At the Mercy of the Elements
The triumph of 1977 meant that it wasn’t a question of if but when The Open would return to Turnberry. Fond memories of hot sun, blue skies and tame breezes gave way to the harsh realities of 50-kilometre-an-hour winds, driving rain and vicious rough in 1986. On the eve of the Championship, a near-gale sprang up from the south, convincing many players not to go out at all.
For those who did play—including defending champion Sandy Lyle, favourite Seve Ballesteros and the talented Australian Greg Norman—the unforgiving course was the site of many disheartening and even humiliating shots. By the time the sun finally graced the players with its presence on the final day of the tournament, Norman’s score had taken a beating, at a full 12 strokes greater than Tom Watson’s in 1977. But after the frustrations of so many near-misses in the U.S. Open and the Masters, this dominant player had finally won a Major. One of the two Open Championships “The Shark” was to win, the 1986 Open stands as one of the most crucial victories of his career.