1977 Open Championship
| Dates | 6–9 July 1977 |
|---|---|
| Location | Ayrshire, Scotland |
| Course(s) | Ailsa Course, Turnberry |
| Tour(s) |
European Tour PGA Tour |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 6,875 yards (6,286 m) |
| Field | 156 players 87 after 1st cut 64 after 2nd cut |
| Cut | 150 (+10) (1st cut) 221 (+11) (2nd cut) |
| Prize fund |
£100,000 $170,000 |
| Winner's share | £10,000 $17,000 |
 Tom Watson
|
|
| 268 (−12) | |
|
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The 1977 Open Championship was the 106th Open Championship, held 6–9 July on the Ailsa Course at Turnberry, Scotland. Tom Watson won the second of his five Open titles by one stroke over runner-up Jack Nicklaus. The two played together in the final two rounds and had separated themselves from the field under clear skies, leading this Open to be remembered as the "Duel in the Sun." This was the first Open ever held at Turnberry, which renamed its 18th hole after the duel. Three months earlier, Watson had held off Nicklaus to win his first green jacket at the Masters.
In the second round, Mark Hayes shot 63 to establish a new single round record at The Open Championship by two strokes. The previous record of 65 was set by Henry Cotton in the second round in 1934 at Royal St. George's.
Americans dominated the final leaderboard, filling the top eight spots and eleven of the first twelve. The first page of the leaderboard was loaded with future members of the World Golf Hall of Fame.
The leader after 36 holes, Roger Maltbie, finished at 289 (+9), in a tie for 26th place.
Watson's victory is considered by many to be the finest tournament played in the last half of the 20th century. After two rounds, he and Nicklaus were one shot out of the lead, in a four-way tie for second, and were paired for the third round on Friday. Both shot five-under 65 for 203 (−7), three shots clear of Ben Crenshaw and six ahead of the remainder of the field after 54 holes.
Paired again for the final round on Saturday afternoon, Nicklaus birdied twice and was up by three strokes after four holes. Watson birdied three of the next four to pull even at two-under for the round, then bogeyed the ninth hole to fall one back at the turn. Nicklaus birdied the 12th hole to go two strokes ahead, then Watson birdied 13 and the par-3 15th, rolling in a putt from off the green to even up the round at three-under.
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