicklaus carded an early 72 to set the clubhouse lead at 280, but that would quickly fall when Watson birdied the 18th and became the new leader at 279 for four days. The only two with a chance to catch him were still on the course. Bobby Cole was unable to convert on his birdie putt to tie, but Jack Newton sunk his par putt to tie Tom Watson’s score of 279. This setup a full eighteen hole playoff the next day.

Watson and Newton traded the lead back and forth throughout the day, with a barrage of birdies, eagles, and bogies. Going into the 18th, both were tied. On their approaches, Watson found the green, while Newton found the right hand bunker. Newton’s bunker shot went long and Watson was able to two putt to collect his first of five Open Championships.

1968 – Gary Player

With his heroic flair and gentleman’s demeanor on course, Gary Player earned the name "Black Knight" and has revelled in it ever since. The South African has travelled over 14 million miles and has become golf’s world wide ambassador. Player is one of golf’s elite, having won the career grand slam and his trophy case contains three Claret Jugs.  Player also holds the unique distinction as the only golfer to ever win the Open Championship in three different decades (1959, 1968, and 1974). Player’s second Open Championship title came at Carnoustie in 1968.

Carnoustie’s difficult layout and conditions traditionally has created tightly packed leader boards and 1968 was no exception. After two rounds, Gary Player was in a tie for third with Jack Nicklaus, and when the final round began, the two golfing legends would battle for the Claret Jug. Player took the lead after the sixth hole and although he dropped a shot at the tenth bringing him back in a tie for the lead, the tie would be short  lived. At the par 5 14th hole, Player hit one of the most famous shots in golf history, hitting a fairway wood to inches of the pin for a tap in eagle. However, Player’s impending victory was not without tense moments. Coming into the 18th, Nicklaus was only one shot behind and when Player found the long right hand rough, his chances for the victory appeared to be slipping away. However, Nicklaus hit his approach into a right hand bunker and failed to get up and down, while Player layed up out of the rough and used three more strokes to finish his round winning his second Open Championship victory.

1953 – Ben Hogan

These days it’s hard to imagine professional golf without the Open Championship. However, this was not always the case. Burgeoning trans-Atlantic travel, different rules proposed by the R&A, combined with tremendous expense and meager prize money meant top American players would rarely compete in the Open Championship, even if they were the defending champion. Ben Hogan only played four competitive rounds of golf in Scotland and they combined to form a virtuoso performance for the ages at Carnoustie Golf Links. Tiger Woods impressed golfers everywhere in 2000 by not hitting into a single bunker at St. Andrews, but that performance pales in comparison to Hogan’s at Carnoustie. Throughout the entire tournament, not once did Hogan’s ball find the treacherous Carnoustie rough, without a doubt one of the greatest ball striking performances in history.

Hogan was urged to play in the Open Championship by Tommy Armour and Walter Hagen, and challenge himself against a new type of golf. Just four years before, Hogan’s life had nearly ended in a head-on car accident with a bus, but Hogan climbed his way back to the top and the Open Championship at Carnoustie would be the d’enouement of his landmark 1953 season. Hogan had already won the Masters, U.S. Open (played at Oakmont), and three other tournaments before he set foot in Scotland determined to become the Open champion. Hogan impressed the Scots tremendously, affectionately earning the nickname, "Wee Ice Man" for his calculating demeanor and perfectionist attitude.

When play began, Hogan struggled to adapt to the hard Scottish fairways and shaggy greens. His first round 73 combined with a second round 70 in heavy rains and winds placed him well behind the leaders. However, in the third round Hogan caught fire with a 70 that tied him for the lead with Roberto De Vicenzo. On the long 565 yard par 5 6th, most players layed up with iron off the tee. However, in all four rounds, Hogan hit driver, avoiding the treacherous bunkers and out of bounds along the left hand side. To this day, the 6th fairway is still called "Hogan’s Alley." Hogan capitalized on this position in the final round, playing a three wood to the edge of the green and two putting for birdie. With another birdie on the 17th, Hogan had sealed his victory at the Open Championship with a 68 and perhaps the greatest season in golf history.