Tom Watson joined Ben Hogan (1953) and Tony Lema (1964) as the only winners of The Open on debut since WWII after holding his nerve in a tense play-off.
Having had chances to win the previous two U.S. Opens, there had been doubts about the ability of the man from Kansas to win at the highest level, but they proved unfounded.
He would come to dominate The Open with five victories in nine years and claimed eight major titles in all.