The 2015 Open Championship was the 144th Open Championship, held 16–20 July 2015 at Old Course at St Andrews in Fife, Scotland. It was the 29th Open Championship played at St Andrews. Zach Johnson won the Championship in a 4-hole playoff.World number one Rory McIlroy withdrew prior to the tournament due to an off-course ankle injury, the first defending champion absent from the Open since 1954, when Ben Hogan opted not to participate.