1920 Open Championship: George Duncan wins at Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club
George Duncan won the 1920 Open Championship at Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club, Deal, England with 303, by 2 strokes over Sandy Herd.
Updated October 23, 2026
See 1920 in The Open room, or every year on The Open winners list.
- Dates
- 30 June 1920 to 1 July 1920
- Course
- Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club, Deal, England
- Edition
- 55th Open Championship
- Format
- 72 holes of stroke play
- Field
- 82
- Purse
- £225
- Trophy
- Claret Jug
- Champion
- George Duncan · age 36 · Scotland · born Methlick, Scotland
- Champion's title
- 1st Open title
- Winning score
- 80-80-71-72 = 303 · won by 2 strokes
- Runner-up
- Sandy Herd (305)
- 54-hole leader
- Len Holland (229) · George Duncan was 2 strokes back
- Low amateur
- Willie Hunter (322)
Top 11 as recorded
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | George Duncan | 80 | 80 | 71 | 72 | 303 |
| 2 | Sandy Herd | 72 | 81 | 77 | 75 | 305 |
| 3 | Ted Ray | 72 | 83 | 78 | 73 | 306 |
| 4 | Abe Mitchell | 74 | 73 | 84 | 76 | 307 |
| 5 | Len Holland | 80 | 78 | 71 | 79 | 308 |
| 6 | Jim Barnes | 79 | 74 | 77 | 79 | 309 |
| T7 | Syd Wingate | 81 | 74 | 76 | 82 | 313 |
| T7 | Arthur Havers | 80 | 78 | 81 | 74 | 313 |
| T9 | Archie Compston | 79 | 83 | 75 | 78 | 315 |
| T9 | William Horne | 80 | 81 | 73 | 81 | 315 |
| T9 | George Buckle | 80 | 80 | 77 | 78 | 315 |
What happened at the 1920 Open Championship
Thirteen behind at halfway after two 80s, Duncan bought a new driver in the Exhibition Tent and shot 71 and 72 to win.
Barred from the clubhouse as a professional, Walter Hagen parked a Daimler outside and changed his shoes in it.
No source names a deciding hole; Duncan came from 13 behind at halfway with 71-72 while halfway leader Abe Mitchell shot 84 in round three.
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).