Written by: Manvi Singh

 

After the splendour of debutant Collin Morikawa at the 149th Open, the Champion Golfer of the Year lifted the Claret Jug on the perfect Sandwich Sunday. 

 

 

Collin Morikawa with the Claret Jug glee. 

 

 

Morikawa’s three-day head to head with Louis Oosthuizen was left far behind when he climbed up the leaderboard with a 15 under par 66 - a score which is nothing less than history in itself. 

 

Read the Day 3 Updates as Oosthuizen kept a Solid Three-Day Lead 

 

The American beat Jordan Spieth on a two-shot roll under the Sandwich sunshine making the crowd roar its loudest at the Royal St George’s Golf Club, finally making him deliver a flawless round of 66 which brought his name to be engraved in golden letters on the silver Claret Jug. 

 

 

Collin Morikawa's name engraved at the Claret Jug. 

 

 

The mystic fall of the competitors came into being at hole 9 on Sunday while the American golfer showed plenty of heart on the same ground marking his name to The Open history. 

 

The 24-year-old also set a new record for the lowest score at Royal St George’s, his 265 strokes beating Greg Norman’s 1993 effort by two. 

 

Read: How Day 2 was yet another Record-Breaking Day

 

While the final leaderboard spoke of Morikawa’s glory, it also splendidly brought the shades of Jordan Spieth’s T2 with 13 under par 66. The US Open Champion Jon Rahm’s T3 11 under par 66 tied with the three-day lead Louis Oosthuizen’s 11 under par 71 which grew to be four shots off the winning champion resulting from two dropped shots on the front nine. 

 

 

Jordan Spieth on his successive stroll. 

 

 

Playing in the final pairing at The Open is not for the faint-hearted and Morikawa made an understandably slow start on Saturday. But on Championship Sunday, there was no sign of nerves. 

 

The Champion Golfer of the Year did leave a mark in history yet he wasn’t the only one who baffled the Royal St George’s spectators as Dylan Frittelli claimed fifth on his own after a solid final-day 68 to finish on -9. Canada’s pro-golfer Mackenize Hughes was too a stroke back alongside Brooks Koepka with 8 under par 69 and 8 under par 65 respectively. 

 

While the Claret Jug is just the shine you’d wish to bring back home, the amateur players go for the Silver Medal was no less than a head-to-head Sunday where Mathias Schmid made a mark beating Yuxin Lin. 

 

 

Mathias Schmid - The Silver Medalist at The 149th Open. 

 

 

Schmid’s 282 aggregate (74-65-71-72) left him four clear of China’s Yuxin Lin (69-72-74-71), the other amateur to make the weekend in Sandwich.

 

The final day of The 149th Open was eventful and voracious yet Morikawa took a stroll in the Garden of England only to leave a trail of footprints to beat for years to come by. 

Read: What Truly Went Down from Day 1 at The 149th Open


 

Leaderboard at the closing day of The 149th Open.