GOLF INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE
IN ASSOCIATION WITH
THEOPEN
ROYAL ST GEORGE // 10-17 JULY 2011
FEATURE HENRY COTTON 1934
The ultimate account of Henry Cotton’s sensational 1934 Open triumph at Royal St George’s compiled from the pages of the Maestro’s personal scrapbook When Henry Cotton’s prized possessions were auctioned at Sotheby’s in the summer of 1996, the highlight of the sale – the gold medal from his 1934 Open triumph – was dramatically withdrawn at the eleventh hour. As the room hushed for Lot 176, the auctioneer announced: ‘Sold by private treaty to the R&A for an undisclosed sum’. Whether the R&A forked out the £20,000 estimated at the time they’re not saying, but they weren’t going to let the ultimate memento of such a landmark moment in British golfing history slip through their fingers (even if Cotton’s two other Open medals, Carnoustie 1937 and Muirfield 1948, went to other bidders for £9,200 and £12,600, respectively). Meanwhile, other items of ‘Maestro Memorabilia’ under the hammer that day included a bronze bust (£7,130); a silver trophy modelling his textbook grip (£11, 500); a presentation box of Dunlop 65 golf balls (£2,185); his 1953 Ryder Cup Team Captain badge (£1,610); and Cotton’s own personal album of newspaper cuttings documenting every detail of the drama of the 1934 Open. The album was bought by Golf International writer, Dominic Pedler, who recounts the extraordinary events at Sandwich that summer.
SANDwich
SPREAD H
enry Cotton’s viCtory at the 1934 open at
golf as man can hope to play,” while even Bobby Jones, who had
royal st George’s not only confirmed the promise
previously epitomised the concept of golfing perfection, volun-
of Britain’s 27-year-old major hope at the very
teered: “it is difficult to conceive of the superb play by which he
highest level, it was a landmark in British golfing
achieved his victory.”
history that also saw the claret jug recaptured after a decade of american domination dating back to arthur havers at
however, Cotton’s victory would only be secured after a near collapse in the final round that turned what should have been a
troon, in 1923. Walter hagen, Gene sarazen and Bobby Jones
procession into a rollercoaster finale. the newspaper reports in
had been among the all-conquering heroes during that time;
Cotton’s scrapbook capture the drama as well as the euphoria
causing the home game to wallow in a deep inferiority complex
and sense of awe that greeted his golf
– reinforced in early 1934 by Us success in the Walker Cup and
that week, starting with his qualifying
British amateur.
rounds which were mandatory in those
But over the course of five days that summer, Cotton not
days.
merely broke the spell but transformed British golf, astonishing Smash hit: Seve’s game, charisma and daring won him instant popularity at Birkdale in 1976 – the start of a love affair that would span five decades.
the world with his technique and tenacity while comprehen-
66: 1st qualifying round (Monday
sively rewriting the record books.
June 25, 1934)
he smashed the 18-, 36- and 54-hole open records in a per-
ironically, for all the achievements in the
formance which, in the words of Golfing magazine at the time,
championship proper, Cotton would always
“eclipsed anything that has ever been done since golf began”.
nominate the 66 he shot in qualifying as his
Gene sarazen, the pre-tournament favourite and champion two years previously at princes, acclaimed it “as near perfect 86 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM JULY 2011
finest round of the week. the royal st George’s course record of 68
THEOPEN
ROYAL ST GEORGE'S // 10-17 JULY 2011
(held by amateurs e. Merton smith and Douglas Grant) had stood for 20 years, with George Duncan’s 69 at the 1922 open being the lowest professional score. But Cotton beat both these
played suez against a light wind. admittedly, the smaller 1.62 ball was in operation in those days but it still makes sobering reading for those who believe
scores three times in three days (and on a newly lengthened lay-
that modern equipment has made such a ruinous impact on the
out), starting with a display of shot-making which the Daily Tele-
game.
graph described the following day as “Flawless to the point of tedium”. on a course measuring almost 6,800 yards, Cotton was out in 31 and back in 35, without a five – or a single dropped shot – on his card. he was twelve under the official ‘bogey’ of 78 and six under the ‘strict’ par. Most incredibly, he achieved it with a positively generous 33 putts, the longest being a 15-footer for birdie on the 3rd which
Cotton was never in a bunker and only once in the rough with his only bad shot of the day – a hooked approach to the 13th from which he recovered instantly with a chip and a 7-foot, parsaving putt. ‘a record smashing achievement immaculate in its execution,’ said the Daily Telegraph; ‘one of the greatest rounds ever played,’ claimed many others ranging from the Yorkshire Observer to the great henry Longhurst.
helped him play the first six holes in 20 shots. elsewhere, he lipped-out three times and often tapped-in nonchalantly with
75: 2nd qualifying round
the back of his hickory-shafted Braid Mills putter.
