1929 Open Championship
The 1929 Open Championship was the 64th Open Championship, held 8–10 May at Muirfield in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland. Walter Hagen successfully defended his 1928 title, six strokes ahead of runner-up Johnny Farrell. It was Hagen's fourth win at the Open and his eleventh and final major title.[4][5]
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 8–10 May 1929 |
| Location | Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland |
| Course(s) | Muirfield |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 70 [1] |
| Length | 6,693 yards (6,120 m)[2] |
| Field | 109 players, 64 after cut [3] |
| Cut | 157 (+17) |
| Prize fund | £250 |
| Winner's share | £75 |
| Champion | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Walter Hagen | |
| 292 (+12) | |
Qualifying was held 6–7 May, Monday and Tuesday, with 18 holes at Muirfield and 18 holes at the number 1 course Gullane,[6] and the top 100 and ties qualified. Leo Diegel led the field with 144; the qualifying score was 162 and 109 players advanced.[7][8]
Percy Alliss held the lead after the first round with a 69,[9][10] while Leo Diegel matched that score in the second round to take the 36-hole lead. After a first-round 75, defending champion Hagen recorded an Open Championship record 67 in the second round on Thursday and was two back of Diegel.[1][11] There was a change in the cut rule; players needed to be within fourteen strokes of the leader after 36 holes, but there was to be a minimum of sixty left in the field.[9] The cut was at 157 (+17) and 64 advanced.
Windy conditions on Friday caused scores to soar over the final two rounds. Diegel shot 82 in the morning, with Alliss and Abe Mitchell at 76 and 78, respectively. Hagen finished with two rounds of 75 for 292. Diegel was a shot behind runner-up Farrell in third place, while Alliss and Mitchell shared fourth at 300.[4][5]
Hagen, age 36, played the tournament just twice more, in 1933 and 1937, both following Ryder Cup matches in England. Six-time champion Harry Vardon, age 59, qualified for the Open for the final time and missed the cut by three strokes. Similar to 1928, this Open was played earlier than usual, in early May.
Course
| Hole | Yards | Par | Hole | Yards | Par | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 450 | 4 | 10 | 459 | 4 | |
| 2 | 353 | 4 | 11 | 359 | 4 | |
| 3 | 380 | 4 | 12 | 380 | 4 | |
| 4 | 180 | 3 | 13 | 128 | 3 | |
| 5 | 510 | 5 | 14 | 450 | 4 | |
| 6 | 450 | 4 | 15 | 393 | 4 | |
| 7 | 153 | 3 | 16 | 193 | 3 | |
| 8 | 455 | 4 | 17 | 507 | 5 | |
| 9 | 483 | 4 | 18 | 410 | 4 | |
| Out | 3,414 | 35 | In | 3,279 | 35 | |
| Source:[2] | Total | 6,693 | 70 | |||
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, 8 May 1929
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Percy Alliss | 69 | −1 |
| T2 | Jim Barnes | 71 | +1 |
| Leo Diegel | |||
| T4 | Ed Dudley | 72 | +2 |
| Johnny Farrell | |||
 Herbert Jolly | |||
| Abe Mitchell | |||
| T8 |  Michael Bingham | 73 | +3 |
| Bobby Cruickshank | |||
| Gene Sarazen | |||
| Macdonald Smith | |||
| Al Watrous | |||
| Tom Williamson |
Second round
Thursday, 9 May 1929
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leo Diegel | 71-69=140 | E |
| 2 | Walter Hagen | 75-67=142 | +2 |
| 3 | Abe Mitchell | 72-72=144 | +4 |
| 4 | Percy Alliss | 69-76=145 | +5 |
| T5 | Bobby Cruickshank | 73-74=147 | +7 |
| Johnny Farrell | 72-75=147 | ||
| Johnny Golden | 74-73=147 | ||
| Gene Sarazen | 73-74=147 | ||
| T9 | Tommy Armour | 75-73=148 | +8 |
| Aubrey Boomer | 74-74=148 | ||
| Bill Mehlhorn | 74-74=148 |
Source:[11]
Third round
Friday, 10 May 1929 (morning)
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walter Hagen | 75-67-75=218 | +8 |
| 2 | Percy Alliss | 69-76-76=221 | +11 |
| T3 | Leo Diegel | 71-69-82=222 | +12 |
| Abe Mitchell | 72-72-78=222 | ||
| 5 | Johnny Farrell | 72-75-76=223 | +13 |
| 6 | Bobby Cruickshank | 73-74-78=225 | +15 |
| 7 | Archie Compston | 76-73-77=226 | +16 |
| T8 | Tommy Armour | 75-73-79=227 | +17 |
| Mark Seymour | 75-74-78=227 | ||
| Al Watrous | 73-79-75=227 |
Final round
Friday, 10 May 1929 (afternoon)
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money (£) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walter Hagen | 75-67-75-75=292 | +12 | 75 |
| 2 | Johnny Farrell | 72-75-76-75=298 | +18 | 50 |
| 3 | Leo Diegel | 71-69-82-77=299 | +19 | 25 |
| T4 | Percy Alliss | 69-76-76-79=300 | +20 | 15 |
| Abe Mitchell | 72-72-78-78=300 | |||
| 6 | Bobby Cruickshank | 73-74-78-76=301 | +21 | 10 |
| 7 | Jim Barnes | 71-80-78-74=303 | +23 | |
| T8 | Gene Sarazen | 73-74-81-76=304 | +24 | |
| Al Watrous | 73-79-75-77=304 | |||
| 10 | Tommy Armour | 75-73-79-78=305 | +25 |
Amateurs: Perkins (+32), MacKenzie (+33), Tolley (+33), Von Elm (+38)
References
- Cavendish, Henry (10 May 1929). "Diegel, Hagen one, two in British Open". Milwaukee Sentinel. Universal Service. p. 1-part 2. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
- "Muirfield". Glasgow Herald. 7 May 1929. p. 12.
- "Media guide". The Open Championship. 2011. p. 106. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2017.
- "Hagen's triumph". Glasgow Herald. 11 May 1929. p. 11.
- "Hagen retains British title". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. 11 May 1929. p. 18.
- "Golf in rainstorms". Glasgow Herald. 7 May 1929. p. 12.
- "109 qualifiers". Glasgow Herald. 8 May 1929. p. 14.
- "Golf - Open Championship - Qualified". The Times. 8 May 1929. p. 7.
- "Wonderful golf". Glasgow Herald. 9 May 1929. p. 11.
- "British pro takes lead from Diegel". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. 8 May 1929. p. 20. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
- "'Open' record broken". Glasgow Herald. 10 May 1929. p. 13.
- "Hagen's Triumph - Four Times 'Open' Golf Champion - The Leading Scores". The Glasgow Herald. 11 May 1929. p. 11.