| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | July 10–12, 1930 |
| Location | Edina, Minnesota |
| Course(s) | Interlachen Country Club |
| Organized by | USGA |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play − 72 holes |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 6,672 yards (6,101 m)[1] |
| Field | 142 players,[2] 69 after cut |
| Cut | 156 (+12) |
| Prize fund | $5,000 |
| Winner's share | ($1,000) |
| Champion | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Bobby Jones (a) | |
| 287 (−1) | |
Country Club
The 1930 U.S. Open was the 34th U.S. Open, held July 10–12 at Interlachen Country Club in Edina, Minnesota, a suburb southwest of Minneapolis. Bobby Jones won his second consecutive and record-tying fourth U.S. Open title.[3][4] Having already won the British Amateur and the British Open in June, Jones secured his third consecutive major title of the single-season at the U.S. Open.[5] He completed the grand slam with a victory in late September at Merion in the fourth and final leg, the U.S. Amateur.[6]
The 1930 U.S. Open was played in oppressive heat, and the first round on Thursday saw Macdonald Smith and 1927 champion Tommy Armour share the lead, with Jones a stroke behind.[7][8] Jones was one-under through eight holes in his second round when he hit one of his most famous shots: the "lily pad shot." Jones was attempting to reach the par-5 9th in two shots when two spectators ran onto the fairway during his swing. He mishit the ball toward the lake where it fell about twenty yards short of dry ground. Incredibly, the ball skipped off a lily pad and onto the far bank, just thirty yards short of the green. Jones would get up-and-down for an unlikely birdie, one that only added to his growing legend. Jones finished the round with a 73, putting him at 144 in a tie for second, two strokes behind leader Horton Smith.[9][10]
Jones took command over the final two rounds on Saturday; he shot 68 in the third round in the morning and started the final round with a front-nine 38. However, he ran into trouble with a bogey at 12 and a double bogey at 13. Now leading Smith by only one shot, Jones birdied 14 and 16. After finding the water on 17 and settling for a bogey, he needed to two-putt from 40 feet (12 m) on the 18th for the championship. Instead, he holed out for birdie and a two-stroke victory over Smith, who claimed the $1,000 winner's share of the $5,000 purse as the top professional.[5] In third place was 36-hole leader Horton Smith, who won the first edition of Jones' "Augusta National Invitation Tournament" in 1934, later known as the Masters Tournament, and again in 1936.
Jones became the first to successfully defend his Open title since John McDermott in 1911–12. He was now tied with Willie Anderson with four Open titles, but he would not attempt to win a fifth. Only four have won consecutive U.S. Opens since: Ralph Guldahl (1937, 1938), Ben Hogan (1950, 1951), Curtis Strange (1988, 1989), and Brooks Koepka (2017, 2018). After completing the Grand Slam with his U.S. Amateur win, Jones retired from competitive golf at age 28.
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, July 10, 1930
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Tommy Armour | 70 | −2 |
| Macdonald Smith | |||
| T3 | Wiffy Cox | 71 | −1 |
| Bobby Jones (a) | |||
| T5 | Harry Cooper | 72 | E |
| Walter Hagen | |||
| John Rogers | |||
| George Smith | |||
| Horton Smith | |||
| T10 | Olin Dutra | 73 | +1 |
| Jack Forrester | |||
| Irwin Ottman | |||
| Joe Turnesa | |||
| Eddie Williams | |||
| Craig Wood |
Second round
Friday, July 11, 1930
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Horton Smith | 72-70=142 | −2 |
| T2 | Harry Cooper | 72-72=144 | E |
| Bobby Jones (a) | 71-73=144 | ||
| Charles Lacey | 74-70=144 | ||
| 5 | Macdonald Smith | 70-75=145 | +1 |
| T6 | Tommy Armour | 70-76=146 | +2 |
| Wiffy Cox | 71-75=146 | ||
| Johnny Farrell | 74-72=146 | ||
| T9 | Johnny Golden | 74-73=147 | +3 |
| Walter Hagen | 72-75=147 |
Third round
Saturday, July 12, 1930 (morning)
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bobby Jones (a) | 71-73-68=212 | −4 |
| 2 | Harry Cooper | 72-72-73=217 | +1 |
| T3 | Johnny Golden | 74-73-71=218 | +2 |
| Horton Smith | 72-70-76=218 | ||
| T5 | Macdonald Smith | 70-75-74=219 | +3 |
| Johnny Farrell | 74-72-73=219 | ||
| 7 | Craig Wood | 73-75-72=220 | +4 |
| T8 | Tommy Armour | 70-76-75=221 | +5 |
| Charles Lacey | 74-70-77=221 | ||
| T9 | Walter Hagen | 72-75-76=223 | +7 |
| Wiffy Cox | 71-75-77=223 |
Source:[4]
Final round
Saturday, July 12, 1930 (afternoon)
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bobby Jones (a) | 71-73-68-75=287 | −1 | 0 |
| 2 | Macdonald Smith | 70-75-74-70=289 | +1 | 1,000 |
| 3 | Horton Smith | 72-70-76-74=292 | +4 | 750 |
| 4 | Harry Cooper | 72-72-73-76=293 | +5 | 650 |
| 5 | Johnny Golden | 74-73-71-76=294 | +6 | 550 |
| 6 | Tommy Armour | 70-76-75-76=297 | +9 | 450 |
| 7 | Charles Lacey | 74-70-77-77=298 | +10 | 350 |
| 8 | Johnny Farrell | 74-72-73-80=299 | +11 | 250 |
| T9 | Bill Mehlhorn | 76-74-75-75=300 | +12 | 138 |
| Craig Wood | 73-75-72-80=300 |
Source:[4]
- (a) denotes amateur
References
- ↑ Mickelson, Paul (July 10, 1930). "Country's leading golfers primed for National Open at Interlachen today". Youngstown Vindicator. Ohio. Associated Press. p. 12.
- ↑ "141 out to get Bobby Jones in U.S. Open today". Chicago Daily Tribune. Associated Press. July 10, 1930. p. 19.
- ↑ Gould, Alan (July 13, 1930). "Jones wins fourth U.S. Open golf crown". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. p. 1.
- 1 2 3 Barry, Howard (July 13, 1930). "Jones wins; his 12th crown". Chicago Sunday Tribune. p. 1, part 1.
- 1 2 "Bobby Jones proves right to be called golf world monarch". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 14, 1930. p. 13.
- ↑ Pegler, Westbrook (September 28, 1930). "Jones wins; hold all major golf titles". Chicago Sunday Tribune. p. 1, sec. 1.
- 1 2 3 "Armour, Mac Smith share lead in National Open". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 11, 1930. p. 1.
- 1 2 Berry, Howard (July 11, 1930). "Mac Smith, Armour tie for Open golf lead". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 21.
- 1 2 "Horton Smith takes lead in Open with 142 total". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 12, 1930. p. 1.
- 1 2 Barry, Howard (July 12, 1930). "Horton Smith's 142 takes lead in Open golf". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 13.