The 1921 Open Championship was the 56th

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 23–25 June at the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland. Former local

Jock Hutchison Jack Falls "Jock" Hutchison (June 6, 1884 – September 27, 1977) was a Scottish professional golfer. Hutchison was born in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, the son of William and Helen (née Falls). His name was registered as John Waters Hutchiso ...

won his only Open Championship, in a 36-hole playoff over amateur

Roger Wethered Roger Henry Wethered (3 January 1899 – 12 March 1983) was an English amateur golfer, and the brother of female golfer Joyce Wethered. Early life Born in Surrey, Wethered was the only son of Herbert Newton Wethered and his wife Marion Emmelin ...

. It was Hutchison's second and final major title.

Qualification

Qualifying took place on 20–21 June, Monday and Tuesday, with 18 holes on the Eden Course and 18 holes on the Old Course; the top 80 and ties qualified.

led the field on 146; the qualifying score was 161 and 85 players advanced. The entries included an unusually large number of U.S.-based players following a funding-raising campaign by an American golf magazine. On 27 September 1920 ''Golf Illustrated'' wrote a letter to the Professional Golfers' Association of America with a suggestion that a team of twelve to twenty American professionals be chosen to play in the British Open, to be financed by popular subscription. At that time no American golfer had won the British Open. The idea was that of James D. Harnett, who worked for the magazine. The PGA of America made a positive reply and the idea was announced in the November 1920 issue. The fund was called the ''British Open Championship Fund''. By the next spring the idea had been firmed-up. A team of 12 would be chosen, who would sail in time to play a warm-up tournament at Gleneagles (the ''Glasgow Herald'' 1000 Guinea Tournament) prior to the British Open at St Andrews, two weeks later. The team of 12 was chosen by PGA president George Sargent and PGA secretary Alec Pirie, with the assistance of

USGA The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rules ...

vice-president Robert Gardner. A team of 11 sailed from New York on the RMS ''Aquitania'' on 24 May, together with James Harnett, Harry Hampton deciding at the last minute that he could not travel. The American team was:

Jim Barnes James Martin Barnes (April 8, 1886 – May 24, 1966) was an English golfer and a leading figure in the early years of professional golf in the United States. He is one of three native Britons (with Tommy Armour and Rory McIlroy) to win three di ...

Emmet French John Emmet French (November 22, 1886 – June 10, 1947) was an American professional golfer, who is notable for losing to Gene Sarazen in the 1922 PGA Championship. French was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. French, being a tall man, was a good ...

Clarence Hackney Clarence W. Hackney (March 10, 1894 – January 4, 1941) was a Scottish-American professional golfer. Early life Hackney was born in Carnoustie, Scotland. He emigrated to the United States in 1913 and became a U.S. citizen in 1921. Golf career ...

Walter Hagen Walter Charles Hagen (December 21, 1892 – October 6, 1969) was an American professional golfer and a major figure in golf in the first half of the 20th century. His tally of 11 professional majors is third behind Jack Nicklaus (18) and Tig ...

Charles Hoffner Charles Harvey Hoffner (October 20, 1896 – November 9, 1981) was an American professional golfer. His best finish in an important tournament was a win at the first Philadelphia PGA Championship in 1922. In major championships, Hoffner tied for ...

, Tom Kerrigan, George McLean, Fred McLeod,

Bill Mehlhorn William Earl Mehlhorn (December 2, 1898 – April 5, 1989) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in its early days, and was at his best in the 1920s. Mehlhorn was born in Elgin, Illinois and lived a majority of his life i ...

, and

Wilfrid Reid Wilfrid Ewart "Wilfie" Reid (3 November 1884 – 24 November 1973) was an English professional golfer and golf course designer. Reid was born in Bulwell, Nottingham, England, and died in West Palm Beach, Florida, United States. He posted three ...

. The day before the Glasgow Herald Tournament, a match was played between the Americans and a team of British professionals, the first match between American and British professionals. It was a forerunner of the Ryder Cup matches, which began six years later in

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 ...

