British Open Tickets

About British Open

During the 2009 British Open Championship, the purse was $8.3 million dollars. Amazingly enough, the British Open Championship purse is historically the smallest of the four majors, but from 2002 to 2008 it was the highest. But British Open Championship tickets are always a big seller.

Another unique aspect of the British Open Championship is in the case of a tie at the end of the tournament, there is a four hole playoff. If the tie remains after the four holes, it goes into sudden death, with whomever finishes the hole with the lowest score winning. This can be an exciting event for British Open Championship ticket buyers.

The first British Open Championship was played on October 17 in 1860 in Ayrshire, Scotland with the first year being open to only professional players. In fact, during the first year, only eight players who played three rounds on the 12-hole course in a single day. The next year, the field opened up to amateurs and there were a total of 18 players in the British Open Championship. Tickets continue to be popular for the yearly event no matter which course it is played in.

Originally the trophy for the event was a red leather belt with a silver buckle and during the first three opens, it was mearley a prestige thing as there was no prize money for the winners. In 1863, the prize money totaled $10 which was shared between the second, third, and fourth place professional players. The early winners were all Scotsmen professionals who at the time worked as greenkeepers and caddy's on the courses they played.