The 1905 Open was won by a Scot on home soil at St Andrews and 100 years on in 2005, Colin Montgomerie produced a stirring display which had those in attendance daring to dream of a repeat.
Two of James Braid's five Claret Jugs were won at the home of golf but not since the last of those in 1910 has a Scottish golfer triumphed on the famous Old Course.
Not much about Montgomerie's form in the build-up to The 134th Open suggested he would be the man to change that record and when crunch time arrived, Montgomerie's start was ominous. His opening drive of the Championship ran through the notoriously wide first fairway and trickled into the Swilcan burn.
A bogey put him immediately on the back foot but the Scot had contested enough Opens to know golf's original major is a marathon, not a sprint – and after recovering to post 71 on day one, he moved through the pack in style on one of the most memorable Fridays in Championship history.
"It was a strange feeling. It felt like we weren't playing in The Open, we were just having a two-ball. I'd known Paul for many years and we just played a round of golf."
Colin Montgomerie
Much of the attention centred around Jack Nicklaus, who was bringing down the curtain on an incredible career, allowing Montgomerie to slip under the radar.
The withdrawal of David Toms meant Montgomerie was playing in a two-ball alongside a compatriot in Paul Lawrie who had won The Open in front of a home crowd at Carnoustie six years earlier.
By the end of his round, a stunning 6-under-par 66, Monty had given himself a real chance of following in Lawrie's footsteps.
"Being a two-ball, we were having to wait around and, on the 12th, we sat down for a good half hour until the photos (of Nicklaus) had all been done," Montgomerie recalled.
Montgomerie's performance set up a Saturday to savour, with the Scot up to second and therefore going out in the final group alongside Tiger Woods.
To read more about Colin Montgomerie’s challenge for glory at The 134th Open, click HERE.
This article is taken from The Open’s interactive timeline, The Journey, which provides insight into every edition of The Open, starting with the inaugural Championship at Prestwick in 1860, through a range of videos, podcasts, imagery, feature articles and audio clips. To explore the history of The Open, click HERE.
The R&A