One of the longest-running tournaments in the PGA Tour is upon us, as The Open Championship –often referred as the British Open – is set to tee off from the Royal Birkdale Golf Club in England in just a few days’ time.
Here’s a brief primer on how the British Open works and its subtle differences compared to the other major tournaments.
Qualifying for the Tournament and Tournament Format
156 golfers make up the field at the British Open. Qualifying for The Open is akin to the other three major tournaments (i.e. top 50 from the Official World Golf Ranking, past winners of the tournament), with the exception that there will be priority given to the top 30 players from the previous season of the PGA’s European Tour.
There aren’t any major differences between the format of play at the British Open and the PGA Tour’s other three major tournaments, either. Four rounds of 18-hole golf action is still the norm, as well as the criteria needed to advance to the next round of play.
Eligible Venues for The Open
Save for The Masters at Augusta, the British Open, like the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship, can take place on more than just one particular golf course. However, The Open’s organizer in The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews (The R&A) decided that only 10 possible links-style golf courses in the United Kingdom can be considered as hosts for the tournament.
Head on over here for the list of eligible destinations of the British Open.
Prize Money
This 2017, the total purse value of the British Open is at $10.25 million. This makes The Open the third-most lucrative tournament on the PGA Tour calendar behind only the U.S. Open ($12 million) and The Masters ($11 million).
The overall winner of the tournament will be awarded $1.845 million of the total prize pool and the runner-up a little over $1 million. The succeeding finishers will receive no more than $685,000 and no less than $23,600 depending on their respective orders of finish.
