The reigning Senior Open Championship winner Russ Cochran pulled out of the Open Championship early on Thursday, citing a back injury.
The 53-year-old lefty earned a spot in the championship by virtue of his win a year ago at Walton Heath. He was replaced by first alternate Michael Thompson.
Cochran pulled out after two rounds of the Senior U.S. Open last week citing the same injury.
Ben Crane had been first alternate until Wednesday, when he was pulled from the reserve list. There is some conflict as to why that happened, with the R&A saying Crane asked to be removed, while Crane said the R&A did it without his consent. Crane had not made the trip to England, but was looking at flights to Lytham from Oregon when he was removed from the list.
Matteo Manassero would replace the next player to pull out of the championship.
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