1952 British Open Golf Tournament Results
The 1952 British Open was the 81st time the tournament was played. The champion barely made his tee time on the last day after being locked out of a garage that contained his car — and his golf clubs in the trunk of that car.
Winner: Bobby Locke, 287
Where it was played: Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club in Lytham St. Annes, England
Tournament dates: July 9-11, 1952
Leader after first round: Fred Daly, 67
Leader after second round: Fred Daly, 136
Leader after third round: Fred Daly, 213
What Happened in the 1952 Open Championship
Bobby Locke and Peter Thomson battled in multiple Open Championships in the 1950s, and the 1952 British Open was the first where they went head-to-head. Thomson was an Australian upstart in his early 20s; Locke was a more established star from South Africa.In 1952, it was Locke who came out ahead, beating Thomson by one shot. It was Locke's third Open title in four years. He later added another to finish with four wins in this tournament. Thomson went on to win five Open titles, his first coming in 1954 (when he beat Locke by one stroke).
Fred Daly, winner of the 1947 British Open, led by four at the halfway mark, after opening with rounds of 67 and 69. The final two rounds (played on the third and final day) were played in poor weather, and Daly managed to close only with 77-76 and finished third.
Thomson struggled in the third round with his own 77, and his closing 70 wasn't enough to catch Locke after Locke's 74-73 on the final day.
Locke almost didn't make it to the course with his own clubs on the final day. According to the R&A's tournament history, Locke's clubs were in the trunk of his car, which was inside a private parking garage — a garage that was still locked when Locke showed up the morning of the final round to fetch his car and clubs. A passing milkman who knew the garage's owner was able to take Locke to fetch the key, which let him into the garage. Locke got to the course "with just enough time to change his shoes and walk straight to the first tee," the R&A account says.
Peter Alliss made his first cut in an Open here, and finished tied for 31st.
1952 British Open Final Scores
| Bobby Locke | 69-71-74-73—287 |
| Peter Thomson | 68-73-77-70—288 |
| Fred Daly | 67-69-77-76—289 |
| Henry Cotton | 75-74-74-71—294 |
| Antonio Cerda | 73-73-76-73—295 |
| Sam King | 71-74-74-76—295 |
| Flory Van Donck | 74-75-71-76—296 |
| Fred Bullock | 76-72-72-77—297 |
| Harry Bradshaw | 70-74-75-79—298 |
| Eric Brown | 71-72-78-77—298 |
| Willie Goggin | 71-74-75-78—298 |
| Arthur Lees | 76-72-76-74—298 |
| Syd Scott | 75-69-76-78—298 |
| Norman Von Nida | 77-70-74-77—298 |
| John Panton | 72-72-78-77—299 |
| Harry Weetman | 74-77-71-77—299 |
| Max Faulkner | 72-76-79-73—300 |
| Gene Sarazen | 74-73-77-76—300 |
| Wally Smithers | 73-74-76-77—300 |
| Norman Sutton | 72-74-79-76—301 |
| Fred Allott | 77-71-76-78—302 |
| Ken Bousfield | 72-73-79-78—302 |
| Jimmy Hine | 73-78-74-77—302 |
| Eddie Noke | 72-78-76-76—302 |
| John A. Jacobs | 74-72-81-76—303 |
| Alan Poulton | 71-74-76-82—303 |
| Jack Hargreaves | 75-75-79-75—304 |
| John R.M. Jacobs | 72-76-79-77—304 |
| a-John Jones | 73-70-78-83—304 |
| Dai Rees | 76-74-77-77—304 |
| Peter Alliss | 72-72-80-81—305 |
| Reg Horne | 77-74-80-74—305 |
| a-Dixon Rawlinson | 74-73-79-80—306 |
| a-Alex Kyle | 71-75-80-81—307 |
| a-Henri De Lamaze | 73-72-80-83—308 |
| Bobby Halsall | 74-75-78-81—308 |
| Tom Haliburton | 75-76-80-78—309 |
| John Hawkins | 76-72-82-79—309 |
| George Johnson | 73-75-78-83—309 |
| a-Frank Stranahan | 75-76-78-80—309 |
| Hector Thomson | 73-77-80-79—309 |
| Hal Young | 70-77-77-85—309 |
| George Knight | 74-75-80-82—311 |
| Robert French | 72-78-79-83—312 |
| a-Frank Morrell | 75-74-86-79—314 |
| Bernard Hunt | 75-75-82-83—315 |
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