1948 British Open Winner and Scores
The 1948 British Open was the 77th time the tournament was played. The winner was Henry Cotton, who, with this victory, became a three-time Open champion.
Winner: Henry Cotton, 288
Where it was played: Muirfield in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland
Tournament dates: June 30-July 2, 1948
Leader after first round: Sam King, Flory Van Donck and Charlie Ward, 69
Leader after second round: Henry Cotton, 137
Leader after third round: Henry Cotton, 212
What Happened at the 1948 Open Championship
Henry Cotton won the last of his three Open titles at the 1948 British Open. In the 13 British Opens played from 1930 to 1948, Cotton won three, finished in the Top 7 nine times, and finished outside the Top 10 just once.At this Open, Cotton took control with a second-round 66, earning a 4-stroke advantage heading into the 36-hole final day. He shot 75-72 on that final day, but in poor weather conditions Cotton added to his lead. No golfer managed to break 70 on the final (36-hole) day. Cotton wound up winning by five strokes over the defending champion, Fred Daly.
Robert De Vicenzo tied for third place, six strokes behind Cotton. It was De Vicenzo's debut in the Open Championship. In De Vicenzo's first three British Open appearances, he finished third, third and second. He eventually did win this title at the 1967 British Open.
Peter Alliss played in his first British Open this year, missing the cut. Alf Padgham, winner of the 1936 Open, tied for seventh, the last of his eight Top 10 finishes in the Open Championship.
Cotton's second-round 66 was the course record at Muirfield at the time, and it was only one shot off the then-tournament scoring record of 65. And that scoring record was held by ... Cotton, who shot 65 during his first victory at the 1934 British Open.
Cotton was a major figure in European golf for the rest of his long life, eventually becoming Sir Henry Cotton when he was posthumously knighted shortly after his death in 1987. The European Tour's top rookie receives the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Award.
1948 British Open Final Scores
| Henry Cotton | 71-66-75-72—284 |
| Fred Daly | 72-71-73-73—289 |
| Roberto De Vicenzo | 70-73-72-75—290 |
| Jack Hargreaves | 76-68-73-73—290 |
| Norman Von Nida | 71-72-76-71—290 |
| Charlie Ward | 69-72-75-74—290 |
| Johnny Bulla | 74-72-73-72—291 |
| Sam King | 69-72-74-76—291 |
| Alf Padgham | 73-70-71-77—291 |
| Flory Van Donck | 69-73-73-76—291 |
| a-Mario Gonzalez | 76-72-70-75—293 |
| a-Edwin Kingsley | 77-69-77-70—293 |
| Arthur Lees | 73-69-73-78—293 |
| Alan Waters | 75-71-70-77—293 |
| Max Faulkner | 75-71-74-74—294 |
| Dai Rees | 73-71-76-74—294 |
| Eddie Whitcombe | 74-73-73-74—294 |
| Dick Burton | 74-70-74-77—295 |
| Frank Jowle | 70-78-74-73—295 |
| Reg Whitcombe | 77-67-77-74—295 |
| Ken Bousfield | 76-71-73-76—296 |
| John Fallon | 73-74-74-75—296 |
| Tom Haliburton | 73-74-76-74—297 |
| Alf Perry | 77-71-76-73—297 |
| a-Frank Stranahan | 77-71-75-74—297 |
| Norman Sutton | 72-73-77-75—297 |
| Claude Harmon Sr. | 75-73-78-72—298 |
| John Hayes | 74-73-75-78—300 |
| Reg Horne | 71-77-73-79—300 |
| Arthur Clark | 74-71-75-81—301 |
| Harold Gould | 75-73-78-75—301 |
| William Collins Jr. | 77-69-77-79—302 |
| Bobby Cruickshank | 74-74-77-77—302 |
| Lawson Little | 72-76-76-78—302 |
| Charles Whitcombe | 74-72-75-81—302 |
| Walter Lyle | 72-75-80-80—307 |
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1947 British Open - 1949 British Open