In 1999, Jean van de Velde suffered one of the greatest upsets in the history of Open Championship golf. He arrived at the 18th tee with a threeshot lead, only needing a double-bogey six to become the first Frenchman since 1907 to win the tournament. Despite his lead, under pressure van de Velde made a number of uncharacteristic errors in his decision making and the execution of his skills. He ended up making a triple-bogey seven, dropping him into a three-way playoff in which Paul Lawrie eventually triumphed.
What happened to van de Velde that evening was not a sudden loss in skill. His mind had taken over his body and caused him to make some rather odd decisions. On his third shot, rather than laying up and doing what was needed to win, he took an unnecessary risk and ended up in the rough. From the rough he ended up in the Barry Burn, which ran around the 18th green and was impossible to play out of. However, he decided to try, which led to a dropped shot after the ball ended up back in the water.
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