2008 British Open

The 137th British Open was held at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England. The event was held from July 17th through July 20th, 2008. The conditions were not ideal for golfing, with winds that at times reached gale force speeds. These challenging conditions started on the first day and continued throughout the entire tournament.

On Thursday, with winds varying between 20 and 50 miles per hour, only three players broke par. There were only four other players at even par. To the audiences' surprise and delight, the 1983 and 1986 champion, Greg Norman, was among the players one shot back at even par.

Midway through Friday's round, Norman gained the lead but finished one shot behind KJ Choi. At the end of the day's play, the lead was at one under. Eighty three players had made the cut, which was +9.

Gale force winds made the course very challenging during Saturday's game. Of the 83 players, only four were able to make par. At the end of the day, Norman had the lead by two shots at +2. KJ Choi and defending champion Padraig Harrington were tied for second place.

The final round on Sunday proved to be an exciting finish. Norman and Harrington traded the lead back and forth several times. Norman’s attempt to be the oldest champion of a major fell short when he bogeyed several holes on the back nine, and Harrington won by four strokes at +3. Padraig Harrington became the fifth player in the last 50 years to win back to back British Opens. He is also the first European to win back to back since 1916.