British Open History

Initially, from 1860 - 1870, the Open Championship was hosted by the Prestwick Golf Club. Starting in 1872, after a lapse of one year, the open has been played at a number of courses in rotation. A total of fourteen courses have hosted the British Open. There are nine courses in the current rotation.

Current Rotation (Years Hosted)

Old Course at St Andrews (1873, 1876, 1879, 1882, 1885, 1888, 1891, 1895, 1900, 1905, 1910,1921, 1927, 1933, 1939, 1946, 1955, 1957, 1960, 1964, 1970, 1978, 1984, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005)

Carnoustie Golf Links (1931, 1937, 1953, 1968, 1975, 1999, 2007)

Muirfield (1892, 1896, 1901, 1906, 1912, 1929, 1935, 1948, 1959, 1966, 1972, 1980, 1987, 1992, 2002,)

Turnberry, Ailsa Course (1977, 1986, 1994, 2009)

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Royal Troon Golf Club (1923, 1950, 1962, 1973, 1982, 1989, 1997, 2004)

Royal St George's Golf Club (1894, 1899, 1904, 1911, 1922, 1928, 1934, 1938, 1949, 1981, 1985, 1993, 2003)

Royal Birkdale Golf Club (1954, 1961, 1965, 1971, 1976, 1983, 1991, 1998, 2008)

Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club (1926, 1952, 1958, 1963, 1969, 1974, 1979, 1988, 1996, 2001)

Royal Liverpool Golf Club (1897, 1902, 1907, 1913, 1924, 1930, 1936, 1947, 1956, 1967, 2006)

Former Rotation Courses (Years Hosted)

Prestwick Golf Club (1860 - 1870, 1872, 1875, 1878, 1881, 1884, 1887, 1890, 1893, 1898, 1903, 1908, 1914, 1925)

Musselburgh Links (1874, 1877, 1880, 1883, 1886, 1889)

Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club (1909, 1920)

Prince's Golf Club (1932)

Royal Portrush Golf Club (1951)

The British Open inaugural event was on Oct. 17, 1860, at the Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire, Scotland. Prestwick is a classic links golf course, being built on the rolling sandy land that "links" the beach and the land further inland. The club was founded in 1851, and Old Tom Morris was the club's greenskeeper for a number of years. Prestwick hosted all the Opens up to 1870 and remained in the rotation until 1925, hosting the championship 24 times in all.

For the 1860 championship Prestwick had 12 holes. But in later decades of the 1800s 18 became the standard for golf courses and Prestwick was extended to this. Number 3 is the most famous hole. It is a par 5, dogleg right, of 500 yards, where the fairway simply ends about 300 yards from the tee, as the land descends into a vast, deep bunker, nicknamed the 'Cardinal', which is fortified by railway ties. Many a player's Open dreams have vanished in this bunker.

Eight professional golfers participated the tournament, which consisted of three rounds over Prestwick's 12-hole layout in a single day. The winner that day was Willie Parker, Sr., who defeated the favored Old Tom Morris. Willie Parker and Old Tom Morris would combine to win 7 of the first 8 Open Chgampionships.

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The Claret Jug is the trophy awarded to the winner of the British Open. The Claret Jug holder must return the trophy prior to the next years Open, and receives a replica to keep permanently.

The Claret Jug was introduced as the championship trophy in 1872. It replaced the Championship belt that was the original British Open trophy. The Claret Jug is inscribed "The Golf Champion Trophy". The winners name is engraved each year. The original Claret Jug was made by Mackay Cunningham & Company at a cost of 30 pounds.

The original Claret Jug is on permanent display in the clubhouse of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews since 1928.

Harry Vardon (9 May 1870 - 20 March 1937) won the British Open a record 6 times. His first victory was in 1896 at Muirfield where he won in a 36 hole playoff over J.H. Taylor. Over the next 18 years Vardon would win 5 more times with his last victory coming in 1914 again over runner-up J.H. Taylor. In addition to winning a Muirfield, Harry Vardon won 3 times at Prestwick Golf Club and twice at Royal St George's.

Vardon was also famous for inventing the Vardon Grip. This overlapping grip is the grip most preferred among today's professional golfers.

In addition to his 6 British Open wins, Harry Vardon won the 1900 US Open.

The 1977 British Open was the first Championship to be conducted at Turnberry. Many in the golf world consider this Open to be one of the most memorable of all major championships. The epic duel between Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus was even more compelling due to the fact that the two were paired together for the final 2 rounds.

The two players started the third round one stroke behind the second round leader, Roger Maltbie. Nicklaus and Watson so dominated the final two rounds that at the end of the tournament the third place finisher, Hubert Green, finished 11 shots behind Watson and 10 shots behind Nicklaus.






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Jack Nicklaus shot 65-66 over the final two days only to lose by one to Tom Watson's 65-65. Nicklaus never trailed during the third round which ended in a tie and had the twosome three shots ahead of the rest of the field. During the final round Nicklaus built a 2 shot lead with 6 holes to play. But Watson charged back into a tie with birdies on the thirteenth and fifteenth holes. Watson took a one shot lead with a birdie at seventeen, a hole where Nicklaus missed a four footer for his birdie.

