How many players competed in the inaugural Open Championship? Eight players competed in the inaugural Open Championship in 1860.
The first Open was held on 17 October 1860 at Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire, Scotland. It was created to identify a successor to Allan Robertson, the celebrated St Andrews professional who had died the previous year. The event was restricted to professional golfers, since amateurs were not admitted until the following championship.
Prestwick invited clubs in Scotland and England to nominate up to three leading players, but only eight ultimately contested the tournament. They played three rounds of Prestwick's twelve-hole course in a single day, making 36 holes in total. Willie Park Sr. won with a score of 174, finishing two strokes ahead of Old Tom Morris.
The winner's prize was the Challenge Belt, rather than the Claret Jug associated with The Open today. The inaugural field was tiny by modern standards, but it established the championship's professional identity and began a competition that later became one of golf's four major championships.