1968 Open Championship
The 1968 Open Championship was the 97th Open Championship, played 10–13 July at Carnoustie Golf Links in Angus, Scotland. Gary Player won the second of his three Open titles, two strokes ahead of runners-up Bob Charles and Jack Nicklaus.[2] It was the fifth of Player's nine major titles.
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 10–13 July 1968 |
| Location | Angus, Scotland |
| Course(s) | Carnoustie Golf Links Championship Course |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 72[1] |
| Length | 7,252 yards (6,631 m)[1] |
| Field | 130 players 70 after 1st cut 45 after 2nd cut[1] |
| Cut | 155 (+11) (1st cut) 228 (+12) (2nd cut)[1] |
| Prize fund | £20,000[1] |
| Winner's share | £3,000 $7,200 |
| Champion | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Gary Player | |
| 289 (+1) | |
This Open introduced the second cut at 54 holes, used through 1985. In addition, starting with this Championship all past Open champions were exempt from qualifying (though, eventually, an age restriction was placed on past champions).
The inaugural Greater Milwaukee Open was held in the United States during the same week, with a first prize of $40,000, over five times the winner's share of the Open Championship, which was $7,200 (£3,000).
The PGA Championship was played the next week in San Antonio, Texas, the fifth and final time in the 1960s that these two majors were played in consecutive weeks in July. The PGA Championship moved permanently to August in 1969 (except 1971, when it was played in late February) and remained there until 2019, when it moved to May between The Masters and U.S. Open.
Course
Carnoustie Golf Links - Championship Course
| Hole | Name | Yards | Par | Hole | Name | Yards | Par |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cup | 406 | 4 | 10 | South America | 446 | 4 |
| 2 | Gulley | 468 | 4 | 11 | Dyke | 370 | 4 |
| 3 | Jockie's Burn | 343 | 4 | 12 | Southward Ho | 473 | 4 |
| 4 | Hillocks | 429 | 4 | 13 | Whins | 168 | 3 |
| 5 | Brae | 389 | 4 | 14 | Spectacles | 485 | 5 |
| 6 | Long | 565 | 5 | 15 | Lucky Slap | 460 | 4 |
| 7 | Plantation | 386 | 4 | 16 | Barry Burn | 243 | 3 |
| 8 | Short | 163 | 3 | 17 | Island | 458 | 4 |
| 9 | Railway | 475 | 4 | 18 | Home | 525 | 5 |
| Out | 3,624 | 36 | In | 3,628 | 36 | ||
| Total | 7,252 | 72 | |||||
Round summaries
First round
Wednesday, 10 July 1968
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1 |  Brian Barnes | 70 | −2 |
 Michael Bonallack (a) | |||
| T3 | Maurice Bembridge | 71 | −1 |
| Peter Mills | |||
| T5 |  Billy Casper | 72 | E |
 Bob Charles | |||
| Tony Jacklin | |||
 Paddy Skerritt | |||
| T9 | Peter Alliss | 73 | +1 |
| Billy Casper | |||
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Sebastián Miguel | |||
| Sandy Wilson |
Second round
Thursday, 11 July 1968
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Billy Casper | 72-68=140 | −4 |
| T2 | Brian Barnes | 70-74=144 | E |
| Bob Charles | 72-72=144 | ||
| Tony Jacklin | 72-72=144 | ||
| T5 | Jack Nicklaus | 76-69=145 | +1 |
| Gary Player | 74-71=145 | ||
| Paddy Skerritt | 72-73=145 | ||
| T8 | Maurice Bembridge | 71-75=146 | +2 |
 Dave Thomas | 75-71=146 | ||
| T10 | Harry Bannerman | 74-73=147 | +3 |
| Michael Bonallack (a) | 70-77=147 | ||
| Gay Brewer | 74-73=147 | ||
| Brian Huggett | 76-71=147 | ||
| Peter Mills | 71-76=147 |
Amateurs: Bonallack (+3), Monguzzi (+8), O'Connor (+12), Sweeny Jr (+12), Shade (+13), Oosterhuis (+16), Saddler (+16).
Third round
Friday, 13 July 1968
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Billy Casper | 72-68-74=214 | −2 |
| 2 | Bob Charles | 72-72-71=215 | −1 |
| 3 | Gary Player | 74-71-71=216 | E |
| 4 | Jack Nicklaus | 76-69-73=218 | +2 |
| T5 | Maurice Bembridge | 71-75-73=219 | +3 |
| Gay Brewer | 74-73-72=219 | ||
| Tony Jacklin | 72-72-75=219 | ||
| 8 | Arnold Palmer | 77-71-72=220 | +4 |
| 9 | Michael Bonallack (a) | 70-77-74=221 | +5 |
| T10 | Neil Coles | 75-76-71=222 | +6 |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Bruce Devlin | 77-73-72=222 | ||
| Brian Huggett | 76-71-75=222 | ||
| Paddy Skerritt | 72-73-77=222 |
Amateurs: Bonallack (+5), Monguzzi (+18).
Final round
Saturday, 13 July 1968
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money (£) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gary Player | 74-71-71-73=289 | +1 | 3,000 |
| T2 | Bob Charles | 72-72-71-76=291 | +3 | 1,738 |
| Jack Nicklaus | 76-69-73-73=291 | |||
| 4 | Billy Casper | 72-68-74-78=292 | +4 | 1,225 |
| 5 | Maurice Bembridge | 71-75-73-74=293 | +5 | 1,000 |
| T6 | Brian Barnes | 70-74-80-71=295 | +7 | 658 |
| Gay Brewer | 74-73-72-76=295 | |||
| Neil Coles | 75-76-71-73=295 | |||
| 9 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Al Balding | 74-76-74-72=296 | +8 | 475 |
| T10 |  Roberto De Vicenzo | 77-72-74-74=297 | +9 | 402 |
| Bruce Devlin | 77-73-72-75=297 | |||
| Arnold Palmer | 77-71-72-77=297 |
Amateurs: Bonallack (+12).
References
- "Media guide". The Open Championship. 2011. pp. 68, 203–8. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
- Brown, Gwilym S . (22 July 1968). "A sweet win on a sour links". Sports Illustrated. p. 20.