Royal St George’s A Gem In Waiting

An aerial view of the par-4 18th hole with the first tee and clubhouse area at Royal St George's Golf Club David Cannon, Getty Images

For Shane Lowry, the delay to the defence of his 2019 Open title at Royal St George’s has the best of upsides – he has been able to hang on to the Claret Jug for an extra 12 months. It is, of course, a responsible task in its own way, though maybe not as much of one as Paul Larsen, the head greenkeeper at Royal St George’s, has on his hands. He must hand over the same well-nigh perfect 18 holes that he had ready in July of last year.

2019 Open Champion Shane Lowry Getty Images

COVID-19, which caused the Open Championship’s cancellation for only the fourth time in its 150-year history, is the most recent in a series of improbable happenings to have occurred at Royal St. George’s in an Open context. In 1934, for one of the most uncomfortable of tense situations, the late Sir Henry Cotton was 10 shots clear after three rounds, only to start falling apart and looking as if he might not even manage ...