The 1908 Open Championship was the 48th

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 18–19 June at

Prestwick Golf Club Prestwick Golf Club is a golf course in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is approximately southwest of Scotland's largest city, Glasgow. Prestwick is a classic links course, built on the rolling sandy land between the beach and the hin ...

in Prestwick, South Ayrshire,

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 ...

. James Braid won the Championship for the fourth time, eight strokes ahead of runner-up Tom Ball. Qualifying took place on Tuesday and Wednesday, 16–17 June, and the players were divided into two "sections." Those in the first section played on the first morning and second afternoon while those in the second section played on the first afternoon and second morning. After the 36 holes the leading thirty players and ties qualified from each section. The qualifying score of 163 was the same in both sections, and 65 players qualified.

J.H. Taylor John Henry "J.H." Taylor (19 March 1871 – 10 February 1963) was an English professional golfer and one of the pioneers of the modern game of golf. Taylor is considered to be one of the best golfers of all time. He was a significant golf ...

led the first section with a score of 150 while the Scottish amateur Robert Andrew led the second section with the same score. The first round on Thursday morning was noted for its low scoring, especially on the first nine holes. Ernest Gray, from

Littlehampton Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort, and pleasure harbour, and the most populous civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the mouth of the River Arun. It is south sout ...

, went out in 31 and equalled

's record score of 68 set at

Royal St George's The Royal St George's Golf Club located in Sandwich, Kent, England, is a golf club in the United Kingdom and one of the courses on The Open Championship rotation and is the only Open rota golf course to be located in South East England. It has ...

1904 Events January * January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''. * January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system. * ...

. Braid finished with a 70 after going out in 33, with

Fred Robson Frederick Robson (25 April 1885 – 3 November 1952) was an English professional golfer who played in the early 20th century. Robson was a frequent competitor in the Open Championship. His best performance was a tie for second with Aubrey Boome ...

in third place after a 72.

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 ...

was amongst those in fourth place on 74 after he too went out in 33. In the afternoon Gray was eleven shots worse with a round in 79 while Braid added a 72 to lead by five strokes from Gray with

Sandy Herd Alexander "Sandy" Herd (24 April 1868 – 18 February 1944) was a Scottish professional golfer from St Andrews. He won The Open Championship in 1902 at Hoylake. Early life Born in St Andrews, Scotland, on 24 April 1868, to a golfing family, H ...

and

David Kinnell David Kinnell (1879 – January 1951) was a Scottish professional golfer who played in the late 19th and early 20th century. Kinnell had two top-10 finishes in the Open Championship. His best performance came in the 1908 Open Championship when ...

a further stroke behind. Braid again played the front nine in 33 and although he took six at the 13th he had a comfortable lead at the end of the day. On Friday morning, Braid began the third round badly. After taking five at the first hole, he followed with an eight at the third. Despite slicing his tee shot into the rough he tried to carry the Cardinal Bunker but failed. His bunker shot hit the sleepers and went out of bounds and, after dropping in the bunker, he hit the sleepers again, this time landing further back in the bunker. He finally escaped the bunker, played a further shot to the green and two-putted for an eight. Under modern rules, he would have scored nine but at the time there was no penalty stroke for "out of bounds." After this, he recovered well and finished with a 77, only three strokes worse than the best rounds of the morning. With Gray taking 83 and Herd coming back in 45, Braid, on 219, had extended his lead to six strokes over Ball and Ted Ray. Braid had a final round of 72, the best of the afternoon to win by eight shots. His total of 291 was an Open Championship record, beating

Jack White John Anthony White (; born July 9, 1975), commonly known as Jack White, is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the duo the White Stripes. White has enjoyed consistent critical and popular success and is widely c ...

's 296 in 1904. After poor scores on the first day,

Harry Vardon Henry William Vardon (9 May 1870 – 20 March 1937) was a professional golfer from Jersey. He was a member of the Great Triumvirate with John Henry Taylor and James Braid. Vardon won The Open Championship a record six times, and also won the ...

and Taylor were amongst the best scorers on the second day and finished in ties for fifth and seventh places.

Round summaries

First round

''Thursday, 18 June 1908 (morning)'' Source:

Second round

''Thursday, 18 June 1908 (afternoon)'' Source:

Third round

''Friday, 19 June 1908 (morning)'' Source:

Final round

''Friday, 19 June 1908'' Source:

References

External links

Prestwick 1908 (Official site)
{{coord, 55.502, -4.619, type:event, display=title The Open Championship Golf tournaments in Scotland