1899 U.S. Open (golf)
The 1899 U.S. Open was the fifth U.S. Open, held September 14–15 at Baltimore Country Club in Baltimore, Maryland.[1] Willie Smith won his only major title, a record eleven strokes ahead of three runners-up.[2][3]
Tournament information | |
---|---|
Dates | September 14–15, 1899 |
Location | Baltimore, Maryland |
Course(s) | Baltimore Country Club |
Organized by | USGA |
Format | Stroke play − 72 holes |
Statistics | |
Field | 72 |
Prize fund | $750 |
Winner's share | $150 |
Champion | |
Willie Smith | |
315 | |
On Thursday, Smith and future four-time champion Willie Anderson co-led with 77 in the morning and Anderson took the lead in the afternoon at 158, with Smith a stroke back.[4] In the third round on Friday morning, Anderson's 85 allowed Smith to take a four-stroke lead over Alex Campbell, and his 77 in the afternoon distanced him from the field; Campbell ballooned to 94 and fell to twelfth.
Playing out of Midlothian Country Club in Chicago,[2] Smith was the only player to record three sub-80 rounds, and did not score higher than a seven on any hole in the championship. Val Fitzjohn, George Low, and Bert Way tied for second, eleven strokes behind.[3][5] Smith's margin of victory was the largest in the U.S. Open for 101 years, until Tiger Woods won by fifteen shots in 2000. Smith's brother Alex, a future two-time champion, finished seventh.
Smith won a gold medal and was given custody of the Championship Cup for a year.[6]
Past champions in the field
Player | Country | Year won | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | Finish |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
James Foulis | Scotland | 1896 | 94 | 84 | 55 | 80 | 346 | T20 |
Fred Herd | Scotland | 1898 | 85 | 86 | 93 | 86 | 350 | T25 |
Horace Rawlins | England | 1895 | 81 | 85 | 98 | 86 | 350 | T25 |
Source:[5]
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, September 14, 1899 (morning)
Place | Player | Country | Score |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Willie Anderson | Scotland | 77 |
Willie Smith | Scotland | ||
3 | Bert Way | England | 80 |
T4 | Henry Gullane | Scotland | 81 |
Horace Rawlins | England | ||
T6 | George Low | Scotland | 82 |
Alexander Patrick | Scotland | ||
Writ Thompson | Scotland | ||
T9 | Alex Campbell | Scotland | 83 |
David Foulis | Scotland | ||
Arthur Smith |
Second round
Thursday, September 14, 1899 (afternoon)
Place | Player | Country | Score |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Willie Anderson | Scotland | 77-81=158 |
2 | Willie Smith | Scotland | 77-82=159 |
3 | George Low | Scotland | 82-79=161 |
T4 | Alex Campbell | Scotland | 83-80=163 |
Alex Smith | Scotland | 82-81=163 | |
T6 | Val Fitzjohn | Scotland | 85-80=165 |
Alexander Patrick | 82-83=165 | ||
Bert Way | England | 80-85=165 | |
9 | Horace Rawlins | England | 81-85=166 |
10 | Henry Gullane | Scotland | 81-86=167 |
Third round
Friday, September 15, 1899 (morning)
Place | Player | Country | Score |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Willie Smith | Scotland | 77-82-79=238 |
2 | Alex Campbell | Scotland | 83-80-79=242 |
T3 | Willie Anderson | Scotland | 77-81-85=243 |
Jack Park | Scotland | 88-80-75=243 | |
5 | Val Fitzjohn | Scotland | 85-80-79=244 |
T6 | Alex Smith | Scotland | 82-81-82=245 |
Bert Way | England | 80-85-80=245 | |
T8 | Henry Gullane | Scotland | 81-86-80=247 |
Peter Walker | Scotland | 84-86-77=247 | |
10 | George Low | Scotland | 82-79-89=250 |
Final round
Friday, September 15, 1899 (afternoon)
Place | Player | Country | Score | Money ($) |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Willie Smith | Scotland | 77-82-79-77=315 | 150 |
T2 | Val Fitzjohn | Scotland | 85-80-79-82=326 | 125 |
George Low | Scotland | 82-79-89-76=326 | ||
Bert Way | England | 80-85-80-81=326 | ||
5 | Willie Anderson | Scotland | 77-81-85-84=327 | 80 |
6 | Jack Park | Scotland | 88-80-75-85=328 | 70 |
7 | Alex Smith | Scotland | 82-81-82-85=330 | 50 |
8 | Henry Gullane | Scotland | 81-86-80-84=331 | 25 |
T9 | Laurie Auchterlonie | Scotland | 86-87-82-78=333 | 0 |
Peter Walker | Scotland | 84-86-77-86=333 |
References
- "Open tourney on today". Chicago Daily Tribune. September 14, 1899. p. 7.
- Murphy, James Shields (September 16, 1899). "Smith is the champion". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 6.
- "New Golf Champion of the United States". The San Francisco Call. September 16, 1899. p. 9. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
- Murphy, James Shields (September 15, 1899). "Anderson in the lead". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 8.
- Brenner, Morgan G. (2009). The Majors of Golf: Complete Results of The Open, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and the Masters, 1860-2008. p. 202. ISBN 9780786453955. Retrieved June 26, 2017.
- "The Golf Championship". North Adams Transcript. Massachusetts. 16 September 1899.