Last month we asked you what the toughest hole in golf was and 41% of you decided that the 17th at the Old Course St Andrews deserved the title, compared to 27% who chose the 17th at TPC, Sawgrass.

The 17th Hole or Road Hole at the Old Course, St Andrews has often been regarded as one of the most difficult holes in championship golf and that opinion will only be enhanced with the news that it is being lengthened by 25 yards.

If you look at the statistics from recent Open Championships, it’s clear that players are beginning to score a bit better on the famous hole, but it’s a minimal improvement to be honest. In 1984 the average score at the 17th was 4.79. Twenty one years later in 2005, it had improved to 4.63 – not exactly what you could class as a birdie hole!

Many of the Open Championships held at this great course have been arguably decided at the 17th. Watson’s two iron in 1984 which flew over the green decided his fate and gave Seve one hand on the trophy. Twenty one years later, David Duval was chasing Tiger when he took 4 shots in the road hole bunker to make it two St Andrew’s Opens in a row for Woods.

If you enjoy the drama of Open golf, there’s no better hole to focus on, and it will interesting to see how that score average looks come Sunday 18 July!