Musselburgh, Scotland · Links
6 major championships hosted since 1874
Established
1672
Designer
Historic (evolved)
Par
34 (9 holes)
Championship Yardage
2,966 yds
Musselburgh Links, the Old Golf Course, is recognized by Guinness World Records as the oldest playing golf course in the world, with documented play dating to 1672 and a tradition said to stretch back to Mary, Queen of Scots.
This nine-hole links hosted The Open Championship six times between 1874 and 1889, sharing the rota with Prestwick and St Andrews in the championship's early decades. The standard 4¼-inch hole size is believed to have originated here.
Lowest scoring marks recorded in major championship competition at Musselburgh Links.
Course Record (round)
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Lowest 72-Hole Total
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First Major Hosted
1874
Total Majors Hosted
6
Every major championship staged at Musselburgh Links, by championship and year.
| Championship | Times | Years |
|---|---|---|
| The Open | 6 | 1874, 1877, 1880, 1883, 1886, 1889 |
Defining rounds and championship moments in the history of Musselburgh Links.
Mungo Park won the first of the six Opens staged on the links.
Bob Ferguson lost a playoff to Willie Fernie, missing a fourth straight Open title.
Willie Park Jr. won the last Open held at Musselburgh before the championship moved to larger venues.
It is recognized as the oldest playing golf course in the world, with play documented from 1672, and it hosted The Open six times in the 19th century.
It is a nine-hole links, the configuration over which its six Open Championships were played.
The 4¼-inch diameter of the golf hole is widely credited to a hole-cutter first used at Musselburgh in 1829.