. After the Glasgow tournament, most of the American team travelled to St Andrews to practice, however, Walter Hagen and Jock Hutchison played in a tournament at

Kinghorn Kinghorn (; gd, Ceann Gronna) is a town and parish in Fife, Scotland. A seaside resort with two beaches, Kinghorn Beach and Pettycur Bay, plus a fishing port, it stands on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, opposite Edinburgh. Accordin ...

on 14 and 15 June. Hagen had a poor first round and didn't turn up for the second day, while Hutchison scored 74 and 64 and took the £50 first prize. The American-based entry was augmented by two other professionals,

Jack Burgess Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

and James Douglas Edgar, and some amateurs, including Bobby Jones. All the American-based professionals qualified with the exception of Wilfrid Reid, who scored 163. Two of the amateurs qualified, Bobby Jones and

Paul Hunter Paul Alan Hunter (14 October 1978 – 9 October 2006) was an English professional snooker player. He was a three-time Masters champion, winning the event in 2001, 2002, and 2004, recovering from a deficit in the final to win 10–9 on a ...

Venue

^ The 10th hole was posthumously named for Bobby Jones in 1972.

Details

During the first round on Thursday morning, Hutchison made a

hole-in-one In golf, a hole in one or hole-in-one (also known as an ace, mostly in American English) occurs when a ball hit from a tee to start a hole finishes in the cup. A ball hit from a tee following a lost ball, out-of-bounds, or water hazard is not a h ...

at the 8th and then drove the green at the par-4 9th, his ball settling inches from the hole. He finished with a round of 72 and a two-shot lead, and continued to lead after 36 holes at 147, a shot ahead of

and Ted Ray. In the two-day format, there was no cut after 36 holes. After the third round on Friday morning, Hutchison trailed Barnes and

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, He ...

by four shots, but both co-leaders shot 80 in the final round and fell into a tie for sixth with five others. Wethered, a student at

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, carded 71 to finish at 296, while Hutchison shot 70 to tie and force a Saturday playoff.

Playoff

Wethered almost did not make it to the playoff, as he was scheduled to play for his

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

team that day and had to be persuaded to stay and play golf. In the playoff, the first two holes were halved before Hutchison gained two shots at the 3rd. However he played a poor 4th hole and took six to make the match all square again. Hutchison took a grip on the match by scoring four threes from the 7th to the 10th while Wethered took four fours. At lunch, Hutchison held a three shot lead. In the afternoon, Hutchison struggled at the first three holes but managed to halve the holes with Wethered. The match then turned decisively with Wethered taking six at the 4th and Hutchison taking threes at the 5th and 6th. Wethered dropped another shot at the 7th and now Hutchison was nine strokes ahead. Hutchison was in trouble at the 11th and took five but Wethered three-putted and only gained one stroke. Thereafter, Hutchison's lead increased to twelve before his cautious play at the final holes reduced the lead to nine. Although a native of St Andrews, Hutchison had become a U.S. citizen and was credited as being the Open's first American champion. ''The Times'' reported under the headline "Cup Goes to U.S.A." that "our Open Championship goes for the first time in its history to America." The following year, Hagen became the first U.S.-born winner. Bobby Jones, 19, played at St Andrews and the Open for the first time, and was the low amateur after 36 holes. He withdrew in the third round after taking four shots to get out of a bunker at the 11th.

Past champions in the field

Source:

Round summaries

First round

''Thursday, 23 June 1921 (morning)'' Source:

Second round

''Thursday, 23 June 1921 (afternoon)'' Source:

Third round

''Friday, 24 June 1921 (morning)'' Source:

Final round

''Friday, 24 June 1921 (afternoon)'' Source: Amateurs: Wethered (296), Hunter (307), Kyle (309), Seymour (314),
Armour (315), Murray (316), Harris (322), Quilter (327).

Playoff

''Saturday, 25 June 1921'' Source:

Scorecards

''Morning round'' ''Afternoon round''

References

External links

St Andrews 1921 (Official site)
{{coord, 56.343, -2.803, type:event, display=title The Open Championship Golf tournaments in Scotland