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The US Open is often regarded as the toughest major in golf, and recent winners include Jon Rahm, Tiger Woods and Brooks Koepka. But who was the first winner of the US Open?
To find out, you would have to go back to 1895, the first year the championship was held. That year the championship was played in Newport Golf Club, which also happened to be Rawlins home course. Clearly, home advantage played a part in the first US Open championship. It was a 36-hole event played over a single day, unlike the 72-hole version of the format played over four-days that is in place now.
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The tournament was won by Horace Rawlins, an English golfer from the Isle of Wight. Horace Rawlins travelled to the USA in early 1895, where he would live for many years after. Rawlins returned scores of 91 and 82, which although don’t sound too good now, were good enough for his only major championship and only professional win.
Other famous winners of the event throughout history include Walter Hagen, Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus. The most recent winners include Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and Gary Woodland.
Can you name every winner of the US Open?
Rawlins would compete in many US Opens following 1895, but would never emulate his victory. He played his final US Open in 1912, where sadly he would miss the cut. Rawlins would later move back to England, where he died at the age of 60.
ALL ABOUT THE OPEN
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