1994 -

American Tom Lehman kept his cool in the heat of battle tonight to win an action-packed 125th Open championship at Royal Lytham.

The 37-year-old from Minnesota, who only a month ago bogeyed the last hole to lose the US Open, was not to be denied this time as Nick Faldo, Ernie Els and Mark McCumber made the mistakes which mattered.

Lehman, six strokes clear after his course record 64 yesterday, saw his advantage cut to two on no fewer than four occasions but refused to yield under the pressure of trying to land his first major title.

In the end, with Els bogeying two of the last three holes and Faldo losing all confidence on the greens, a two-over-par closing round of 73 was enough to give Lehman a two-stroke victory over Els and McCumber, with Faldo a bitterly disappointed fourth a shot further back.

Lehman, who nearly went broke in his early years as a professional and last year had cancerous polyps removed from his colon, finished with a 13-under-par total of 271, a record for an Open at the course.

Runner-up in the 1994 US Masters, and third and second in the last two US Opens, he also became the first American professional to win at Lytham.

And as television commentator Peter Alliss said: ``It couldn't happen to a nicer fella.''

A huge crowd was willing Faldo to win his second major of the season and fourth Open in 10 years, but it just was not to be.

He wanted to try and shoot 63. As it turned out, 67 would have put him in a play-off, yet he could manage only a 70.

The crucial stretch was from the fifth to the seventh holes, where he missed birdie putts of six, two and six feet.

``It was a bad run,'' said Faldo, who, at the US Masters in April, had turned the same six-shot deficit to Greg Norman into a famous five-stroke win.

``It was tough to get some confidence after that. I had so many chances but never made anything - it's as simple as that. If I had taken those three chances it could have been very different.

``From tee to green I did OK but never took advantage, and Tom played sensibly.''

Lehman was not even put off by a male streaker as he and Faldo approached the last green. The man was arrested and Lehman said in his winner's speech to the crowd: ``I thought the one at Wimbledon (Melissa Johnson) was a lot better. What do you think?''

As for the win he has waited so long for, the American Ryder Cup player commented: ``Words can't describe how I feel. I had to grind it out and stick at it, but all the hard work along the way was worth it. It was tough, but it was fun.''

Faldo was still clinging to a glimmer of a hope entering the closing stretch, but in truth Els had the best opportunity to bring the week to a climax it deserved.

Two behind with three to play, however, the South African, a brilliant seven under for the day, drove into bunkers at the 16th and 18th and bogeyed both for ``only'' a 67.

``I really had it going and was right in there, but then just hit two bad shots,'' he stated. ``I had everything going for me but just didn't finish it.

``At the 16th I tried to cut it with a two-iron and hit it straight, then on the last tried to do the same with a three-wood and came out of it. I think it was the wrong club.''

McCumber went round in 66 but left a 15ft birdie attempt at the last just short.

``I felt if I had made it I had an outside chance,'' said the man who next month goes for shoulder surgery which will keep him out of golf for six to nine months.

``It was right on line, but I think that's the slowest green on the course. Maybe it's because it's in the shade.

``But this has been a very rewarding week for me, not just because of the surgery but because it took two days to get here.''

McCumber missed three flight connections and was involved in a scary landing in bad weather on Long Island.

Els' bogeys and McCumber's miss meant Lehman could finish with two bogeys and still win. He took five at the 467-yard 17th after driving into sand, but was on in two at the 414-yard 18th and safely two-putted.

It was not an easy day, however. The one thing Lehman wanted was a solid start, but he gave all his pursuers hope by driving into sand at the third and bogeying.

By the seventh he was only two in front - not of Faldo, but of Couples, who enjoyed a spectacular outward half of 30. But the 1992 US Masters champion's hopes of a first Open went when he bogeyed three of the first four holes on the back nine.

Faldo started to rue his putting straight away. He holed a 12-footer at the fourth, but by then an eight-foot chance at the first had been missed and worse was to come.

His ball spun out from six feet at the short fifth, he missed from only two feet at the next then from six again at the seventh.

The one saving grace was that Lehman was not holing anything either and, when Faldo finally rolled in a 25-footer at the ninth to be out in 33 to Lehman's 36, the championship was still very much alive.

