Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Each year, authorities in the United Kingdom deal with dozens of calls concerning unexploded bombs that were dropped on the country during World War II. That includes an artillery shell that was recently discovered on a golf course that has hosted the British Open six times since that conflict, which was forced to halt play so it could be dealt with.
World War II had been waging for around a year when the Nazis turned their attention to the British by targeting the United Kingdom in the bombing campaign known as the Blitz, which kicked off in September 1940.
London was the primary target of an unrelenting series of aerial assaults that dumped close to 50,000 bombs on the capital city, but thousands of others rained down upon other areas that were home to factories dedicated to supporting the war effort and ports that served as vital hubs.
That includes Liverpool, the coastal enclave where approximately 4,000 people were killed during the German offensive.
A significant chunk of the ordinance that was dropped during the Blitz failed to detonate, and people in the United Kingdom are still coming across live ammunition more than eight decades later—including some golf course employees who recently got a bit of a scare while conducting routine maintenance at a historic British Open venue.
An artillery shell was destroyed by a bomb squad after being discovered at Royal Liverpool Golf Course
Royal Liverpool Golf Club opened for business in the seaside town of Hoylake all the way back in 1869, and the links-style track has hosted the British Open on 13 occasions since welcoming the major to its grounds for the first time in 1897 (the tournament was most recently held there in 2023).
According to The Liverpool Echo, workers were conducting some drainage work at the course on December 12th when they discovered what appeared to be a live artillery shell buried around five feet below the ground, and all rounds were canceled as local police dispatched a bomb squad to deal with the ordinance.
This week, an unexploded artillery shell was found on the course.
Following a successful controlled explosion carried out by specialists, the site was made safe.
To find out more about Royal Liverpool’s war years, follow this link: https://t.co/RhjnuTurpx pic.twitter.com/wCQexf4yF5
— Royal Liverpool Golf Club (@RLGCHoylake) December 15, 2025
Based on the angle of the video capturing the detonation, it looks like the object in question was unearthed somewhere between the 2nd and 18th holes. No one was harmed before it was disposed of, and it appears the course didn’t waste any time opening back up.