Cameron Smith tees off on the 18th hole during the final round of the Open 150 at the Old St. Andrews on July 17, 2022, in St. Andrews, Scotland.
R&A via Getty Images
The home of golf has its next open championship on the calendar.
The R&A announced on Thursday that the 155th Open Championship will be played on The old course of St. Andrews in St. Andrews, Scotland, on July 15-18, 2027. That year will also mark an important anniversary for golf’s oldest team, as it will be 100 years since amateur Bobby Jones won the 1927 Open at St. Andrews, winning by six and defended his title from last year at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
2027 will be the 31st playing of The Open in St. Andrews and the first since 2022, when Cameron Smith started the fourth day behind the co-leaders Rory McIlroy and Viktor Hovland but shot a final-round 64 to win by one over Cameron Young.
Thursday’s news was also the first announcement made by Mark Darbon, the R&A’s new chief executive.
“I look forward to the return of The Open to St. Andrews as much as the fans and the players,” Darbon said in the release. “There is something very special about The Open being played on the Old Course and so many of the great champions have walked these streets since it was first staged here in 1873. St. Andrews is the home of golf and creates a unique atmosphere for fans and players, as well as providing an amazing spectacle on television and digitally to millions of viewers around the world. It promises to be another historic occasion at one of sport’s biggest and most historic venues and we will do everything we can to make it an unforgettable experience for all involved.”
The announcement also means Tiger Woods could get another shot at St. Louis. Andrews. When he played there in 2022 – and got one emotional goodbye en route to a missed cut – Woods assumed it would likely be his last Open at a place he has long called his favorite golf course in the world.
Woods, who has won three Opens – including two at St. Andrews – will be 51 when the 2027 Open arrives.
“It’s very exciting for me,” Woods said after his round in 2022. “I’ve been coming here since 1995, and I think the next one comes around 2030? I don’t know if I’ll be physically able to play until then . So for me it felt like this could have been the last Open here at St. Andrews. And the fans, the ovation, it was an incredible feeling.”
While many US Open and PGA Championship venues are set years in advance, the R&A announces only a few other open venues in advance.
