Old Tom Morris facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Old Tom Morris
Morris in 1901
Personal information
Full name	Thomas Mitchell Morris
Nickname	Old Tom, The Grand Old Man of Golf
Born	(1821-06-16)16 June 1821 St Andrews, Fife, Scotland
Died	24 May 1908(1908-05-24) (aged 86) Memorial Cottage Hospital, St Andrews
Nationality	Scotland
Spouse	Agnes (Nancy) Bayne ​ ​ (m. 1844; died 1876)​
Children	4 (Tom (b 1851), Elizabeth Hunter (née Morris) (b1852), James (b c1856), John (b 1859)
Career
Status	Professional
Best results in Major Championships (Wins: 4)
The Open Championship	Won: 1861, 1862, 1864, 1867
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame	1976

Old Tom Morris was a Scottish golf legend. His full name was Thomas Mitchell Morris. People also called him The Grand Old Man of Golf. He was born on June 16, 1821, in St Andrews, Scotland. This town is known as the "home of golf". He also passed away there on May 24, 1908. His son, Young Tom Morris, was also a famous golfer.

Becoming a Golf Pro

Old Tom Morris started playing golf when he was just ten years old. He would hit homemade balls (corks with nails!) around the streets of St Andrews. This fun game was called 'sollybodkins'.

When he was 14, he became an apprentice to Allan Robertson. Robertson was thought to be the world's first professional golfer. He managed the St Andrews Links and made golf equipment. Tom worked for Robertson for nine years.

From the 1840s, Tom often played golf matches with Robertson. They played as a team, hitting shots one after another. They were so good that people called them "The Invincibles". They almost never lost a match! Tom became the second-best player in St Andrews.

Moving to Prestwick

In 1848, something big happened. Tom was fired by Robertson! Why? Because Tom was playing with a new type of golf ball called the "gutta percha" ball. Robertson made money from the older "featherie" balls, and the new ones were a threat to his business.

But this wasn't the end for Tom. In 1851, he got a new job at Prestwick Golf Club. This club was just starting. At Prestwick, Tom did many important things:

• He designed and took care of the golf course.
• He ran his own business, selling the new gutta percha balls and clubs.
• He taught people how to play golf.
• He helped organize golf events.

Tom was very important in starting The Open Championship in 1860. This is one of the biggest golf tournaments in the world. He even hit the very first shot in that event!

Returning to St Andrews

The Royal and Ancient Golf Club missed Tom. In 1864, they asked him to come back to St Andrews. He returned as the "Keeper of the Green" and professional golfer. He earned a good salary of £50 a year.

The St Andrews golf course was in bad shape when he returned. Tom worked hard to fix it. He made the fairways wider and the greens bigger. He used new ways to take care of the grass. He also built two new greens. He stayed in this job for 39 years, until 1903!

Golf Achievements

Old Tom Morris was busy! He worked as a greenkeeper, made clubs and balls, taught golf, and designed courses. But he also played golf competitively.

• He came in second place at the very first Open Championship in 1860.
• He then won the Open Championship four times: in 1861, 1862, 1864, and 1867.
• He still holds the record as the oldest winner of The Open Championship. He was 46 years old!
• He and his son, Young Tom Morris, are the only father-son pair to finish first and second in the Open.

In 1862, Tom won the Open Championship by 13 strokes. This was the biggest winning margin in a major golf championship for a very long time. It wasn't beaten until Tiger Woods won the 2000 US Open by 15 strokes.

Tom was also the second player to score under 80 strokes on the famous Old Course, with a score of 79. His son, Young Tom, became a great player too. They often teamed up for matches and were very successful together.

Major Championship Wins (4)

Old Tom Morris won The Open Championship four times:

Year	Championship	Winning Score	Margin	Runner-up
1861	The Open Championship	163	4 strokes	Willie Park, Sr.
1862	The Open Championship	163	13 strokes	Willie Park, Sr.
1864	The Open Championship	167	2 strokes	Andrew Strath
1867	The Open Championship	170	2 strokes	Willie Park, Sr.

Designing Golf Courses and Greenkeeping

Old Tom Morris helped design many golf courses across the British Isles. Some of these include:

• Carnoustie (1842)
• Prestwick
• Muirfield
• Lahinch in Ireland
• Royal North Devon Golf Club in England

His last 18-hole course design was the Killermont course for [Glasgow Golf Club], which opened in 1904.

Tom Morris is also called the "father of modern greenkeeping". He came up with many new ideas for taking care of golf courses:

• He started adding sand to greens to help the grass grow better.
• He actively managed hazards like bunkers, instead of just leaving them alone.
• He was the first to use a push mower to cut the greens.
• He made fairways wider and improved greens at St Andrews.
• He created new teeing areas on each hole. This helped spread out play and keep the grass in better condition.
• He designed a new first green on the Old Course.
• He helped design the New Course (1895) and Jubilee Course (1897) at St Andrews.

Tom also changed how golf courses were designed. He placed hazards in a way that made players think about how to hit the ball around them. This was the start of "strategic design" in golf. Before him, hazards were just obstacles to avoid.

The simple grave of Old Tom Morris, St Andrews Cathedral churchyard

Later Life and Death

Old Tom Morris worked almost until his 87th birthday. He passed away on May 24, 1908, in St Andrews. He had fallen down some stairs at The New Golf Club clubhouse.

He is buried in the churchyard of St Andrew's Cathedral. His grave is simple. But it is near a large monument for his son, Young Tom Morris. Many golfers visit his grave each year to honor this golf hero.

Gallery

• 

  Morris (right) with James Ogilvie Fairlie, c. 1850

• 

  Tom Morris in 1860

• 

  Old Tom Morris with Young Tom Morris, c. 1870-75

• 

  Old Tom Morris in 1880

• 

  The golf shop of Old Tom Morris in St Andrews, Scotland, c. 1890. Morris is looking out the second storey window (upper left).

• 

  Old Tom Morris on the Himalayas putting course in 1892, which he designed

See also

• Old Tom Morris Award
• People on Scottish banknotes
• Tom Morris Golf Shop