1870 British Open: Young Tom's 3rd In a Row

Tom Morris Jr.'s dominance of the Open Championship was cemented with his third consecutive win. The 1870 British Open was the 11th one played.

Winner: Tom Morris Jr., 149

Where it was played: Prestwick Golf Club, Ayrshire, Scotland

Tournament dates: Sept. 15, 1870

Leader after first round: Tom Morris Jr., 47

Leader after second round: Tom Morris Jr., 98

Notable Notes: Young Tom Morris won for the third straight year, which meant that he got permanent possession of the Challenge Belt. Morris' capture of the Challenge Belt left the tournament without a trophy, which eventually led to the creation of the famous Claret Jug as the Open trophy.

Young Tom shot 47 in the first round, the first golfer to break 50 at Prestwick, and finished two rounds as the first golfer to break 100 over 24 holes of the Open. (Once again the tournament took place over the 12-hole Prestwick links, three rounds for a total of 36 holes.)

Final Scores

Tom Morris Jr. 47-51-51—149
Bob Kirk 52-52-57—161
Davie Strath 54-49-58—161
Tom Morris Sr. 56-52-54—162
a-William Doleman 57-54-58—169
Willie Park Sr. 60-55-58—173
Jamie Anderson 59-57-58—174
John Allan 61-58-57—176
a-A. Doleman 61-59-58—178
Charlie Hunter 58-56-64—178
Thomas Brown 66-55-59—180
a-James Miller 66-63-54—183
a-T. Hunter 62-63-60—185
a-F. Doleman 65-64-60—189
W. Boyd 65-59-67—191
J. Hunter 62-65-64—191
William Dow 68-64-66—198

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