Adam Scott: Where Heartbreaking British Open Collapse Ranks Among Golf Letdowns

The 2012 British Open was Adam Scott's to lose, and he lost it. It was a slow and painful collapse over the final five holes that did him in, allowing Ernie Els to storm in for an improbable major win.

There is nothing quite like a golf collapse. The big pressure, deliberate pace and the fact that these guys are completely isolated in their endeavor creates the kind of pressure-ridden breeding ground needed for truly epic collapses. 

So, if nothing else, Scott can take solace in the fact that he is not the only golfer to have a major collapse on Sunday. Maybe I should send him this slideshow.

No. 5: Adam Scott, 2012 British Open

Amidst the blustery winds in the final round of the 2012 British Open, Adam Scott birdied the 14th hole to take a commanding 4-stroke lead.

The tournament seemed all but over. Contenders were dropping like flies in the tough conditions, and at 1-over for the day, Scott was showing no signs of letting anyone come back.

However, Scott unraveled. He bogeyed the final four holes with some erratic shots and terrible putting. Scott left several strokes on the course with his putter in this stretch. In fact, on number 16, he had his first three putt of the tournament.

Still, he had a chance to force a playoff by making an 8-footer on No. 18. He missed by inches, and the heartbreak was complete.

No. 4: Rory McIlroy, 2011 Masters

With a four-stroke cushion heading into the final round, the 2011 Masters was supposed to be Rory McIlroy's coming out party. However, after nine holes his lead was down to one, and Rory was on the precipice of total meltdown.

By the end of the 10th hole, his Green Jacket dreams were gone.

Rory jacked his tee shot wildly left, and had to pitch out to safety. He then jacked his third shot wildly left, and was able to only salvage a triple bogey.

His erratic shot making followed him for the next few holes, and he wasn't even a factor by the time he was done with No. 13. Charl Schwartzel went on to win the tournament.

No. 3: Greg Norman, 1996 Masters

Greg Norman turned collapsing into a tortuous art form. This is a guy who could make his own personal list of major collapses. In fact, in 1986, Norman held the lead going into the final round in all four majors, but he won only one.

Of all of his collapses, the 1996 Masters stands painfully front and center. Norman carried a six-shot lead into the final round only to watch it all slip away. It was the first time anyone had blown a lead that large heading into the final round of the Masters.

Everything about Norman's game went south. He finished with a dreadful Sunday 78, and watched Nick Faldo walk away with the green jacket.

No. 2: Arnold Palmer, 1966 US Open

Stepping onto the 10th tee at the Olympic course with a 7-shot lead over Billy Casper in the final round of the U.S. Open, Arnold Palmer should have been embarking on a victory lap to add to his legendary career.

Palmer could have spent the back nine playing smart and safe golf, and he would have coasted away with the trophy, but that was not his style. He kept firing at pins; he just kept missing.

Slowly and steadily, Palmer watched his lead vanish. He did sink a putt on 18 to force an 18-hole playoff, but that only prolonged the misery. He blew a two-shot lead on the final of the playoff to finish in second. He never won another major.

No. 1: Jean Van De Velde, 1999 British Open

There has never been a collapse quite like this one. It is harsh for its totality and suddenness. Jean Van de Velde had a commanding three-stroke lead with only the 18th hole separating him from eternal glory. 

There were an infinite amount ways he could have played that hole safely and coasted to victory, and he did not choose a single one of them.

In the final hole, Van de Velde had to tread through the rough, around the grandstands, and go shoeless through the water. It was an adventure in topping the disaster of his previous shot.

Despite this, he still had a six-foot putt to force a playoff, which he promptly missed, completing the most bizarre and brutal collapse in the history of golf.