1860 Open Championship
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 17 October 1860 |
| Location | Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland |
| Course(s) | Prestwick Golf Club |
| Statistics | |
| Field | 8 players |
| Champion | |
 Willie Park, Sr. | |
| 174 | |
The 1860 Open Championship was a golf competition held at Prestwick Golf Club, in Ayrshire, Scotland. It is now regarded as the first Open Championship although in its first year it was only open to professionals. Until his death in 1859, Allan Robertson was regarded as top golfer in the world. The Open Championship was created to determine his successor.[1] Eight golfers contested the event, with Willie Park, Sr. winning the championship by 2 shots from Tom Morris, Sr..
Golf clubs were invited to send not more than three professional players to compete in the competition, which was held over three rounds of the twelve-hole links course. The prize for winning was the Challenge Belt, subscribed for by members of Prestwick Golf Club. There was no prize money with the winner receiving custody of the belt for a year. A player winning the belt three years in succession would be entitled to keep it. George Daniel Brown was the only Englishman to play in the event.[2]
The pairings were Tom Morris, Sr. (Prestwick) and Robert Andrew (Perth), Willie Park Sr. (Musselburgh) and Alexander Smith (Bruntsfield), William Steel (Bruntsfield) and Charlie Hunter (Prestwick St Nicholas), George Daniel Brown (Blackheath) and Andrew Strath (St Andrews).[1]
Final leaderboard
| Place | Player | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Willie Park, Sr. | Scotland | 55-59-60=174 |
| 2 | Tom Morris, Sr. | Scotland | 58-59-59=176 |
| 3 | Andrew Strath | Scotland | 180 |
| 4 | Robert Andrew | Scotland | 191 |
| 5 | George Daniel Brown |  England | 192 |
| 6 | Charlie Hunter | Scotland | 195 |
| 7 | Alexander Smith | Scotland | 196 |
| 8 | William Steel | Scotland | 232 |
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The Coming of The Open - History of The Open Golf Championship". Golf Today. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
- ↑ "The story of the first Englishman to play in the Open Championship, told by David Malcolm and Peter Crabtree". British Golf Collectors’ Society. Retrieved 2012-07-18.