1959 Open Championship: Gary Player wins at Muirfield
Gary Player won the 1959 Open Championship at Muirfield, Gullane, Scotland with 284, by 2 strokes over Fred Bullock and Flory Van Donck.
Updated October 23, 2026
See 1959 in The Open room, or every year on The Open winners list.
- Dates
- 1 July 1959 to 3 July 1959
- Course
- Muirfield, Gullane, Scotland
- Edition
- 88th Open Championship
- Format
- 72 holes of stroke play
- Purse
- £5,000
- Trophy
- Claret Jug (replica to winner)
- Champion
- Gary Player · age 23 · South Africa · born Johannesburg, South Africa
- Champion's title
- 1st Open title
- Winning score
- 75-71-70-68 = 284 · won by 2 strokes
- Runners-up
- Fred Bullock (286), Flory Van Donck (286)
- 54-hole leaders
- Fred Bullock, Sam King (212) · Gary Player was 4 strokes back
- Low amateur
- Reid Jack (288)
Top 10 as recorded
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gary Player | 75 | 71 | 70 | 68 | 284 |
| T2 | Fred Bullock | 68 | 70 | 74 | 74 | 286 |
| T2 | Flory Van Donck | 70 | 70 | 73 | 73 | 286 |
| 4 | Syd Scott | 73 | 70 | 73 | 71 | 287 |
| T5 | Reid Jack (a) | 71 | 75 | 68 | 74 | 288 |
| T5 | Sam King | 70 | 74 | 68 | 76 | 288 |
| T5 | Christy O'Connor Snr | 73 | 74 | 72 | 69 | 288 |
| T5 | John Panton | 72 | 72 | 71 | 73 | 288 |
| T9 | Dai Rees | 73 | 73 | 69 | 74 | 289 |
| T9 | Leopoldo Ruiz | 72 | 74 | 69 | 74 | 289 |
What happened at the 1959 Open Championship
Player, far back at halfway (Golf Compendium: 10 shots; R&A Journey: eight), shot 70-68 on the 36-hole final day to come through the field.
Needing a par 4 at the 72nd for a 66, Player found a bunker and made a double-bogey 6, then waited convinced he had lost - but no one caught 284.
No source names a deciding hole; Player double-bogeyed the 72nd for 68 and then waited as no one caught 284.
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).