On eighteen, Watson drove it right down the middle. Nicklaus however hit his ball into the deep rough to an almost unplayable lie. After Watson hit his approach to 2 feet, Nicklaus using his amazing strength managed to hit the ball onto the green some 35 feet away. He then rammed the ball home for a birdie three. Watson then made his short birdie putt to win the Open.

Based on interviews with participants, caddies, journalists, and spectators, author Michael Corcoran brings the excitement of this historic Open Championship to vivid life. Along with an entertaining account of the '77 Open, Corcoran delivers an historical overview of the British Open and the tradition it represents.

Duel in the Sun: Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus in the Battle of Turnberry

In a July 20, 2007 article Graham Spiers selected the 10 best shots in Open history. His choices are summarized below.

Severiano Ballesteros, 1984 at St Andrews

Ballesteros sank a 14-foot putt on the 18th green at St Andrews on the Sunday of the 1984 Open. Seve trailed Tom Watson going into the final round, needed to sink the putt to be sure of victory. After sinking the putt, Seve celebrated with his famous air-punching routine, providing one of the iconic Open moments.

Bobby Jones, 1926 at Lytham

Bobby Jones played one of the greatest shots of the early Open era, striking a "mashie" (comparable to a short iron) all of 180 yards to the 17th hole at Lytham to win by two shots

Bill Rogers, 1983 at Birkdale

Bill Rogers, who won the 1981 Open, produced one of the great Open shots two years later at Birkdale. Rogers struck a 1-iron downwind for an albatross (3 under par) at the par-5 17th. This feat was remarkable given that he was considered one of the games shorter hitters.

Gene Sarazen, 1973 at Troon

Gene Sarazen, known as The Squire, made history n by making a hole-in-one at the famous Postage Stamp eighth hole at Troon at the age of 71. The Squire, amazingly, used a 5-iron for such a short hole, only 123 yards, and his shot bounced twice before rolling into the cup.

Severiano Ballesteros, 1979 at Lytham

Seve' won his first Open in 1979 at Lytham. After he slashed his drive way right into a temporary car-park, Seve then produced a beautiful 9-iron to make par on the 16th and set up his victory over Ben Crenshaw and Jack Nicklaus.

Costantina Rocca, 1995 at St Andrews






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Rocca, an Italian, sank one of the most memorable putts ever seen in an Open. After duffing his chip in front of the 18th green, Costantina then sank a 50-foot putt for his birdie to force a play-off (which he lost) with John Daly.

Nick Faldo, 1992 at Muirfield

Faldo came to the 15th hole at Muirfield trailing John Cook and played his best shot of the week. He faded 5-iron from 190 yards that stopped six feet from the pin. It was to be the start of a closing spurt that resulted in his 3rd Open victory.

Lee Trevino, 1972 at Muirfield

Lee Trevino sank his chip-in from off the 18th to conclude five birdies in a row to defeat Tony Jacklin. Trevino, in fact, had already chipped in from a bunker on the 16th.

Tiger Woods, 2007 at Carnoustie

On Carnoustie's monstrous 248-yard par 3 16th hole Woods holed an 80-foot putt in Thursday's first round en route to shooting a 69. Woods himself claimed that it was "a 100-footer", which was probably a mite exaggerated, but this was still one of the greatest putts in Open history.



Tiger Woods

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Severiano Ballesteros, 1976 at Birkdale

Giving chase to eventual champion, Johnny Miller, Seve famously chipped between two bunkers on the 18th at Birkdale to finish tied-second This was the moment when Seve caught the world's attention.

American Tom Watson dominated the Open championship from 1975 through 1983. His likable personality and competitive nature endeared him to British golf fans. Tom Watson was a very popular champion.

Tom Watson surprised many with his victory in his first British Open championship. But this should not have been that astonishing given that Watson's game was well suited for the shot making needed on the links style courses that are part of the British Open rotation. His strengths at putting and scrambling served him well on these demanding courses.

To notch his first Open Championship in 1975 at Carnoustie, Watson had to sink a 20 foot putt on the 72nd hole to tie Australian Jack Newton to force a playoff. He then won the 18 hole playoff by 1 stroke.

Watson won again at Turnberry in 1977. He defeated Jack Nicklaus in an epic duel that many in the golf world consider to be one of the most memorable of all major championships. The two so dominated the tournament that the third place finisher, Hubert Green, ended 11 shots back of Watson and 10 behind Nicklaus.

Tom Watson won his third British Open at Muirfield in 1980. He finished far ahead of the field, four shots better than Lee Trevino. His winning score of 271 was at that time the second-lowest winning total.

During the 1982 Open at Royal Troon Watson trailed the leader, Bobby Clampett, by seven after two rounds. Unlike in 1980, when he won going away, Watson benefited from the collapse of both Bobby Clampett and Nick Price. His steady play allowed Tom to win by 1 shot.

