Royal St George's

To stride towards the first tee at Royal St George’s, towards the thatched-roofed starter’s hut, is to embark upon one of the sternest tests in the world of golf. In mid-July, fairways are firm and running, and greens are fast and true. And the rough is up.

Teeing-off towards the south, the front nine is characterised by blind shots, imposing dunes and terrifying bunkers, like the enormous, railway-sleeper-surrounded hazard on the fourth, which is set into a sand hill that rises almost 50 feet into the Kent air. The elevated fifth tee offers the chance to catch one’s breath and enjoy a magnificent view of the coast, before striking the tee-shot towards the sea.

The back nine, which occupies the northern half of the course, is largely without the dunes of the outward half, though the fairways feature no fewer undulations and the greens are arguable trickier. Holes 14 and 15, live coverage from which will appear on the three-hole channel during the Championship, along with the 16th, are perhaps the most daunting. Indeed, the 15th, along with the perhaps more famous 17th at St Andrews, can stake a claim to being the toughest hole in Open Championship golf.

And then comes the home stretch, by no means respite from what has gone before, will offer the opportunity for those in contention to realise their dreams. Some will falter, while one will grasp the opportunity and play his way down, past the clubhouse, to the amphitheatre of the 18th green, before lifting the famous Claret Jug.

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