Golfing News

I have been digging into the record books to find a few facts and figures about the US Open, I hope you enjoy this fun trivia page as much as I enjoyed compiling it.

The United States Open Championship usually referred to as the U.S. Open is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour and for the first time in 2008 the Asian Tour.

The first US Open was on October 4, 1895, played over four nine hole rounds at Newport, Rhode Island, it was won by England’s Horace Rawlins who just happened to be the pro at the host club.

The first 16 winners of the US Open were either English or Scottish in the mean time the United States with a total 78 wins has dominated the tournament until recent years as the last four winners have been from the southern hemisphere, 2004 Retief Goosen South Africa, 2005 Michael Campbell New Zealand, 2006 Geoff Ogilvy Australia and 2007 Ángel Cabrera Argentina.

The last European to win was England’s Tony Jacklin way back in 1970.

The oldest winner was Hale Irwin in 1990 at 45 years and 15 days.

The Youngest winner being John J. McDermott in 1911 who was 19 years 10 months and 14 days.

The oldest player to make cut was Sam Snead at the age of 61 in 1973 he finished up the tournament T-29th.

The youngest player to line up was Tyrell Garth in 1941 at the tender age of 14.

Four men share the honour of have won the US Open the most times on four victories each - Willie Anderson (1901, 1903, 1904, 1905) - Robert T. Jones Jr. (1923, 1926, 1929, 1930) - Ben Hogan (1948, 1950, 1951, 1953) - Jack Nicklaus (1962, 1967, 1972, 1980).

Anderson stands alone on consecutive victories though (1903, 1904, 1905).

At 7,643 yards this years course (2008) the Torrey Pines (South Course) is the longest course the championship has been played on.

A record number of entries this year too a massive 9,048. The smallest number was 11 in 1895.

I’ll finish with a couple of odd facts.

In 1914 Walter Hagen became the first wire to wire winner of the U.S. Open despite suffering from food poisoning.

In 1907 at the Philadelphia Cricket Club in Pennsylvania Jack Hobens recorded the first hole in one in tournament history at the 147 yard 10th hole.

1922 saw an admission charge for spectators for the first time, those fans that payed the $1 fee saw Gene Sarazen win his first major.

In the 1934 U.S. Open Bobby Cruickshank when in contention with just nine to play celebrated his approach shot getting a lucky bounce off a rock right onto the green, he through his club in the air and it hit him on the head, knocking him unconscious, he recovered to finish the round but ended up two strokes adrift of winner Olin Dutra.

And finally for now…

In the first round of the 1989 U.S. Open four players record holes in one on the same hole, the aces all come at the 159 yard sixth hole of the Oak Hill Country Club in New York, the lucky four are Nick Price, Mark Wiebe, Jerry Pate and Doug Weaver, the odds of it happening a phenomenal 8.7 million to 1.

If you have any U.S. Open trivia please add it in the comments below.

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