1961 Open Championship: Arnold Palmer wins at Royal Birkdale Golf Club
Arnold Palmer won the 1961 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England with 284, by 1 stroke over Dai Rees.
Updated October 23, 2026
See 1961 in The Open room, or every year on The Open winners list.
- Dates
- 12 July 1961 to 15 July 1961
- Course
- Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England
- Edition
- 90th Open Championship
- Format
- 72 holes of stroke play
- Purse
- £8,500
- Trophy
- Claret Jug (replica to winner)
- Champion
- Arnold Palmer · age 31 · USA · born Latrobe, USA
- Champion's title
- 1st Open title
- Winning score
- 70-73-69-72 = 284 · won by 1 stroke
- Runner-up
- Dai Rees (285)
- 54-hole leader
- Arnold Palmer (212)
- Deciding hole
- No. 15, round 4
- Caddie
- Tip Anderson
- Low amateur
- Ronnie White (disputed) (306)
Top 11 as recorded
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arnold Palmer | 70 | 73 | 69 | 72 | 284 |
| 2 | Dai Rees | 68 | 74 | 71 | 72 | 285 |
| T3 | Neil Coles | 70 | 77 | 69 | 72 | 288 |
| T3 | Christy O'Connor Snr | 71 | 77 | 67 | 73 | 288 |
| T5 | Eric Brown | 73 | 76 | 70 | 70 | 289 |
| T5 | Kel Nagle | 68 | 75 | 75 | 71 | 289 |
| 7 | Peter Thomson | 75 | 72 | 70 | 73 | 290 |
| T8 | Peter Alliss | 73 | 75 | 72 | 71 | 291 |
| T8 | Ken Bousfield | 71 | 77 | 75 | 68 | 291 |
| T10 | Syd Scott | 76 | 75 | 71 | 71 | 293 |
| T10 | Harold Henning | 68 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 293 |
What happened at the 1961 Open Championship
At the 15th (now the 16th) Palmer gouged a 6-iron from thick rough at the base of a bush 140 yards onto the green, sending a huge divot flying.
Gale-force wind hit round two and overnight storms swept away marquees, washing out Friday's 36 holes; the last two rounds were played Saturday, when Rees closed from four down with four to play to lose by one.
Palmer's 6-iron from thick rough at the base of a bush at the 15th (now the 16th), marked today by a plaque, is the shot Golf Monthly says "ultimately proved the difference" in his one-stroke win.
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).