Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, England, is one of the courses in the Open Championship rotation. The Women's British Open has also been played on the course four times: once prior to being designated a major championship by the LPGA Tour, and three times since.
The club was founded in 1886 and was the site of the first British Ladies Amateur Golf Championship in 1893 and the Centenary Championship in 1993 won by Catriona Lambert, now Catriona Matthew. Sixteen years later she won the Women's British Open at Lytham in 2009.
Royal Lytham is a true links course, set upon links land but set back from the current day shoreline, separated by housing, roads, and a rail line. However, the proximity is such that the wind from the sea still comes into play. There are 203 bunkers on the course, an average of over 11 per hole. The course is also unique as it is the only course on the Open Championship rota that starts with a par 3 hole.
The Head Professional is Eddie Birchenough. Eddie has been the Professional since 01/04/1987.
Eddie has acted as coach and adviser to a succession of European Tour players, among them Paul Eales, Russell Claydon. Jamie Spence, Rob Lee and Tony Charnley, together with Scottish LET player Gillian Stewart.
A number of Eddie’s assistants have gone on to be successful Club Professionals in their own right including Andrew Lancaster (Fairhaven GC), Richard Booth (Hale) and Scott Astin (Hesketh).
Eddie (known by his friends as “The Old Pro”) has decided to retire at the end of 2012 (after the Open Championship). The Club has already decided on his replacement and they have asked his assistant Ben Squires to take on the role from 1st January 2013.
Contents |
Winners of The Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes:
| Year | Winner | Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | ||
| 2012 | TBD | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| 2001 | David Duval 1st | 69 | 73 | 65 | 67 | 274 (-10) |
| 1996 | Tom Lehman 1st | 67 | 67 | 64 | 73 | 271 (-13) |
| 1988 | Seve Ballesteros 3rd | 67 | 71 | 70 | 65 | 273 (-11) |
| 1979 | Seve Ballesteros 1st | 73 | 65 | 75 | 70 | 283 (-1) |
| 1974 | Gary Player 3rd | 69 | 68 | 75 | 70 | 282 (-2) |
| 1969 | Tony Jacklin 1st | 68 | 70 | 70 | 72 | 280 (-4) |
| 1963 | Bob Charles 1st | 68 | 72 | 66 | 71 | 277 (-7)PO |
| 1958 | Peter Thomson 4th | 66 | 72 | 67 | 73 | 278 (-10)PO |
| 1952 | Bobby Locke 3rd | 69 | 71 | 74 | 73 | 287 (-1) |
| 1926 | Bobby Jones (a) 1st | 72 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 291 |
(a) denotes amateur
Winners of the Women's British Open at Royal Lytham & St. Annes:
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2009 | Catriona Matthew 1st |
| 2006 | Sherri Steinhauer 3rd |
| 2003 | Annika Sörenstam 1st |
| 1998 | Sherri Steinhauer 1st |
The yardages listed are those of the championship course (i.e. with the tees positioned where they are for 'championships').
| Hole | Par | Yards |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 206 |
| 2 | 4 | 481 |
| 3 | 4 | 477 |
| 4 | 4 | 391 |
| 5 | 3 | 218 |
| 6 | 4 | 494 |
| 7 | 5 | 589 |
| 8 | 4 | 417 |
| 9 | 3 | 164 |
| Out | 34 | 3437 |
| 10 | 4 | 385 |
| 11 | 5 | 601 |
| 12 | 3 | 196 |
| 13 | 4 | 357 |
| 14 | 4 | 443 |
| 15 | 4 | 464 |
| 16 | 4 | 358 |
| 17 | 4 | 467 |
| 18 | 4 | 410 |
| In | 36 | 3681 |
| Total | 70 | 7118 |
|
||||||||