ST ANDREWS, Scotland – It was only fitting a playoff would bring to a close the 144th British Open at the Home of Golf.
Torrential rain closed the Old Course on Friday, gale-forced winds stopped play Saturday and amateurs ran amok of the yellow leaderboards during only the second Monday finish in the tournament’s history.
Late on the fifth day of play, Zach Johnson, Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen took to the first hole for a four-hole playoff with the best aggregate score claiming the Claret Jug.
Forty-five minutes later Johnson joined Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Sam Snead, Seve Ballesteros and Nick Faldo as the only players to win the Masters and a British Open on the Old Course.