– at deal (tuesday June 26)
Cotton’s extraordinary length off the tee was well documented: George Greenwood of the Daily Telegraph reported
in the excitement it was easy to forget that Cotton’s 66 was ‘merely’ a qualifying round. indeed, when the 8-1 hot favourite,
drives well past 300-yards “on several occasions”, most notably
Gene sarazen, who had started his 36-hole qualifying at neigh-
at the 370-yard 2nd hole, where a “tiny chip” secured his first
bouring Deal that day, was greeted with the news of Cotton’s
birdie of the day; and at the 520-yard 14th, ‘suez’, where he was
score he teased that “while it is spectacular, it is wholly unneces-
“pin-high with a driver and spoon” before lipping out for eagle. sceptics who assume that course and wind conditions must have been favourable, should note that sandwich suffered tor-
sary” and would be soon “wiped from the slate” as the championship proper began. as if heeding sarazen’s words, Cotton turned up at Deal for the
rential rain the previous night, making the greens receptive but
second qualifying round the following day and matched the mod-
the fairways slow, while several accounts describe how Cotton
est 75 that sarazen himself had happily posted 24 hours earlier.
Scraps of inspiration: press cuttings tell the story of Henry Cotton’s extraordinary exploits during the 1934 Open at Sandwich, a week in which a second-round 65 set one of several new scoring records
JULY 2011 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM 87
FEATURE HENRY COTTON 1934
the top-22 at the end of the day, the writing was on the wall.
DUNLOP 65
ROUND DiMPLE - 1934
65: 2nd round (thursday June 28)
In 1934. Dunlop had produced a new ball and gave some to Henry Cotton to try. He used them in the Open Championship at Royal St George’s. In one of the qualifying rounds he went round in 66 and in the second round of the Championship proper he did a record 65. When the new ball was put on the market, it was called the ‘Dunlop 65’. The 1934 retail price was two shillings a ball.
not only did Cotton lower the course record for the second time in three days, his 132 beat the 36-hole open score set by sarazen at prince’s by a full seven shots. it eclipsed hagen’s (and his own) 67 as the single lowest round in open history – moreover it was the lowest round ever recorded in the history of any national championship. While his scorecard boasted all threes and fours, his golf was by no means blemish-free, making five obvious errors in contrast to the single loose shot in each of the previous two rounds at st George’s. one of the most striking images of the
The Times saw this as a welcome calm before the storm. “it
day is Cotton extricating himself from the hades bunker (the
was rather to be hoped that Cotton would not play too well
old 8th) where his ball was lodged almost at head height. From
and waste too much sweetness on the desert air, so it was
there he nearly found sand on the other side, some 18 yards
rather cheering to hear that he had taken sixes at the 9th and
from the flag, before getting down in two more en route to an
10th holes.”
outward half of 33.
the bookies, too, were not fooled – slashing Cotton’s odds to 8-1 joint-favourite after his 36-hole qualifying aggregate of 141 was only beaten by 25-year-old Bert Gadd.
the amazing inward 32 also featured some brilliant recovery play. another fine bunker shot at the 12th saved his par; he almost three-putted suez after leaving his first putt 10 feet short;
two other englishman, percy alliss and James adams also posted 141, while the highest american, MacDonald smith, was placed 28th. the Daily Express captured the sense of British destiny that evening, “the Union Jack Floats over the royal st
and needed a five-yard putt on the 15th after a badly pushed approach into long grass. no one had ever finished with three threes at st. George’s before. But Cotton managed it, holing from ten feet and six feet for
George’s clubhouse. For the first time in 11 years we are
closing birdies in a round in which he had taken 28 putts. his 65
unashamedly proud to look at it.”
was not bettered in any open until 1977, while his 36-hole total
67: 1st round (Wednesday June 27)
his nine-shot lead prompted some superlative-strewn eulogies.
of 132 stood until nick Faldo’s 66-64 at Muirfield in 1992. and sarazen had indeed tempted fate. Cotton took up where he had left off at st George’s, striding to a three-shot lead over the field and eight clear of sarazen himself.
“i have seen the wonder round of golf,” began the Daily Telegraph’s correspondent George Greenwood (who, incidentally, had given the young Cotton his first golf lesson at alleyn’s, in
this time his 67 matched the lowest 18-hole score ever
Dulwich). “the one of which i have been dreaming ever since i
recorded in the championship proper, set by Walter hagen at
began to play many years ago.” More prosaically, the Daily
Muirfield five years previously. Cotton was again out in 31, again
Sketch wrote: “such perfection almost bordered on monotony”.
almost driving the 2nd green before holing putts of three yards
eleven shots behind, Densmore shute – still the closest amer-
at the 4th and 10 yards at the 5th. he was back in 36 making
ican challenger – was eloquently lost for words. “What have i to
only one error despite the stiff south-westerly breeze: at the
say of Cotton’s golf? Just nothing! it is so phenomenal that it
11th (then a par-4) where a bunker cost him a five.
does not admit of speech.”
