5 best Open Championships at St. Andrews

This week, the world's best golfers in the men's game will head to Scotland to compete for the Claret Jug and the title of "champion golfer of the year" at The Open. And while the major is always special, there's an elevated sense of history when a player taps in their final putt to win at St. Andrews.

Here are five of the best Open Championships in the storied history of the home of golf.

1970: Jack wins at the home of golf

Jack Nicklaus is largely considered the greatest professional golfer of all time. While arguments can be made for whether or not that is true, there's no argument for this: Nicklaus is the most successful major champion of all time.

With a record 18 major titles in total over his career, having Nicklaus' name engraved on the Claret Jug at St. Andrews would've been enough to make the moment special. But there was also some excitement and drama en route to this major win.

Doug Sanders needed just a par at the 18th to claim the Claret Jug, but he missed a three-foot putt to fall back into a tie with Nicklaus. The result was The Open's first 18-hole playoff. As they approached the final extra hole, Nicklaus had just a one-stroke lead. Helped by hitting his drive over 360 yards, Nicklaus matched Sanders' birdie to claim the title.

1984: Seve wins over star-studded leaderboard

One of golf's most iconic moments was created on the 18th green at St. Andrews when Seve Ballesteros, one of golf's greats, drained a 12-foot putt to card a final-round 69. Immediately before his final putt of the week dropped into the cup, Ballesteros burst into a smile, pumping his fist. But though he was the clubhouse leader, the tournament wasn't quite over yet.

Tom Watson, seeking his third straight Open Championship and what would be a record-tying six titles, still had a chance to grab the title of champion golfer of the year. However, Watson bogeyed the 17th and was then unable to hole his second on 18, finishing two strokes back of the Spaniard.

In addition to fending off Watson, the leaderboard below Ballesteros could've been mistaken for a Hall of Fame ballot. Bernhard Langer finished runner-up alongside Watson, while Lanny Wadkins and Fred Couples finished five back. Nick Faldo and Greg Norman tied for sixth.

1990: Nick Faldo sets scoring record

Unlike Ballesteros' win in '84, which came down to the 18th fairway, Faldo blazed through the field in 1990. On the surface, a five-stroke win on Sunday at the Old Course might not sound like the most compelling finish the venue has seen, but Faldo did it in record-breaking style.

The Englishman set a new tournament record by the end of his final round, completing the tournament at 18-under par, shooting rounds of 67, 65, 67, and 71 for a definitive win.

The major title came just a few months after Faldo won the Masters and one month after a top-five finish at the U.S. Open in what was a dominant year for Faldo.

2000: Tiger completes Grand Slam

At the age of 24, Tiger Woods cemented himself as one of the greatest golfers of all time when he won the 2000 Open Championship, completing the career Grand Slam.

Woods' tournament total of 19-under broke Faldo's previous scoring record by one. It was also the largest margin of victory (eight strokes) at an Open Championship since 1913.

Ernie Els and Thomas Bjorn finished behind at 11-under. Tom Lehman and David Toms rounded out the top five at 10-under. To add to Woods' perfect performance that year, he managed to avoid the bunker on all 72 holes of the tournament.

2015: Zach Johnson wins after 4-hole playoff

Zach Johnson may not be up there with Woods or Nicklaus as far as the impact his career has had on the game of golf, but the dramatic fashion in which he won his Open title definitely ranks among the best of them.

After bad weather caused flooding on Friday, and with the tournament needing a playoff, The Open had a Monday finish for just the second time in its history.

Johnson faced off against Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen, all tied after 72 holes at 15-under. Jordan Spieth, who had already won both the Masters and U.S. Open earlier in the year, was seeking The Open title for a chance at the calendar Grand Slam. But he'd post a final-round 69 to miss out on the playoff by one, alongside Jason Day.

Johnson went on to have a birdie-birdie start to the playoff, eventually finishing ahead of the other two golfers to claim the title. He joined Nicklaus, Sam Snead, Ballesteros, Faldo, and Woods as the only players to win both the Masters and The Open at St. Andrews.