'Gobsmacking brilliance of High Noon at Troon will never fade'

Venue: Royal Troon Dates: Thursday 18 to Sunday 21 July

Coverage: Live power and matter commentary connected BBC Sport website, pinch video clips each day. Daily highlights programme connected BBC Two from 20:00 BST. Click for afloat details.

Tom Watson was listening connected nan power while driving astir London. Jack Nicklaus was sitting astatine location successful Florida glued to his television.

Nicklaus said it was uncommon he would watch each 18 holes of a tournament, but this 1 was different.

The stars of nan Duel In The Sun astatine Turnberry successful 1977, to that constituent nan top last information head-to-head successful nan history of The Open, were now arsenic gripped arsenic nan remainder of america by its successor - High Noon astatine Royal Troon successful 2016.

On nan day, Henrik Stenson's 63 hit Phil Mickelson's 65. The play was from different world and nan remainder were nowhere.

JB Holmes was 14 shots backmost successful third, akin to Hubert Green who was a distant 3rd successful 1977 - 11 down nan victorious Watson.

In his bewilderment Holmes would person been entitled to repetition nan celebrated Green statement 4 decades on.

"I won," joked Green of '77. "I don't cognize what crippled those different 2 guys were playing."

At Troon, 10 birdies for nan Swede and 5 birdies and an eagle for nan American. Under nan achromatic power of Sunday astatine The Open, they had a amended shot of 59.

"Our last information was really good, but theirs was moreover better," wrote Nicklaus.

"What happened astatine Troon was amended simply because they played better. They changeable amended scores," said Watson.

Given Watson had changeable 65-65 complete nan play successful Turnberry pinch Nicklaus shooting 65-66, it was nan compliment to hit each compliments.

By support of golfing royalty, nan value successful Troon outdid what we thought was nan unsurpassable brilliant of Turnberry.

"I've ne'er seen perfection for illustration it," said Nick Faldo of Stenson v Mickelson.

Stenson not only took nan Claret Jug, he wrote his sanction into Open history successful different ways, too.

His was nan lowest winning total, 264, of each time. Still is. At 20 under, he tied nan lowest-ever people to par.

He matched nan lowest information successful awesome title history and joined Johnny Miller arsenic nan only subordinate successful nan annals of nan crippled who changeable 63 successful nan last information to triumph a major. Miller did it 43 years earlier.

Mickelson, for his part, recorded nan lowest people by a runner-up successful Open history. He was joined 5 years later by Jordan Spieth erstwhile finishing 2nd to Colin Morikawa astatine Royal St George's successful 2021.

The communicative of Stenson's week is an epic one.

He had walked nan people connected nan Monday. He had ne'er been to Troon earlier and it was raining truthful he near nan clubs behind. He had nary liking successful thrashing it astir successful nan wet. He conscionable ambled and observed.

On nan Tuesday, he played nan beforehand nine. On Wednesday, he played nan backmost nine.

"I'd seen what I needed to see," he told Golf Digest magazine. "I was connected a mission. I had mislaid a bully friend earlier that week [Mike Gerbich, an aged pal from erstwhile Stenson lived successful Dubai].

"Mike's boy had put this connected his dad's Facebook page: 'Go triumph this 1 for Mike'. When I publication that I shed a fewer tears.

"He was my origin that week. Mentally, that helped. I ne'er sewage stuck reasoning astir why I deed it near aliases why I had a bad break."

Stenson tied a ribbon to his headdress successful representation of his friend.

Mickelson had exploded retired of nan blocks connected nan Thursday. When he trim a six-iron into nan left-to-right upwind connected 18, he near himself an eminently makeable putt for a record-busting 62.

Uphill, a mates of inches of break from nan left, Mickelson thought he had nailed it. "It was successful nan mediate of nan spread pinch 4 inches to go," he recalled.

He was astir to return his spot successful history arsenic nan first man to sprout 62 successful a major, only it stayed up.

Microscopic replays show his shot hitting a mini pebble, astir apt nan debris from a bunker shot, and staying out. A sensational information of 63 - and he was crestfallen.

He led Stenson by 5 aft time one, but nan Swede changeable 65 to Mickelson’s 69 connected Friday and nan spread was down to one.

On Saturday it was 68-70 successful Stenson’s favour. He now led by 1 pinch Sunday to come.

The upwind blew astatine 30mph early connected Sunday and nan R&A took nan determination to make nan pins much accessible. Then nan upwind died and nan people was near vulnerable, to nan chosen 2 astatine least.

To everybody else, it was still a spot of a grind. Only 13 players collapsed 70, Rory McIlroy's 67 nan champion of them. The apical 2 were successful a tourney of their own.

In matchplay parlance - which is efficaciously what it turned into - nan first 2 holes were won pinch birdie, nan 3rd halved successful birdie, nan 4th won pinch eagle and nan sixth halved successful birdie.

Both men went retired successful 32, past some promptly birdied nan 10th. Mickelson drew level connected nan 11th, but Stenson went into overdrive soon after.

He birdied 14, 15 - a 50ft putt giving him a two-shot lead - 16 and should person birdied 17 arsenic well. These are expected to beryllium among nan toughest closing holes successful Open golf. Stenson demolished them.

Two-up connected nan 18th tee, he took retired a three-wood and "nuked it" according to Mickelson’s caddie, Jim 'Bones' Mackay.

"It came disconnected for illustration a rocket," Stenson recalled successful that Golf Digest portion - and headed consecutive for nan bunker which sealed Greg Norman's destiny successful nan play-off astatine nan 1989 Open.

With a three-wood, soil should not person been successful scope but pinch Stenson's adrenaline it flew for illustration a slug done nan air.

"You tin ever person a two-shot plaything connected nan last," said Mickelson. "When he deed a three-wood and it came whistling consecutive disconnected nan look correct astatine nan bunker, location was a bully chance it was going to spell in."

It was a nervy locomotion for nan Swede until he saw what he called "a small achromatic egg" 18 inches short of nan sand. He had a cleanable lie, nan luck of nan gods and nan touch of a maestro. From there, he made birdie and won by three.

Mickelson had played nan top last information ever by personification who did not triumph nan Open.

In nan full history of nan title his full of 267 for nan week has only ever been bettered by 2 group - 2021 victor Morikawa and Stenson.

Whatever nan contention surrounding their move to LIV - and it raged and raged - and immoderate harm whitethorn person been done to their bequest because of it, nan representation of 2016, nan sheer gobsmacking brilliance of it, will never, ever fade.