Which course has hosted The Open most often?

The Open Championship is the oldest golf tournament in the world and, arguably, the most prestigious.

Dating back to 1860, it is the only one of the four men’s major championships that takes place outside of the USA, and has been staged exclusively in the UK since its inception.

The inaugural Open Championship took place at Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire in October 1860. Musselburgh’s Willie Park Snr etched his name into history by winning that year.

Since then, most of the greatest players ever to pick up a golf club have emulated Park, becoming the ‘Champion Golfer of the Year’ in the process.

Indeed, as of 2024, 89 different golfers representing 14 countries have won The Open.

Aside from its location, what makes The Open unique to the other men’s majors is the fact that it is played on a links golf course.

To date, 14 different courses across the UK have been used to stage the championship on a rotational basis.

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Which course has hosted The Open most often?

No course has hosted The Open more often than the Old Course at St Andrews.

The oldest golf course in the world, it has played host to 30 renewals of the championship, most recently in 2022 when Cameron Smith became the fifth different Australian to claim the Claret Jug.

Given its status in the sport, St Andrews typically hosts the championship every five years or so.

Its closest challenger is Prestwick Golf Club, which staged 24 editions of the The Open, including the the first 12. However, it was retired from the Open rota in the 1920s.

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Which English course has hosted The Open most often?

Royal St George’s has hosted The Open more than any other course in England. It has staged the championship on 15 occasions, most recently in 2021 when Collin Morikawa of the USA claimed his second major victory.

Royal Liverpool is the next most used Open host venue in England. It has hosted the championship 13 times.

At a glance…

St Andrews – 30

1873, 1876, 1879, 1882, 1885, 1888, 1891, 1895, 1900, 1905, 1910, 1921, 1927, 1933, 1939, 1946, 1955, 1957, 1960, 1964, 1970, 1978, 1984, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2022

Prestwick* – 24

1860, 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865, 1866, 1867, 1868, 1869, 1870, 1872, 1875, 1878, 1881, 1884, 1887, 1890, 1893, 1898, 1903, 1908, 1914, 1925

Muirfield – 16

1892, 1896, 1901, 1906, 1912, 1929, 1935, 1948, 1959, 1966, 1972, 1980, 1987, 1992, 2002, 2013

Royal St George’s – 15

1894, 1899, 1904, 1911, 1922, 1928, 1934, 1938, 1949, 1981, 1985, 1993, 2003, 2011, 2021

Royal Liverpool – 13

1897, 1902, 1907, 1913, 1924, 1930, 1936, 1947, 1956, 1967, 2006, 2014, 2023

Royal Lytham & St Annes – 11

1926, 1952, 1958, 1963, 1969, 1974, 1979, 1988, 1996, 2001, 2012

Royal Birkdale – 10

1954, 1961, 1965, 1971, 1976, 1983, 1991, 1998, 2008, 2017

Royal Troon – 9

1923, 1950, 1962, 1973, 1982, 1989, 1997, 2004, 2016

Carnoustie – 8

1931, 1937, 1953, 1968, 1975, 1999, 2007, 2018

Musselburgh* – 6

1874, 1877, 1880, 1883, 1886, 1889

Turnberry *– 4

1977, 1986, 1994, 2009

Royal Cinque Ports* – 2

1909, 1920

Royal Portrush – 2

1951, 2019

Prince’s* – 1

1932

* denotes courses no longer on the Open rota.

Want to know which courses will host future editions of the Open Championship? Click here for details.