Tom Watson quietly retires from Senior British Open with one last round

Tom Watson went into Sunday’s final round of the Senior British Open knowing he likely wouldn’t win the event.

Watson also knew it would be the last time he would play in a senior open.

After Saturday’s third round in Lytham St. Annes, England, Watson told Golf Channel reporter Todd Lewis this would be his final Senior British Open and added he won’t be playing in any more Senior U.S. Opens.

“The why is pretty simple: I can’t compete against these guys anymore,” Watson said. “I don’t hit the ball far enough, and when you can’t compete, there’s no sense ­— I’m a realist. I understand how to play the game, and I just don’t have enough tools in the tool box to compete against these guys out here.”

Watson, who finished tied for 64th at 9-over, didn’t hold a news conference to declare his intentions. He let the interview with the Golf Channel serve as his announcement.

Watson, 69, told Lewis he still plans to play competitive golf but will cut back on his schedule. That might be partially because Watson’s wife, Hilary, has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

As he played that final round Sunday, Watson said memories of previous Opens popped in his head.

“I had a few flashbacks here and there from past Open Championships,” Watson told The Scotsman. “Lytham is one tough golf course. It got the best of me again, but I got the best of a few other courses in the rotation.”

A rain delay forced Sunday’s final round to be played with a two-tee start and Watson opened on the back nine. That meant Watson’s final hole wasn’t on 18, but more than a thousand people were in the gallery, The Scotsman reported.

Watson praised the British fans.

“I’ll never miss it because I’ll remember it,” Watson told The Scotsman. “The fans have come and watched me for all these years, I owe them a great deal for pumping me up a lot of times when I was playing the golf tournaments. I hope that I’ve given a little bit back in the sense that I’ve played the game the way it should be played.”

Watson won five British Open titles, beginning in 1975. It was 10 years ago that Watson came within a whisker of winning a sixth Open, losing in a playoff to Stewart Cink.

“There will be other people who will take the reins and they will do what I did,” Watson told the BBC. “Life is full of passages, and I’ve passed through my career here, starting in 1975 to here in 2019. It’s amazing.”

This story was originally published July 29, 2019 at 1:42 PM.