1924 U.S. Open (golf)
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | June 5–6, 1924 |
| Location | Birmingham, Michigan |
| Course(s) | Oakland Hills Country Club South Course |
| Organized by | USGA |
| Format | Stroke play − 72 holes |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 6,874 yards (6,286 m)[1][2] |
| Field | 84 |
| Cut | none |
| Winner's share | $500 |
| Champion | |
 Cyril Walker | |
| 297 (+9) | |
The 1924 U.S. Open was the 28th U.S. Open, held June 5–6 at Oakland Hills Country Club in Birmingham, Michigan, a suburb northwest of Detroit. Cyril Walker, a relatively unknown Englishman, won his only major title at the South Course, three strokes ahead of runner-up Bobby Jones, the defending champion.[3][4]
After the first two rounds of play on Thursday, Jones shared the lead with Bill Mehlhorn, with Walker a shot back.[1] Walker shot a third consecutive 74 in the third round to tie Jones after 54 holes, with Mehlhorn one back. Jones and Mehlhorn, playing ahead of Walker in the final round, both played poorly, each carding 78. Leading by three on the 15th, Walker made bogey but then responded with a birdie on 16. He parred the final two holes to secure the championship.
This was the high point of Walker's golf career. He never won another significant title, and it was his only top ten finish in the U.S. Open; his next best finish in a major was the semifinals of the PGA Championship in 1921. A heavy drinker, Walker wound up working as a caddy and a dishwasher; unable to afford a room, he died in a New Jersey jail cell of pneumonia in 1948 at age 56.[5][6][7]
This was the first of nine major championships held at the South Course through 2017; six U.S. Opens and three PGA Championships.
Course layout
South Course
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yards | 436 | 490 | 198 | 418 | 407 | 353 | 384 | 450 | 237 | 3,403 | 450 | 403 | 552 | 142 | 461 | 412 | 384 | 191 | 476 | 3,471 | 6,874 |
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 35 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 37 | 72 |
Source:[1]
Past champions in the field
| Player | Country | Year(s) won | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | To par | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bobby Jones (a) |  United States |
1923 | 74 | 73 | 75 | 78 | 300 | +12 | 2 |
| Walter Hagen | United States |
1914, 1919 | 75 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 303 | +15 | T4 |
| Chick Evans (a) | United States |
1916 | 77 | 77 | 76 | 77 | 307 | +19 | T10 |
| Gene Sarazen | United States |
1922 | 74 | 80 | 80 | 79 | 313 | +25 | T17 |
| Fred McLeod |  Scotland |
1908 | 81 | 76 | 80 | 86 | 323 | +35 | T40 |
| George Sargent | England |
1909 | 79 | 84 | 77 | 84 | 324 | +36 | 43 |
Source:[4]
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, June 5, 1924 (morning)
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bill Mehlhorn | United States |
72 | E |
| T2 | Eddie Loos | United States |
73 | +1 |
| Dave Robertson | United States
| |||
| T4 | Bobby Jones (a) | United States |
74 | +2 |
| Gene Sarazen | United States
| |||
| Herbert Lagerblade | United States
| |||
| Cyril Walker | England
| |||
| T8 | Mike Brady | United States |
75 | +3 |
| Johnny Golden | United States
| |||
| Walter Hagen | United States
| |||
| Willie Ogg | Scotland United States
|
Source:[1]
Second round
Thursday, June 5, 1924 (afternoon)
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Bobby Jones (a) | United States |
74-73=147 | +3 |
| Bill Mehlhorn | United States |
72-75=147 | ||
| 3 | Cyril Walker | England |
74-74=148 | +4 |
| T4 | Bobby Cruickshank | Scotland |
77-72=149 | +5 |
| Dave Robertson | United States |
73-76=149 | ||
| T6 | Walter Hagen | United States |
75-75=150 | +6 |
| Macdonald Smith | Scotland United States[8] |
78-72=150 | ||
| 8 | Abe Espinosa | United States |
80-71=151 | +7 |
| T9 | Mike Brady | United States |
75-77=152 | +8 |
| Tom Kerrigan | United States |
75-77=152 |
Source:[1]
Third round
Friday, June 6, 1924 (morning)
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Bobby Jones (a) | United States |
74-73-75=222 | +6 |
| Cyril Walker | England |
74-74-74=222 | ||
| 3 | Bill Mehlhorn | United States |
72-75-76=223 | +7 |
| 4 | Bobby Cruickshank | Scotland |
77-72-76=225 | +9 |
| T5 | Walter Hagen | United States |
75-75-76=226 | +10 |
| Dave Robertson | United States |
73-76-77=226 | ||
| 7 | Macdonald Smith | Scotland United States |
78-72-77=227 | +11 |
| T8 | Abe Espinosa | United States |
80-71-77=228 | +12 |
| Tommy Armour | Scotland United States |
77-76-75=228 | ||
| T10 | Peter O'Hara | United States |
76-79-74=229 | +13 |
| Mike Brady | United States |
75-77-77=229 | ||
| Eddie Loos | United States |
73-81-75=229 |
Source:[4]
Final round
Friday, June 6, 1924 (afternoon)
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cyril Walker | England |
74-74-74-75=297 | +9 | 500 |
| 2 | Bobby Jones (a) | United States |
74-73-75-78=300 | +12 | 0 |
| 3 | Bill Mehlhorn | United States |
72-75-76-78=301 | +13 | 300 |
| T4 | Bobby Cruickshank | Scotland |
77-72-76-78=303 | +15 | 150 |
| Walter Hagen | United States |
75-75-76-77=303 | |||
| Macdonald Smith | Scotland United States |
78-72-77-76=303 | |||
| T7 | Abe Espinosa | United States |
80-71-77-77=305 | +17 | 85 |
| Peter O'Hara | United States |
76-79-74-76=305 | |||
| 9 | Mike Brady | United States |
75-77-77-77=306 | +18 | 75 |
| T10 | Chick Evans (a) | United States |
77-77-76-77=307 | +19 | 0 |
| Eddie Loos | United States |
73-81-75-78=307 | 63 | ||
| Dave Robertson | United States |
73-76-77-81=307 |
Source:[4]
Amateurs: Jones (+12), Evans (+19), Guilford (+29), Sweet (+55).
References
- ^ a b c d e Davis, Joe (June 6, 1924). "Jones, Mehlhorn low with 147 in National Open". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 25.
- ^ "Jones divides National Open lead". Miami News. Associated Press. June 6, 1924. p. 8.
- ^ "Cyril Walker wrests National Open golf title from Jones". Miami News. Associated Press. June 7, 1924. p. 8.
- ^ a b c d Davis, Joe (June 7, 1924). "Walker wins National Open, Jones second". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 13.
- ^ "Cyril Walker dies; beat Bobby Jones". Toledo Blade. Ohio. United Press. August 7, 1948. p. 10.
- ^ "Cyril Walker a pocket-sized Ben Hogan of his golfing day". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. August 23, 1948. p. 8.
- ^ Carroll, Dick (July 2, 1955). "The tragedy of Cyril Walker". Montreal Gazette. p. 8.
- ^ According to his naturalization certificate (available at Ancestry.com) Smith became a U.S. citizen in 1923