1863 British Open Winner and Scores

Willie Park Sr. won the 1863 British Open, the fourth one played. Park thus split the first four Opens with Tom Morris Sr., two wins each.

Winner: Willie Park. Sr., 168

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

Tournament dates: Sept. 18, 1863

Leader after first round: David Park, 55

Leader after second round: Willie Park Sr., 110

What Happened at the 1863 Open Championship

The 1863 Open Championship was the fourth time the British Open was played. Once again — just as it was for each of the first 12 Opens — it was played on the 12-hole Prestwick course. The golfers played three rounds, 36 holes total, on September 18, 1863.

And the winner was Willie Park Sr., edging his great rival Old Tom Morris by two shots. That evened the score at this point between the two: four Opens played, two wins for Park, two wins for Morris.

Only 14 golfers completed the full 36 holes, and only five finished within 15 shots of Park's 168 winning total. The last-place finisher was a whopping 65 strokes off the pace, or an average of nearly two strokes per hole worse than Park.

The eight professionals in the field for the first time were awarded prize money, equally splitting a purse of £10.

The first-round leader was David Park, Willie's brother. Another of Willie's brothers, Mungo Park, won the 1874 British Open, and Willie's son, Willie Park Jr., was a 2-time Open champion.

David Park fell out of contention with a 63 in the second round. Willie Park took over the lead with a 54, gaining a 4-stroke edge over Morris. Morris outplayed Park by two strokes in the final round, but Park held on for the 2-shot victory.

1863 British Open Final Scores

Willie Park Sr.	56-54-58—168
Tom Morris Sr.	56-58-56—170
David Park	55-63-54—172
Andrew Strath	61-55-58—174
George Brown	58-61-57—176
Robert Andrew	62-57-59—178
Charlie Hunter	61-61-62—184
a-James Knight	66-65-59—190
a-James Miller	63-63-66—192
a-Peter Chalmers	65-67-65—197
a-J.F. Johnston	66-66-65—197
James Paxton	197
a-William Mitchell	70-70-66—206
a-William Moffat	75-78-80—233

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