In 1983 at Royal Birkdale, Watson arrived at the 18th tee leading by a single shot over Andy Bean and Hale Irwin. Needing to make par on the final hole to win a major championship puts a golfer under extreme pressure. Watson responded by ripping his drive 265 yards straight down the middle of the fairway. From 213 yards away Watson hit as he described "the best two iron of my life". The ball finished 15 feet from the pin, and Watson two putted for victory.

Watson's fifth British Open win in nine years clearly established him as one of golf's great champions. Watson would later win 3 Senior British Open titles, further endearing him to British golf fans.

It is said that there is no greater test in golf than arriving at the 18th tee needing just to make par to win a major championship. During the 1999 Open at Carnoustie Golf Links, Jean Van de Velde played almost error free golf over the first 71 holes. Attempting to become the first Frenchman to win a British Open since 1907, he stood on the 18th tee with a three shot lead.

Hole number 18 at Carnoustie is one of the most difficult finishing holes in all of golf. For the final round, number 18 (nicknamed "Home") played as a 475 yard Par 4. Barry Burn snakes through the hole affecting every shot. It crosses directly in front of the green creating a huge obstacle for the 2nd shot.

While it is easy to second guess one's decisions after the fact, most experts agree that Van de Velde's decisions that day will go down as one of the biggest blunders in golf history. With a three shot lead Van de Velde only needed to make a double bogey 6 to raise the Claret Jug. His first decision was to hit driver off the tee. At the time, the TV commentators couldn't believe he was not playing it safe by hitting an iron off the tee to avoid the Barry Burn.

While Van de Velde did miss Barry Burn, his tee shot was so-so leaving him about 200 yards to the green. Most agree that the smart play was to lay up in front of Barry Burn, hit an easy pitch to green, and then need 3 putts to win. Van de Velde chose to go for the green with a 2 iron. He pushed his shot right of the green where the ball bounced off the grandstand hit some rocks in Barry Burn and ended up in the deep rough on the other side of the Burn.

From the terrible lie, Van de Velde dumped his third shot into the water. After a penalty and drop, he hit under the ball and plopped in into a sand trap. Somehow maintaining his composure, Van de Velde was able to get up and down from the trap, sinking a six footer to get into a playoff with Paul Lawrie and Justin Leonard.

But by then the damage was complete. Paul Lawrie won the four hole playoff by 3 strokes to become champion of the British Open. For Jean Van de Velde it was a missed opportunity to win one of golf's majors, to win a tournament he seemingly had in hand standing on the 18th tee.

Padraig Harrington won his second consecutive British Open Championship at Royal Birkdale by four strokes over runner up Ian Poulter. He was the first European player to successfully defend his Open title since James Braid in 1906.

Harrington was locked into a close duel with Greg Norman for the first 12 holes. After three consecutive bogeys starting at the par 3 seventh, Harrington went from to two up to one down. But the Irishman made a clutch 5-foot putt to save par and get back into a tie for the lead at the par 4 10th.

When Harrington stepped to the tee on 13 here had been just one birdie at the 499-yard, par 4 hole. He conservatively hit a 3 iron into the middle of the fairway. This left him with 210 yards to the front of the green. Harrington hit a shot to fifteen feet and rolled it in for birdie to take the lead.

Harrington would 2 putt fro birdie on hole number 15 and for the second time in four days, he made eagle at the 17th and you could hear the roars all the way from Dublin. This gave him an insurmountable four-stroke lead.

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Padraig won the 2007 Open, his first major championship, in a playoff with Sergio Garcia. Standing on the 18th tee with a one stroke lead, Harrington's drive found the famous burn that runs throughout Carnoustie. His third shot would find the burn again and brought back memories of Jean Van de Velde's meltdown at the 1999 British Open. But from 40 yards away, Harrington ran his pitch shot to four feet. He sank the left to right breaking putt and escaped with a double bogey.

Garcia needing a par to win couldn't get the job done as he finished with a bogey 5. Harrington would birdie the first playoff hole while Garcia bogeyed for a 2 shot lead that would hold up over the 4 hole playoff.

The 2009 British Open will be held at Turnberry from July 16 - 19. This will be the fourth British Open contested at Turnberry, the others being in 1977, 1986 and 1994.



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Turnberry is located on the Atlantic coast in Ayrshire, Scotland. The Turnberry resort has three golf courses; Ailsa, Kintyre and Arran. The Open Championship will be played on the Ailsa course.

Padraig Harrington is the two time defending champion, having won at Carnoustie in 2007 and Royal Birdale in 2008. He will attempt to become the first player to win three consecutive Opens since Peter Thomson in 1954, 1955 and 1956.

Prior winners at Turnberry:

1977 - Tom Watson
1986 - Greg Norman
1994 - Nick Price

The Open returns to St Andrews for the 28th time in 2010. The last Open played at St Andrews was in 2005. The event was won by Tiger Woods, the second of his 3 British Open championships. Tiger's margin of victory was 5 over Colin Montgomerie.

The 2005 Open also marked the last professional tournament for Jack Nicklaus. Nicklaus won 2 of his 3 British Open titles at St Andrews.