The organisers of this year''s Open Championship have thanked the many spectators who travelled to Royal Birkdale at the weekend after attendance figures reached over 200,000.
R&A chief executive Peter Dawson described the number as a "fantastic achievement" in light of the bad weather and the absence of world number one Tiger Woods.
Due to the thousands of people who headed to Merseyside to watch the golf, the 137th Open was in the all-time top three for attendances, excluding those tournaments held at St Andrews.
"All credit to golf fans in this part of the country," Mr Dawson said.
Chairman of the R&A championship committee Michael Brown said that the event would be remembered as "one of the really great Opens", describing it as a display of "compelling golf in exceptionally challenging conditions".
Next year''s Open will take place at Turnberry in Scotland for the fourth time. The Ayrshire course last hosted the tournament in 1994, when Nick Price won the Claret Jug.
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