The British Open Golf Championship, around the Old Course St Andrews is always in the lap of the gods with regards to the weather and the past two days have been no exception, with  the weather in its extreme, varying from sun, heavy rain and strong winds.

As golf legend Seve Ballesteros used to say, there is a lot of luck attached to what part of the draw you are in and the past 36 holes demonstrate this. A certain section of the field got the weather down-wind on the way out and as they turned for home, the wind direction changed from bring in the face, to directing down breeze, whereas the rest of the field faced a really tough front nine.

It is renowned for being a traditional links test, with hard, fast fairways and plenty of roll, all of which come from sunny days with a drying wind. However, competitors and organisers may have to defeat the weather elements of wind, rain, fog or thunder.

The strength of the wind is always the major factor in the difficulty, or otherwise, of the competition - the harder the wind blows the more difficult the conditions become and the higher the golfers’ scores are.

Rain makes conditions unpleasant for players and spectators alike. Heavy rain can stop a competition if it is heavy enough to flood the greens and fairways. But thunderstorms are the weather element that everyone dreads. Lightning poses a significant risk and play has to be suspended, with players and spectators taken off the course until the storm has passed by.

The Met Office works in tandem with the R&A to ensure that participants and spectators benefit from the best possible forecasts. The Met Office keeps co-ordinators at the R&A fully briefed about the weather conditions for the Open.

Met Office forecasters are on site for the duration of The Open. Course officials consult with forecasters to help determine the weathers' influence on everything from pin placement to traffic management. Pressure intensifies if weather delays postpone the schedule of play but the forecasters endeavour to find weather windows to allow the event to be completed.

If you are down at The Open and in the event of bad weather, it may be necessary to evacuate the grandstands. In such a set of circumstances, you will need to pay attention to the marshals’ instructions.

Sarah Holland from The Met Office has very kindly just been in contact  to give GolfbloggerUK an update on the weather forecast.

Saturday: Light rain shower, 21 mph south west wind direction, and 17 degrees;

Sunday: Light rain shower, 14 mph south west wind direction, and 21 degrees;

My recommendation is, if you are going to the Open, make sure you have warm clothing, waterproofs and an umbrella! We have published a Guide to The Open Championship St Andrews with all the information we feel you will need during the championship, for further details, please CLICK HERE.

The Ed., GolbloggerUK