1990 Open Championship: Nick Faldo wins at Old Course, St Andrews
Nick Faldo won the 1990 Open Championship at Old Course, St Andrews, Scotland with 270 (−18), by 5 strokes over Mark McNulty and Payne Stewart.
Updated October 23, 2026
See 1990 in The Open room, or every year on The Open winners list.
- Dates
- 19 July 1990 to 22 July 1990
- Course
- Old Course, St Andrews, Scotland
- Edition
- 119th Open Championship
- Format
- 72 holes of stroke play
- Par
- 72 · 6,933 yards
- Field
- 156
- Made the cut
- 72 (cut at 143)
- Purse
- £825,000 · winner's share £85,000
- Trophy
- Claret Jug (replica to winner)
- Champion
- Nick Faldo · age 33 · England · born Welwyn Garden City, England
- Champion's title
- 2nd Open title
- Winning score
- 67-65-67-71 = 270 (−18) · won by 5 strokes
- Runners-up
- Mark McNulty (275), Payne Stewart (275)
- 54-hole leader
- Nick Faldo (199)
- Deciding hole
- No. 15, round 4
- Caddie
- Fanny Sunesson
Top 11 as recorded
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nick Faldo | 67 | 65 | 67 | 71 | 270 | −18 |
| T2 | Mark McNulty | 74 | 68 | 68 | 65 | 275 | −13 |
| T2 | Payne Stewart | 68 | 68 | 68 | 71 | 275 | −13 |
| T4 | Ian Woosnam | 68 | 69 | 70 | 69 | 276 | −12 |
| T4 | Jodie Mudd | 72 | 66 | 72 | 66 | 276 | −12 |
| T6 | Ian Baker-Finch | 68 | 72 | 64 | 73 | 277 | −11 |
| T6 | Greg Norman | 66 | 66 | 76 | 69 | 277 | −11 |
| T8 | David Graham | 72 | 71 | 70 | 66 | 279 | −9 |
| T8 | Donnie Hammond | 70 | 71 | 68 | 70 | 279 | −9 |
| T8 | Steve Pate | 70 | 68 | 72 | 69 | 279 | −9 |
| T8 | Corey Pavin | 71 | 69 | 68 | 71 | 279 | −9 |
What happened at the 1990 Open Championship
In round 1, Faldo holed a pitch-and-run from the Valley of Sin for an eagle 2 at the 18th. His 199 after 54 holes was a record.
Payne Stewart got within two of Faldo in the final round before driving into the Coffin bunkers at the 13th (Golf Compendium says the 12th; the R&A figure is used).
The Scotsman's archive report says Faldo's birdie at the 15th was the moment "at which point he virtually secured the championship," while Payne Stewart faded with bogeys at the 17th and 18th.
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).