Who was the first left-handed golfer to win The Open?

Bob Charles was the first left-handed golfer to win The Open. He achieved the breakthrough at the 1963 championship at Royal Lytham & St Annes in England.

Charles finished the 72 holes tied with American Phil Rodgers at 277, three under par. He then won a 36-hole playoff by eight strokes, securing his only men's major championship and becoming the first left-hander to win any major title.

The achievement is sometimes described simply as the first left-handed major victory, rather than specifically an Open record. That distinction matters because The Open was Charles's only major win, while his fellow left-handers Phil Mickelson and Mike Weir later won major championships. Charles was naturally right-handed but played golf left-handed, an unusual detail that can cause confusion.

His victory also made him one of only two New Zealand-born winners of a men's major, alongside Michael Campbell. Charles later won the Senior British Open twice, in 1989 and 1993.