Lifetime love affair (Part One)

"I will be thinking a little bit about it but I wont tell her that."

Those were the words of Tom Watson as he announced that for only the third time in 32 years he would not be playing in The Open but instead doing his fatherly duty and walking his daughter Meg down the aisle.

Shoulder injuries kept him away from Lytham in 1996 and Troon in 2004 and, just as he was missed at the Lancashire and Ayrshire venues, the Carnoustie crowds will lament the absence of one of The Open's genuine legends.

Family comes first with Watson but when his job is done and the celebrations start to unfold, you can bet that he will be thinking of Angus as he casts his mind back to where it all began in 1975. Back then, a youthful Watson made his first trip to The Open and promptly defeated Jack Newton in an 18-hole play-off to become only the third American, behind Ben Hogan and Tony Lema, to triumph on debut.

He had never played a links course in his life before and freely admitted that he didn't have a clue what it involved.
However, an opening 71 put him three shots off popular Scottish leader David Huish before a 67 gave him a share of second. Great third rounds from Bobby Cole, Jack Newton and Bobby Miller changed the look of the leaderboard and despite a 69, Watson was fourth going into the final round.

As the winds got up, the contenders began to fall away, and having come from nowhere over the final two days, Jack Nicklaus set the clubhouse lead. Watson, however, had the bit between his teeth and drained a long birdie putt at the 18th to deny the Golden Bear not the last time he would do so in a Major championship.

Newton and Cole, in the group behind, both had the chance to tie the lead with Watson but only Newton stood up to the challenge and they headed into an 18-hole play-off the next day. Throughout that passage of play the lead changed hands until they both stood on the 18th tee level. Watson found the green in two but Newton was in a greenside bunker.

This time there was no choke from Watson, as had happened just a month earlier at Medinah and at Winged Foot the previous year, both in the US Open, and he safely got down in two leaving Newton a 10-foot downhill putt that slipped by the hole and started Watson off on a legendary run.

Four more Open titles followed in 1977, 1980, 1982 and 1983 taking his tally to five and it would have been six but for a couple of rash shots over the closing two holes at St Andrews in 1984 that prevented him from standing side by side with Harry Vardon as the only six-time winners of the Claret Jug.

What at first glance may have seemed an odd partnership, links golf and the Kansas Kid will always go hand in hand. His home state of Missouri is perhaps as far removed as you can get from the infamous coastlines of Scotland that spawned the game of golf.

So when Watson lifted his first Claret Jug, it planted a seed that nurtured over time and flourished into a long-standing love affair with the oldest Major and particularly the Scottish people.

"I really think my understanding of links golf started in 1979 and culminated in 1981," he said. "Between 1975 and 1978, I didn't particularly like links golf. I was an American golfer. I liked it through the air, I hit the ball high, I couldn't hit the ball low with much accuracy.

"But in 1979 at Royal Lytham I didn't play well and had somewhat of a bad attitude. I got some bad bounces and I finally told myself, you know, this game is played on the ground and you have to expect some bounces. Some will be good, some bad.

"I've had some terrible bounces out here, but Ive had some great bounces and you have to go with that. You just can't get upset about it. That's the essence of links golf."

Click here for part two