| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 12–15 July 1972 |
| Location | Gullane, Scotland |
| Course(s) | Muirfield Golf Links |
| Tour(s) | European Tour PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 71[1] |
| Length | 6,892 yards (6,302 m)[1] |
| Field | 153 players 88 after 1st cut 64 after 2nd cut[1] |
| Cut | 152 (+10) (1st cut) 225 (+12) (2nd cut)[1] |
| Prize fund | £50,000 $125,000 |
| Winner's share | £5,500 $13,750 |
| Champion | |
 Lee Trevino | |
| 278 (−6) | |
The 1972 Open Championship was the 101st Open Championship, held 12–15 July at Muirfield Golf Links in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland. Lee Trevino won his second straight Claret Jug, the first to successfully defend his title since Arnold Palmer in 1962. Trevino finished one stroke ahead of runner-up Jack Nicklaus, ending his bid for the Grand Slam. Nicklaus had won the first two majors in 1972 and was the odds-on favorite at Muirfield, where he won his first Open in 1966. He also held the PGA Championship title from February 1971; a win at Muirfield and he would become the first to hold all four major titles at once.
Six strokes back at even-par after 54 holes, Nicklaus shot a final round 66 (−5) on Saturday to tie the course record, but played the final three holes at one-over par. Trevino had posted his own 66 in the third round and held on in the fourth round with an even-par 71, which included a chip-in for par at 17, to gain the fourth of his six major titles.[2][3]
It was the third of four times that Nicklaus was a runner-up to Trevino in a major championship.
Trevino's win concluded a stretch where American-born golfers won eight consecutive major championships. This is the fourth-longest stretch in history for American-born golfers after stretches that ended at the 1930 Open Championship, 1947 U.S. Open, and the 1977 PGA Championship.
Thirty years later, Tiger Woods became the first since Nicklaus to win the first two major tournaments of the year. His bid for a Grand Slam in 2002 also ended at Muirfield.
Round summaries
First round
Wednesday, 12 July 1972
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Peter Tupling | 68 | −3 |
| 2 | Tony Jacklin | 69 | −2 |
| T3 | Frank Beard | 70 | −1 |
 Craig Defoy | |||
| Dave Marr | |||
| Jack Nicklaus | |||
| Peter Townsend | |||
| T8 |  Brian Barnes | 71 | E |
| John Garner | |||
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Antonio Garrido | |||
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Gary Player | |||
| Doug Sanders | |||
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Peter Thomson | |||
| Lee Trevino |
Second round
Thursday, 13 July 1972
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Tony Jacklin | 69-72=141 | −1 |
| Lee Trevino | 71-70=141 | ||
| T3 | John Garner | 71-71=142 | E |
| Johnny Miller | 76-66=142 | ||
| Jack Nicklaus | 70-72=142 | ||
| Gary Player | 71-71=142 | ||
| Doug Sanders | 71-71=142 | ||
| Peter Townsend | 70-72=142 | ||
| Peter Tupling | 68-74=142 | ||
| T10 | Brian Barnes | 71-72=143 | +1 |
| Clive Clark | 72-71=143 | ||
| Peter Thomson | 71-72=143 |
Amateurs: R. Foster (+7), Mosey (+8), Revell (+9), Stephen (+9), Campbell (+11), Homer (+11), Gradwell (+13), Elson (+14), Bonallack (+15), Clark (+15), Berry (+19), Gray (+20).
Third round
Friday, 14 July 1972
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lee Trevino | 71-70-66=207 | −6 |
| 2 | Tony Jacklin | 69-72-67=208 | −5 |
| 3 | Doug Sanders | 71-71-69=211 | −2 |
| 4 | Brian Barnes | 71-72-69=212 | −1 |
| 5 | Jack Nicklaus | 70-72-71=213 | E |
| T6 | Guy Hunt | 75-72-67=214 | +1 |
| Johnny Miller | 76-66-72=214 | ||
| T8 | Dave Marr | 70-74-71=215 | +2 |
| Arnold Palmer | 73-73-69=215 | ||
| Peter Tupling | 68-74-73=215 |
Amateurs: R. Foster (+14), Mosey (+14), Stephen (+14), Revell (+15).
Final round
Saturday, 15 July 1972
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money (£) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lee Trevino | 71-70-66-71=278 | −6 | 5,500 |
| 2 | Jack Nicklaus | 70-72-71-66=279 | −5 | 4,000 |
| 3 | Tony Jacklin | 69-72-67-72=280 | −4 | 3,250 |
| 4 | Doug Sanders | 71-71-69-70=281 | −3 | 2,750 |
| 5 | Brian Barnes | 71-72-69-71=283 | −1 | 2,450 |
| 6 | Gary Player | 71-71-76-67=285 | +1 | 2,150 |
| T7 | Guy Hunt | 75-72-67-72=286 | +2 | 1,663 |
| Arnold Palmer | 73-73-69-71=286 | |||
| David Vaughan | 74-73-70-69=286 | |||
| Tom Weiskopf | 73-74-70-69=286 |
References
- 1 2 3 4 "Media guide". The Open Championship. 2011. pp. 64, 203. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
- ↑ "Nicklaus' bid falls one stroke short". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. 16 July 1972. p. D1.
- ↑ Jenkins, Dan (24 July 1972). "Slamming the door on Jack". Sports Illustrated. p. 8.
- ↑ "1972 Open Championship results". databasegolf.com. Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
- ↑ "British Open scores". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. 16 July 1972. p. D4.