The 1889 Open Championship was the 29th

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

, held 8 November at the

Musselburgh Links Musselburgh Links, The Old Golf Course in Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland, is generally accepted as being one of the oldest golf courses in the world. The course is not to be confused with The Royal Musselburgh Golf Club or the Levenhall ...

Musselburgh Musselburgh (; sco, Musselburrae; gd, Baile nam Feusgan) is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, east of Edinburgh city centre. It has a population of . History The name Musselburgh is Ol ...

East Lothian East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In 1975, the histo ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Andrew Kirkaldy and

Willie Park Jr. William Park Jr. (4 February 1864 – 22 May 1925) was a Scottish professional golfer. He won The Open Championship twice. Park was also a successful golf equipment maker and golf writer. In his later years, Park built a significant career as o ...

were tied on 155 each. They had a 36-hole playoff on 11 November, Park winning by five strokes from Kirkaldy. This was the sixth and last time the Open was played at Musselburgh. It was replaced by

Muirfield Muirfield is a privately owned golf links which is the home of The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers. Located in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland, overlooking the Firth of Forth, Muirfield is one of the golf courses used in rotation for The ...

as the venue for the 1892 Open Championship. A number of players scored 39 in the first round but after two round Kirkaldy had the lead with a total of 77. Park was a stroke behind on 78 with

Ben Sayers Bernard "Ben" Sayers (23 June 1856 – 9 March 1924) was a Scottish professional golfer, who later became a distinguished golf teacher, golf course designer and manufacturer of golf clubs and equipment. Sayers had a reputation for making good q ...

on 79. After the third round, Kirkaldy and Park drew clear of the field, Kirkaldy still holding a one stroke lead. Kirkaldy led by two after Park made a bad start to the final round. However Kirkaldy finished badly, taking four at the short 7th and 9th holes while Park took three at the two holes and so the two player were tied on 155, four clear of Sayers. Play started until 10:30 a.m. "but as the day wore on it became apparent that an earlier start would have been more satisfactory". The problems with playing on a nine-hole course in November became clear and players not in contention were offered 5 shillings not to play in the final round so that the leading players could finish before darkness descended. As it was, the last few competitors played in the dark. The playoff took place three days later. Park got off to the best start in the playoff and led by four after the first round. However, in the second round Park was in trouble at the 3rd hole where he had to lift, taking a two stroke penalty, and taking eight. Park was in more trouble at the next two holes and Kirkaldy took a one stroke lead at that point. However, Park played the last four holes four strokes better than Kirkaldy and finished the morning play with a three-shot lead. After an hour break and in front of about a thousand spectators both played an excellent third round, Park scoring 37 to Kirkaldy's 38, so that Park now led by four strokes. Kirkaldy reduced the lead to three at the first hole of the final round but then they halved the next six holes. The championship was finally decided at the 8th where Kirkaldy was bunkered and took six. Park's win marked the end of Scottish hegemony at the Open Championship. His victory was the 29th consecutive victory for Scottish golfers. The streak was broken the next year at the

1890 Open Championship The 1890 Open Championship was the 30th Open Championship, held 11 September at Prestwick Golf Club in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. John Ball won the Championship, three strokes ahead of Willie Fernie and Archie Simpson. Ball was bot ...

by Englishman John Ball. In general, golfers from Jersey and England would dominate the Open in the 1890s, winning eight of the ten events. This streak of 29 consecutive major championship victories (none of the other major championships existed yet) from one nation remains the longest ever. The next closest is 17 consecutive victories from American golfers that ended at the 1947 U.S. Open.

Final leaderboard

Source: ''Friday, 8 November 1889''

Playoff

Source: ''Monday, 11 November 1889''

Scorecards

''Morning rounds'' ''Afternoon rounds''

References

External links

Musselburgh Links 1889 (Official site)
{{coord, 55.948, -3.044, type:event, display=title The Open Championship Golf tournaments in Scotland