1955 Open Championship

1955 Open Championship
Tournament information
Dates 6–8 July 1955
Location St Andrews, Scotland
Course(s) Old Course at St Andrews
Statistics
Par 72[1]
Length 6,936 yards (6,342 m)[1]
Field 94 players, 49 after cut[2]
Cut 148 (+4)
Prize fund ₤3,750
$10,500
Winner's share ₤1,000
$2,800
Champion
Australia Peter Thomson
281 (–7)
«1954
1956»
St Andrews
Location in Scotland

The 1955 Open Championship was the 84th Open Championship, played 6–8 July at the Old Course at St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland. Peter Thomson won the second of three consecutive Open titles, two strokes ahead of runner-up John Fallon.[3] Thomson won a total of five Claret Jugs, the last in 1965.

The prize for the winner was increased from £750 to £1,000, the other prizes remaining unchanged. The total prize money was therefore increased from £3,500 to £3,750.[4]

Qualifying took place on 4–5 July. Entries played 18 holes on the Old Course and 18 holes on the New Course. The number of qualifiers was limited to a maximum of 100. Ties for 100th place would not qualify. The qualifying score was 148 and 94 players qualified. On the first day Frank Jowle scored 63 on the New Course and after a 72 on the Old Course he led the qualifiers on 135, a shot ahead of Laurie Ayton.[5] The maximum number of players making the cut after 36 holes was set at 50. Ties for 50th place did not make the cut.

Five Americans were in the field of 94, three professionals and two amateurs.[6] All five made the cut and the top U.S. finisher was Ed Furgol in a tie for 19th place. Byron Nelson, whose only previous appearance at The Open was a fifth-place finish in 1937, tied for 32nd. The two amateurs finished in the top thirty.

Previously the 17th hole (the "Road Hole") was a par 5; for this Open it became a par 4, which reduced the course par from 73 to 72.[1]

Past champions in the field

Player Country Year(s) won R1 R2 R3 R4 Total To par Finish
Peter Thomson  Australia 1954 71 68 70 72 281 –7 1
Bobby Locke  South Africa 1949, 1950, 1952 74 69 70 72 285 –3 4
Fred Daly  Northern Ireland 1947 75 72 70 71 288 E T12
Henry Cotton  England 1934, 1937, 1948 70 72 78 76 296 +8 T32
Max Faulkner  England 1951 73 74 74 76 297 +9 T35

Round summaries

First round

Wednesday, 6 July 1955

PlacePlayerCountryScoreTo par
T1Eric Brown Scotland69–3
Dai Rees Wales
Syd Scott England
T4Henry Cotton England70–2
Cecil Denny England
Bernard Hunt England
Frank Jowle England
Jimmy Martin Ireland
Dennis Smalldon Wales
T10John Anderson Scotland71–1
Romualdo Barbieri Argentina
Ken Bousfield England
Ed Furgol United States
Robert Halsall England
John Jacobs England
Christy O'Connor Snr Ireland
Norman Sutton England
Peter Thomson Australia
Flory Van Donck Belgium
Harry Weetman England

Second round

Thursday, 7 July 1955

PlacePlayerCountryScoreTo par
T1Eric Brown Scotland69-70=139–5
Dennis Smalldon Wales70-69=139
Peter Thomson Australia71-68=139
4John Fallon Scotland73-67=140–4
T5Bernard Hunt England70-71=141–3
John Jacobs England71-70=141
Frank Jowle England70-71=141
T8Romualdo Barbieri Argentina71-71=142–2
Harry Bradshaw Ireland72-70=142
Henry Cotton England70-72=142
Jimmy Martin Ireland70-72=142
Harry Weetman England71-71=142

Amateurs: Bucher (+2), Conrad (+4), McHale (+4), Lawrie (+5), Carr (+9), Murray (+11), Orr (+13), Robertson (+15).

Third round

Friday, 8 July 1955 - (morning)

PlacePlayerCountryScoreTo par
1Peter Thomson Australia71-68-70=209–7
2Frank Jowle England70-71-69=210–6
T3Eric Brown Scotland69-70-73=212–4
John Jacobs England71-70-71=212
Harry Weetman England71-71-70=212
T6John Fallon Scotland73-67-73=213–3
Bobby Locke South Africa74-69-70=213
8Flory Van Donck Belgium71-72-71=214–2
T9Romualdo Barbieri Argentina71-71-73=215–1
Harry Bradshaw Ireland72-70-73=215
Antonio Cerdá Argentina73-71-71=215
Bernard Hunt England70-71-74=215

Final round

Friday, 8 July 1955 - (afternoon)

PlacePlayerCountryScoreTo par Money (₤)
1 Peter Thomson  Australia 71-68-70-72=281 –71,000
2 John Fallon  Scotland 73-67-73-70=283 –5500
3 Frank Jowle  England 70-71-69-74=284 –4350
4 Bobby Locke  South Africa 74-69-70-72=285 –3200
T5 Ken Bousfield  England 71-75-70-70=286 –290
Antonio Cerdá  Argentina 73-71-71-71=286
Bernard Hunt  England 70-71-74-71=286
Flory Van Donck  Belgium 71-72-71-72=286
Harry Weetman  England 71-71-70-74=286
T10 Romualdo Barbieri  Argentina 71-71-73-72=287 –140
Christy O'Connor Snr  Ireland 71-75-70-71=287

Amateurs: Conrad (+5), McHale (+7), Bucher (+23).

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Three tied for lead in British Open golf". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Associated Press. 8 July 1955. p. 19. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  2. ↑ "Media guide". The Open Championship. 2011. p. 81. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  3. ↑ "Thomson edges Fallon by two strokes in British Open". Montreal Gazette. Associated Press. 9 July 1955. p. 9. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  4. ↑ "Larger prize for "Open"". The Glasgow Herald. 24 December 1954. p. 7.
  5. ↑ "Thomson goes easily and efficiently on - Chance of retaining his Open Golf Championship". The Times. 6 July 1955. p. 4.
  6. ↑ "Thomson, Brown, Smalldon lead British Open with 139". Montreal Gazette. Associated Press. 8 July 1955. p. 19. Retrieved 9 May 2013.

External links

Preceded by
1955 U.S. Open		 Major Championships Succeeded by
1955 PGA Championship

Coordinates: 56°20′36″N 2°48′10″W / 56.3433°N 2.8028°W / 56.3433; -2.8028

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