Throwback Thursday: The Open Championship is born
The Background
The 1860 Open Championship, played at Prestwick, is now regarded as the first ever to be held.
The tournament was organised to decide who was to be the No. 1 golfer in the world following the death of Allan Robertson, who was regarded by many as the best.
The championship was contested between eight players held on the 12-hole Prestwick course in a single day with the players doing three loops of the links.
Letters were sent to a number of golf clubs, including St Andrews, asking them to send a “respectable caddie” to compete in the inaugural event for the Challenge Belt.
The Scene
Old Tom Morris, a greenkeeper at Prestwick and local favourite, was tipped to be the man to beat over the 3,799 yard layout.
Musselburgh’s Willie Park Sr would come out on top, though, winning by two shots with a total score of 174 after rounds of 55, 59, 60.
He and Morris finished the day in a 12 hole shootout and despite the latter’s closing round of 59 the local hero could not outwit his opponent.
#OnThisDay in 1860 @TheOpen was played for the 1st time at @PrestwickGC. Willie Park Sr beat our very own Old Tom Morris by two shots. pic.twitter.com/EWZbXWauxI
— St Andrews Links (@TheHomeofGolf) October 17, 2017
Park was left with two putts for victory on the final hole from 30-feet and given the tricky conditions it was no easy feat.
The man from Musselburgh needed just one as he sealed the victory in fine style.
The Legacy
The Open remains one of the biggest golf tournaments to this day and is traditionally held on the finest links courses around Great Britain.
Although Prestwick hasn’t hosted the tournament since 1925 it remains a big part of the history of the tournament.
In 2016 Henrik Stenson made Open history by recording the lowest score to par to ever win the tournament with a 20-under-par 264.
Jordan Spieth is the current Champion Golfer of the Year after an astonishing victory at Royal Birkdale earlier this year.
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Tom Irwin
Tom is a lifetime golfer, now over 30 years playing the game. 2023 marks 10 years in golf publishing and he is still holding down a + handicap at Alwoodley in Leeds. He has played over 600 golf courses, and has been a member of at least four including his first love Louth, in Lincolnshire. Tom likes unbranded clothing, natural fibres, and pencil bags. Seacroft in Lincolnshire is where it starts and ends.
