1927 Open Championship

The 1927 Open Championship was the 62nd Open Championship, held 13–15 July at the Old Course at St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland. Amateur Bobby Jones successfully defended the title with a dominating six-stroke victory, the second of his three victories at the Open Championship.

Contents

• Second day leaderboard
• Final leaderboard
• References

The regional qualification that had been used in 1926 was abandoned and the previous system of local qualifying just before the Open was reintroduced. Qualifying took place on 11–12 July. Entries played 18 holes on the Old Course and 18 holes on the New Course. The top 100 and ties qualified. The qualifying score was 160 and 108 players qualified. The amateur Cyril Tolley led the qualifiers on 144. To make the cut players would need to be within 14 strokes of the leader after 36 holes. Prize money was increased by £50 although the first prize remained unchanged at £75.

Jones, age 25, returned to St Andrews to make amends for his first experience on the course; six years earlier he walked off the course in the third round of the 1921 Open. He shot 68 (−5) in the first round on Wednesday, three clear of the rest of the field, and after a second round 72 was at 140 (−6), two shots ahead of Bert Hodson and four clear of Joe Kirkwood, Sr. Hodson ballooned to 81 (+8) in the third round on Friday morning, and Jones closed with rounds of 73 and 72 to post a total of 285, a new tournament record. Aubrey Boomer and Fred Robson tied for second place, six shots back.

Future three-time champion Henry Cotton, age 20, made his Open debut and finished in ninth place. Five-time champion John Henry Taylor made his last cut in the Open at the age of 56.

In this era there were no exemptions, not even for the defending champion, and Jones had to qualify with the rest of the field. The 36-hole qualifier was held on Monday and Tuesday on the Old and New courses, and reduced the field for the tournament proper to the top hundred, plus ties. In heavy rain early that flooded the bunkers, Jones shot 76 on Monday at the Old Course and 71 on Tuesday at the New Course for 147, three strokes behind the low qualifier, Cyril Tolley, the 1920 (and 1929) British Amateur champion.