Europeans think of this as the major golf tournament in the world. It has been held annually (with a few exceptions) since 1860 at different courses in the British Isles. It is open to both professional and amateur golfers; that’s what an "open" tournament means. Since 1892 the Open has been 72 holes of stroke play. The links courses give Americans a taste of what golf must have been like when the game was invented on the windy fields of Scotland.
We're used to mild weather, manicured fairways and greens, sand bunkers which are about as easy to hit out of as the fairway. But it's a different story in The Open.
The wind usually howls as the drizzle hits you in the face as if the raindrops were shot from a nailgun. The bunkers have built-up sod sides that are so severe they are given pet names such as Hell.
It's not a good tournament to watch on TV because the European cameramen have not gotten the technique of showing a golf shot down to an art as have the American cameramen. Probably a result of socialism.