1881 Open Championship: Bob Ferguson wins at Prestwick Golf Club (12-hole links)
Bob Ferguson won the 1881 Open Championship at Prestwick Golf Club (12-hole links), Scotland with 170, by 3 strokes over Jamie Anderson.
Updated October 23, 2026
See 1881 in The Open room, or every year on The Open winners list.
- Dates
- 14 October 1881
- Course
- Prestwick Golf Club (12-hole links), Scotland
- Edition
- 21st Open Championship
- Format
- 36 holes of stroke play
- Field
- 22
- Purse
- £21
- Trophy
- Claret Jug
- Champion
- Bob Ferguson · Scotland · born Musselburgh, Scotland
- Champion's title
- 2nd Open title
- How he got in
- open entry (no qualifying)
- Winning score
- 53-60-57 = 170 · won by 3 strokes
- Runner-up
- Jamie Anderson (173)
- Leader entering the final round
- Bob Ferguson (113)
- Final-day weather
- windy and wet (storm): Storm brought "a gale-force wind, rain, sleet and snow"; Ferguson "had to survive in the most severe gales"
Top 8 as recorded
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Ferguson | 53 | 60 | 57 | 170 |
| 2 | Jamie Anderson | 57 | 60 | 56 | 173 |
| 3 | Ned Cosgrove | 61 | 59 | 57 | 177 |
| 4 | Bob Martin | 57 | 62 | 59 | 178 |
| T5 | Willie Campbell | 60 | 56 | 65 | 181 |
| T5 | Tom Morris Sr | 58 | 65 | 58 | 181 |
| T5 | Willie Park Jr | 66 | 57 | 58 | 181 |
| 8 | Willie Fernie | 65 | 62 | 56 | 183 |
What happened at the 1881 Open Championship
An October storm of gale-force wind, rain, sleet and snow struck that day, when almost 200 fishermen were lost at sea.
Play started 90 minutes late while markers were found, and only eight of the 22 starters finished.
The storm-hit Open's narrative names no hole.
How this was built
Every value is shown as recorded in GNN's The Open data. A value no source confirmed is left out; nothing is estimated. Where sources disagree, the organizer's own record is used.
Data: the-open.json (The Open room's data), with GNN's Open Championship addendum tables L (top ten by round), H (deciding hole), W (final-day weather).