It was then that Els, also out in 33, really started to make an impact. After a 15-footer for a fourth birdie at the 334-yard 10th, he chipped in from over the back of the 12th and, when he chipped wonderfully over a bunker to three feet at the next - he had driven pin high at the par four - he was second, two behind.

But that was the closest he got to champion Lehman.

Collated final totals and four round scores in the 125th Open championship at Royal Lytham St Annes, Lancashire (GB and Ire unless stated, par 71):

(x) denotes amateur

271 T Lehman (US) 67 67 64 73 (wins £200,000)

273 M McCumber (US) 67 69 71 66, E Els (SA) 68 67 71 67 (£125,000 each)

274 N Faldo 68 68 68 70 (£75,000)

276 J Maggert (US) 69 70 72 65, M Brooks (US) 67 70 68 71 (£50,000 each)

277 P Hedblom (Swe) 70 65 75 67, G Norman (Aus) 71 68 71 67, G Turner (NZ) 72 69 68 68, F Couples (US) 67 70 69 71 (£35,000 each)

278 A Cejka (Ger) 73 67 71 67, D Clarke 70 68 69 71, V Singh (Fiji) 69 67 69 73 (£27,000 each)

279 M McNulty (Zimb) 69 71 70 69, D Duval (US) 76 67 66 70, P McGinley 69 65 74 71, S Maruyama (Jap) 68 70 69 72 (£20,250 each)

280 M Welch 71 68 73 68, P Harrington 68 68 73 71, L Roberts (US) 67 69 72 72, R Mediate (US) 69 70 69 72 (£15,500 each)

281 M James 70 68 75 68, J Haas (US) 70 72 71 68, (x) T Woods (US) 75 66 70 70, C Mason 68 70 70 73, S Stricker (US) 71 70 66 74 (£11,875 each)

282 B Crenshaw (US) 73 68 71 70, T Kite (US) 77 66 69 70, P Broadhurst 65 72 74 71, C Pavin (US) 70 66 74 72, P Mitchell 71 68 71 72, F Nobilo (NZ) 70 72 68 72 (£9,525)

283 E Romero (Arg) 70 71 75 67, T Tolles (US) 73 70 71 69, S Simpson (US) 71 69 73 70, E Darcy 73 69 71 70, D Gilford 71 67 71 74, M O'Meara (US) 67 69 72 75, H Tanaka (Jap) 67 71 70 75, B Faxon (US) 67 73 68 75

284 M Calcavecchia (US) 72 68 76 68, P Mickelson (US) 72 71 72 69, K Eriksson (Swe) 68 75 72 69, D Frost (SA) 70 72 71 71

285 C Stadler (US) 71 71 75 68, B Mayfair (US) 70 72 74 69, P Jacobsen (US) 72 70 74 69, T Hamilton (US) 71 70 74 70, B Hughes (Aus) 70 69 75 71, P Stewart (US) 70 73 71 71, R Boxall 72 70 71 72, J Nicklaus (US) 69 66 77 73, N Price (Zimb) 68 73 71 73, J Furyk (US) 68 71 72 74, J Parnevik (Swe) 72 69 69 75

286 J Payne 72 71 73 70, S Lyle 71 69 73 73, R Allenby (Aus) 74 68 71 73, S Ames (Trin) 71 72 69 74

287 M Jonzon (Swe) 69 73 73 72, D A Weibring (US) 71 72 72 72, J Sluman (US) 72 70 70 75, B Barnes 73 70 69 75

288 C Suneson (Spain) 73 69 74 72, C Rocca (Italy) 71 70 74 73, G Law 74 69 71 74

289 D A Russell 70 72 74 73, B Ogle (Aus) 70 73 73 73, J Daly (US) 70 73 69 77

290 H Clark 72 71 76 71

291 B Charles (NZ) 71 72 71 77

292 D Hospital (Spain) 75 68 77 72, R Todd (Can) 74 69 73 76, C Strange (US) 71 72 72 77, R Chapman 72 70 70 80

293 R Goosen (SA) 72 71 74 76

298 A Langenaeken (Bel) 72 71 77 78