The names of many of the game’s greatest ever players are etched on the famous Claret Jug – the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Seve Ballesteros, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Tom Watson, Sir Nick Faldo, Ernie Els, Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler among them.
However, even some of the best players ever to have picked up a golf club have suffered heartbreak at The Open.
Here, we take a look at some of the big names missing from the game's most famous piece of silverware.
Bernhard Langer
The German was a prolific winner on the old European Tour, winning an incredible 42 times, but he didn't quite get the job done at The Open.
In 1981, he finished four shots back of Bill Rogers. Three years later, at St Andrews, it was the late, great Seve who prevailed, with Langer, the Spaniard’s playing partner, finishing two shots back.
Tee to green, Langer was arguably the better player, but his putter went cold at the most critical times, leading to his undoing.
A year later, at Royal St George’s, Langer’s putt grazed the lip on the 72nd hole but failed to drop. He finished two shots adrift of Sandy Lyle.
Colin Montgomerie
‘Monty’ is one of the best players never to win a Major – but how close he came at The Open.
St Andrews would have erupted in 2005 had the Scot got the better of Woods, a scenario that was very much on the cards going into the back nine on Sunday, with the Scot just one shot back.
Montgomerie's 6-iron on the 11th went long, however, and he made an untimely bogey.
After Woods birdied 12, the home favorite just couldn’t find the magic to make a final challenge.
Sergio Garcia
For a long time, the Spaniard seemed destined to finish his career without a Major title, but he got that monkey off his back by winning the Masters in 2017.
He probably should have at least one Open title on his CV, too. In 2007, Padraig Harrington started the final round six strokes behind Garcia, who had led throughout following an opening round of 65.
Garcia stumbled on Carnoustie's back nine but still arrived on the final hole needing a par for the win; he made bogey, and then had to watch Harrington lift the trophy that he must have thought was his.
Garcia came close in 2014, too, making a charge at Royal Liverpool on the final day, only to come up two shots short of McIlroy.
Lee Westwood
Like Montgomerie, a Major title has eluded the Englishman, although he has come close in all four.
The former World No.1 has two runner-up finishes at The Masters, one placing of third in the PGA Championship, and has two third-place finishes at the US Open.
Westwood has also come close to winning The Open on several occasions, with a best finish of T2 in 2010, albeit a distant seven shots behind Louis Oosthuizen.
However, the one that really got away came three years later, when he led by two after 54 holes at Muirfield, only to lose his way down the stretch, finishing on one-over in T3 and missing out to Phil Mickelson by four.
Adam Scott
The Australian was still almost a year away from securing his maiden Major title at The Masters when he arrived at Royal Lytham & St Annes for the 2012 Open, but he very nearly claimed it that week.
He appeared to have one hand on the Claret Jug, taking a four-shot lead into the final round, but a two-over on the front nine set alarm bells ringing.
Scott recovered with a birdie at 14, before he ran out of steam completely, with a run of four bogeys to finish his round as Ernie Els took advantage to win by one.
Dustin Johnson
Ahead of the 2026 Open, Johnson had racked up five top-10 finishes at the tournament, but the closest the two-time Major winner had come to lifting the Claret Jug came with a T2 in 2011.
He trailed leader Darren Clarke by one after 54 holes at Royal St George's, and was still in touch late in the final round.
However, a double-bogey at the 14th handed Clarke a four-shot lead. He went on to win by three, leaving Johnson tied with Phil Mickelson at two under.
Byron Nelson
Nelson was a winner of five Majors, and he may well have claimed a Claret Jug had he made the trip across the pond more than once.
However, back in the 1930s and 1940s, the tournament’s purse wasn’t quite so enticing.
The prolific champion did have a stab at Carnoustie in 1937, but he finished a distant six shots back of Henry Cotton, giving himself too much to do after a disappointing opening round of 75.
Raymond Floyd
The American won three of the big four Majors – the Masters (1976), the PGA Championship (1969 and 1982) and the US Open (1986). He also won 22 times on the PGA Tour.
However, The Open was the one Major that eluded the man from North Carolina, with his best effort a tie for second in 1978, when he finished two shots behind Jack Nicklaus.
Vijay Singh
The Fijian enjoyed lengthy spells as the World No.1 and racked up an impressive 34 PGA Tour titles over the course of a stellar career.
A three-time Major winner, Singh came close to adding an Open Championship to his long list of titles, only to pipped by Ben Curtis by a single shot at Royal St George’s in 2003.
Payne Stewart
Before his life was tragically cut short in 1999, Payne Stewart had built an impressive career, with 24 professional victories, including three Major titles.
While he won the PGA Championship once and two US Open titles, the closest he came to winning one of the other two Majors was at The Open, where he twice finished runner-up.
The closest he came was in 1985, when he shot a 68 in the final round at Royal St George’s only to miss out by one to Sandy Lyle.
In 1990, he fell five short of Nick Faldo at St Andrews with a T2 alongside Mark McNulty.
Ian Woosnam
Former World No.1 'Woosie' was a popular winner of the Masters in 1991, and he amassed a total of 29 wins on the European Tour.
The Welshman came close to winning The Open on two occasions, too, first in 1986, when he finished tied for third, and then in 2001, when he declared a two-shot penalty after his caddie discovered that he had been carrying 15 clubs, eventually finishing tied for third.
Fred Couples
Fan favorite Fred Couples won the Masters in 1992, although that was the former World No.1's only Major title.
The American had a best finish of second at the PGA Championship and tied for third at the US Open, and he recorded third-place finishes at the 1991 and 2005 Open Championships.
At the former, only three shots separated Couples from the winner, Ian Baker-Finch, whilst Woods was a runaway winner at the latter.
