Muirfield facts for kids
 
The Open at Muirfield in July 2013
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| Location | Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland |
| Established | 1744 (1891) |
| Type | Private |
| Total holes | Golf:18 |
| Tournaments hosted | The Open Championship The Amateur Senior Open Championship |
| Website | http://muirfield.org.uk |
| Designed by | Tom Morris Sr. |
| Par | 71 |
| Length | 7,245 yards (6,625 m) |
| Course rating | 73 |
Muirfield is a famous golf course in Scotland. It's a special kind of course called a "links" course, right by the sea. It's also the home of a very old golf club called The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers.
You can find Muirfield in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland, looking out over the Firth of Forth (which is like a big bay). Muirfield is one of the important courses that hosts The Open Championship, a huge golf tournament.
Muirfield has hosted The Open Championship sixteen times. The most recent time was in 2013, when Phil Mickelson won. Many other famous golfers have won here, like Ernie Els, Nick Faldo, Tom Watson, Lee Trevino, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player.
Muirfield has also hosted many other big golf events. These include The Amateur Championship (ten times), the Ryder Cup in 1973, and the Walker Cup in 1959 and 1979. It has also hosted the Curtis Cup in 1952 and 1984, and the Women’s British Open.
The golf course at Muirfield has a unique design. Most "links" courses go out along the coast and then come back. This means the holes often face the same direction. But Muirfield is different. It has two loops of nine holes. One loop goes clockwise, and the other goes anticlockwise. This design means that the wind seems to come from a different direction on almost every hole. No more than three holes in a row face the same way. The course is also next to Archerfield Wood, which is mentioned in a classic story by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Jack Nicklaus, a legendary golfer, won his first Open Championship at Muirfield in 1966. This win helped him complete his first "Grand Slam" in golf, which means winning all four major championships. Nicklaus once said Muirfield was "the best golf course in Britain." Later, he even named a golf course he designed in Ohio, USA, after Muirfield.
Muirfield has also been a tough course for golfers trying to win a "Grand Slam." In 1972, Jack Nicklaus almost won the Open after winning the first two majors, but he finished second. In 2002, Tiger Woods faced very strong winds and rain. He shot a high score that day, which stopped his Grand Slam attempt.
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The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers
The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers is the golf club based at Muirfield. It is known as the oldest official golf club in the world. The club's history goes all the way back to 1744. That year, they created thirteen "Rules of Golf" for their first competition. This competition was played at Leith Links for a prize called the "Silver Club."
The first winner was John Rattray, who also signed the rules and became the club's first captain. For nearly a hundred years, the club played on the five holes at Leith Links. But it became too crowded. So, in 1836, they moved to Musselburgh Old Course. This course had nine holes and was open to the public. Eventually, this course also became too busy for the club's members.
In 1795, the club asked the City of Edinburgh for an official charter. They received it on March 26, 1800. This is when they officially became 'The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers'.
In 1891, the club built its own private 18-hole course at Muirfield. They also brought The Open Championship with them to the new course. This made some people at Musselburgh unhappy, as they lost the right to host the Open. Old Tom Morris designed the new Muirfield course. It was very popular from the start. The course has been updated several times since then, but its main design has stayed the same since the late 1920s. The first Open held at Muirfield in 1892 was special. It was the first time any golf tournament was played over four rounds, or 72 holes.
Membership Rules
For a long time, until 2017, women could not become full members of the club. However, they were allowed to play the course as guests. This rule caused a lot of discussion and was seen as unfair by many. In May 2016, the club held a vote to change this rule. But not enough members voted for the change (they needed two-thirds of the votes).
Because of this, the R&A (the group that organizes The Open Championship) decided that Muirfield could no longer host the Open. The club's secretary said this decision was "a blow to the club, the local community and Scotland." This public reaction led Muirfield to vote again on the issue. In March 2017, the club finally voted to allow women to become members for the first time. In August 2022, Muirfield hosted the Women's British Open for the first time, which was a big step.
Muirfield Golf Course Layout
The course has been made longer by 211 yards (193 m) since the 2002 Championship. It is now 7,245 yards (6,625 m) long.
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yards | 450 | 367 | 379 | 229 | 561 | 469 | 187 | 445 | 558 | 3,645 | 472 | 389 | 382 | 193 | 478 | 447 | 188 | 578 | 473 | 3,600 | 7,245 |
| Par | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 35 | 71 |
The Open Championship Winners at Muirfield
The Open Championship was first held at Muirfield in 1892. It has hosted this major tournament 16 times. The last time was in 2013.
| Year | Winner | Score | Winner's share (£) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | |||
| 1892 |  Harold Hilton (a) 1st |
78 | 81 | 72 | 74 | 305 | (am) |
| 1896 |  Harry Vardon 1st |
83 | 78 | 78 | 77 | 316 PO | 30 |
| 1901 |  James Braid 1st |
79 | 76 | 74 | 80 | 309 | 30 |
| 1906 | James Braid 3rd |
77 | 76 | 74 | 73 | 300 | 30 |
| 1912 | Ted Ray |
71 | 73 | 76 | 75 | 295 | 50 |
| 1929 |  Walter Hagen 4th |
75 | 67 | 75 | 75 | 292 (+12) | 100 |
| 1935 | Alf Perry |
69 | 75 | 67 | 72 | 283 (−5) | 100 |
| 1948 | Henry Cotton 3rd |
71 | 66 | 75 | 72 | 284 (E) | 150 |
| 1959 |  Gary Player 1st |
75 | 71 | 70 | 68 | 284 (−4) | 1,000 |
| 1966 |  Jack Nicklaus 1st |
70 | 67 | 75 | 70 | 282 (−2) | 2,100 |
| 1972 | Lee Trevino 2nd |
71 | 70 | 66 | 71 | 278 (−6) | 5,500 |
| 1980 | Tom Watson 3rd |
68 | 70 | 64 | 69 | 271 (−13) | 25,000 |
| 1987 | Nick Faldo 1st |
68 | 69 | 71 | 71 | 279 (−5) | 75,000 |
| 1992 | Nick Faldo 3rd |
66 | 64 | 69 | 73 | 272 (−12) | 95,000 |
| 2002 |  Ernie Els 1st |
70 | 66 | 72 | 70 | 278 (−6)PO | 700,000 |
| 2013 | Phil Mickelson |
69 | 74 | 72 | 66 | 281 (−3) | 945,000 |
- Note: The number next to the winner's name (like 1st) shows how many times they had won The Open Championship.
- (a) means the winner was an amateur (not a professional player).
The Senior British Open at Muirfield
The Senior British Open Championship is for older professional golfers. It was first held at Muirfield in 2007.
| Year | Winner | Score | Winner's share (£) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | |||
| 2007 | Tom Watson 3rd |
70 | 71 | 70 | 73 | 284 (E) | 157,800 |
Source:
The Women's British Open at Muirfield
The Women's British Open is a major championship for women golfers. Muirfield hosted it once in 2022.
| Year | Winner | Score | Winner's share ($) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | |||
| 2022 | Ashleigh Buhai |
70 | 65 | 64 | 75 | 274 (−10)PO | 1,095,000 |
Source:
See also
- Golf in Scotland
