The 20 top Open Championship moments at Carnoustie

Though history states that golf has been played at Carnoustie since the 16th century, the course didn't host its first Open Championship until 1931. The links track played over 6,700 yards, and it was Scottish native turned American citizen Tommy Armour who won by one stroke for his only Open title. He took home a cool £100 for the effort.

Born in Carnoustie, Macdonald Smith won more than 20 PGA Tour events and is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, but he never won a major championship. In '31, playing on his hometown course, Smith was tied for second after three rounds but finished in a tie for fifth. During his career at the Open, Smith also tied for or finished fourth twice, third two more times and recorded a pair of seconds.

The initial Open at Carnoustie was not only remembered of Armour's triumph, but the collapse of Jose Jurado. The Argentinian held a three-stroke lead after 54 holes and despite struggling in the final round needed a 4 on the 18th hole to finish in a tie. However, legend has it Jurado miscalculated and thought a 5 would give him the tie so he played the hole conservatively. He got the 5 for a 77, which left him one back of Armour.  

Carnoustie's second stint as Open host brought out some of the best in the game. Byron Nelson and Sam Snead led the American contingent while both played their first Open Championships. Two-time Masters champ Horton Smith and 1933 Open winner Denny Shute were also in the field. Gene Sarazen, the '32 champion, failed to make the cut.

Before becoming a four-time Open champion, South African Bobby Locke played in his final Open as an amateur at Carnoustie in 1937. The 19-year-old was the only amateur to make the cut that year and finished tied for 17th.

No golfer dominated the Open Championship during the 1920s like the great Walter Hagen. The New York native won the Open four times (1922, '24, '28 and '29), second-most by any American golfer. Hagen made his final Open appearance in 1937 at Carnoustie, where he tied for 26th.

With a star-studded field on hand for the Open, Englishman Henry Cotton braved the terrible conditions to win by two strokes. Cotton's final-round 71 is considered one of the best performances in the tournament's history because of the heavy rain beating down and a course consumed with water. Cotton, who won in 1934, also took home the '48 title at Muirfield. 

In 1953, when Carnoustie played host for the third time, it made news even before the first tee shot was hit. That's because the prize money was increased from £1,700 to £2,500 or $7,000, which was obviously a big deal back in the '50s. To put things into perspective, this year's total purse at Carnoustie is $10.5 million — or little less than £8 million.

An amateur by the name of Frank Stranahan, who hailed from Toledo, Ohio, took the first-round lead with a 2-under 70 at Carnoustie in 1953. Stranahan, a prominent power lifter during the 1940s and '50s, was known as the "Toledo Strongman." He went on to finish in a tie for second place in '53.

The legendary Ben Hogan played the Open just once, at Carnoustie in '53, and in fitting fashion lifted the Claret Jug after a methodical, four-stroke victory. According to reports, Hogan arrived in Carnoustie two weeks before the tournament to prepare and practice. Highlighted by a final-round 68, Hogan posted a 72-hole total of 282, a record at the time.

Already considered one of the toughest tracks among the Open rota, the test got tougher for the field for Carnoustie's fourth turn as host in 1968 — or at least longer. The yardage was increased to 7,252 yards, a record for Open Championship length at the time. 

In addition to the extended yardage, a second cut after 54 holes was introduced at the Open in '68. The first cut came after 36 holes, and after both cuts, the lowest 45 players and ties made up the final-round field. The double-cut format remained in place at the Open through the 1985 event.

Highlighted by "The Shot," popular South African Gary Player won his second of three Open titles in 1968 at Carnoustie. Player hit a 3-wood on the par-5 14th hole, known as the "Spectacles," to within two feet of the cup. He made eagle and went on to win the tournament by two strokes.

No American has won the Open Championship more than Tom Watson with the first coming in 1975 at Carnoustie. Watson, who never played on a links course prior to the '75 Open, and Australian Jack Newton managed to brave the blustery final-round conditions to finish tied after 72 holes. Watson bested Newton by one stroke the next day in the Open's final 18-hole playoff.

Perhaps the greatest modern-day Open Championship memory is the 1999 image of France's Jean van de Velde standing in Barry Burn with his slacks rolled up and shoes and socks off pondering whether to hit his ball out of the murky water. The scene was part of his disastrous 72nd hole, in which van de Velde, looking to become the second Frenchman to win the Open, blew a three-shot lead by triple-bogeying the 18th at Carnoustie. That left him in a three-way playoff with Paul Lawrie and Justin Leonard.

Australian Rod Pampling never won a major, but he was the first-round leader at the Open Championship in 1999 after a solid 71. That's where the good times ended for Pampling, who experienced how tough Carnoustie really was when he shot an almost unthinkable 86 for the second round. He missed the cut but did return in 2007 to tie for 27th.

It's not often the winner of a major is considered an afterthought, but that was the case when Lawrie bested Leonard and the fragile van de Velde in the '99 playoff. Lawrie, who was 10 shots off the lead after 54 holes, carded a 67 on Sunday. That score, coupled with van de Velde's fold, gave him new life. When the playoff was complete, the little-known Lawrie became the first Scottish-born Open champ since Tommy Armour in 1931 after his record comeback.

Popular Spaniard Sergio Garcia eventually removed his name from the best-player-never-to-win-a-major list with his 2017 Masters victory, but 10 years earlier he fell short at the Open. Garcia, who carded a 65 on Thursday, led by two strokes after each of the first two rounds in '07 and by three after 54 holes. However, a wild final round ended with a 73 for Garcia, courtesy of a lipped-out putt on the 72nd hole, and playoff date with Padraig Harrington.

Harrington began Sunday's final round in '07 six strokes behind leader Sergio Garcia, who faltered while the Irishman shot a 67 despite double-bogeying the 18th hole. In the end, Harrington prevailed by a stroke in the playoff to claim his first major title. One year later at Royal Birkdale, Harrington successfully defended his Open crown and remains the last back-to-back winner of the event.

The phrase was coined following the 1999 tournament when 6-over won the tournament, and golfers felt the course — compounded by the weather — was simply brutal. Another term, "Carnastie," was also born to describe the conditions on and around the Angus course. While the reception was more positive for the 2007 installment, Carnoustie remains a sturdy test for even the world's elite golfers, and they should expect the same this year.