With open title-holder, Densmore shute, the only american in “The greatest round ever played,” said Gene Sarazen of Cotton’s second-round 65, just one of dozens of headlines in that momentous championship week
72: 3rd round (friday June 29) not surprisingly the papers on the final morning were full of ‘the one-Man tournament’, with the number-crunchers calculating that a modest pair of 75s would see Cotton beat the 72hole aggregate of 283 set by Gene sarazen at princes in 1932. only the Daily Express, having similarly proclaimed “the Greatest round of Golf ever played”, managed a “nothing is certain in golf” disclaimer that would almost prove prophetic. the final 36 holes were scheduled over one day and yet there was little in Cotton’s morning round of 72 to suggest any alarm. While the scoring was not up to his earlier heroics, the mild wind of the previous days had turned into a stiff northwesterly. Without a five at st George’s all week, he finally succumbed at the 4th when compiling an outward 35 in which he was bunkered twice. a topped shot at the 13th, and a shanked chip (almost sideways when disturbed by a fe-
88
GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM JULY 2011
SUBSCRIBE TODAY £39.99
8 ISSUES OF GOLF INTERNATIONAL delivered direct to your door
PLUS YOU WILL RECEIVE A DOZEN SRIXON Z-STAR BALLS Srixon Z-Star premium golf balls RRP £45 per dozen
INTRODUCING THE NEW ALL SRIXON Z-STAR GOLF BALL
£24.99
8 ISSUES OF GOLF INTERNATIONAL delivered direct to your door
(MAGAZINE ONLY)
Call our subscription Hotline on (020) 8955 7018 ...or click on the SUBSCRIPTIONS button online at:
www.golfinternationalmag.com PLEASE QUOTE SOURCE CODE: GiJULY103 Offer applies only to mailing addresses within the UK only and whilst stocks last
FEATURE HENRY COTTON 1934
The 65 – COTTON’S CARD SHOT-BY-SHOT Hole
Yards
Bogey Score
Details
1
441
5
Driver, spade mashie, 2 putts
10
380
4
4
Driver, mashie niblick, 2 putts
Driver, niblick to 12ft, 1putt
11
384
4
3
Driver, mashie niblick, 1 putt
2
370
4
4 3
3
238
4
3
3-wood, 2 putts
12
343
4
4
Driver, bunker shot, 2 putts
4
460
5
4
Driver, 3-wood, 2 putts
13
443
5
4
Driver, 3-iron, chip to 3ft, 1 putt
5
451
5
4
Driver, 3-iron, chip, 1 putt
14
520
5
4
Driver, 3-wood, 2 putts
15
454
5
4
Driver, 2-iron, chip to 15ft, 1 putt
6
183
3
3
Spade mashie, 2 putts
7
493
5
4
Driver, 3-wood, chip, 1 putt
16
163
3
3
Mashie niblick, 2 putts
8
183
3
4
Spade mashie, bunker shot, 2 putts
17
423
5
3
Driver, spade mashie to 3ft, 1 putt
9
396
4
4
Driver, mashie niblick, 2 putts
Driver, 2-iron to 7 ft, 1 putt
OUT
3,225
38
33
male photographer) at the last, contributed to an inward 37, but Cotton remained in control with back-to-back birdies on the 16th and 17th for a record 54-hole total of 204. nevertheless, in its first edition (filed at lunchtime that day)
18
441
5
3
IN
3,551
40
32
TOTAL 6,776
78
65
as an early blueprint for modern-day golf perfection, Cotton was not content. “i have only one regret…. i wanted to win by the length of oxford street and i believe i would but for the attack of sickness,” he explained.
the Evening News wrote ominously: “the only criticism one can
But Cotton’s sickness was not purely down to the ice cream –
make of Cotton’s round was that he was rather timid with some
or spaghetti, as he would later blame for “the screw that worked
of his approach shots.”
loose in the robot golfer”, as the Glasgow News put it.
it was to get much worse…
in his pursuit of excellence – and the open title in particular – Cotton’s health had suffered over several years. in 1931 he had
79: 4th round (friday June 29)
been diagnosed with an ulcerated stomach from nervous ex-
The Times captured the drama of the final afternoon. “all’s well
haustion, gone abroad and given up golf altogether for four
that ends well….but there were moments of agony in the last
months.
round that no tongue can tell, and no man ever came nearer to
When henry Longhurst asked for the secret of his success in
cracking completely. neither did any man ever pull himself to-
an exclusive interview at his hotel that evening, Cotton immedi-
gether more bravely when he was nearly gone.” By all accounts it was a different henry Cotton who teed off for his final round at 2.45 pm. Gone was the robotic shotmaking machine to be replaced by a tentative, irritable, fallible human. things began to go immediately wrong: a mishit approach at the 1st brought an early bogey while only a five-yard putt saved
ately paid tribute to the French specialist without whose help he felt he would never have contended. the image of Cotton being chaired off the 18th green remains a lasting image in the history of the open. “Cotton has killed the american bogey” ran the Field; while the runners-up, sid Brews and alf padgham (five and seven shots behind), also eclipsed the
par at the 2nd after a badly hooked drive and a hack in the
Us pair of Denny shute and Gene sarazen (who incidentally shot
rough. he then took six at the 5th after trying to cut the corner,
final rounds of 78 and 80, respectively).
and missed a tiddler for par at the Maiden hole. Later that day trevor Wignall of the Daily Express asked Cot-
Before we leave the statistics, here is some more trivia: Cotton’s best nines at st George’s during that week were a previ-
ton: “What happened to you this afternoon – was it the wind or
ously unimaginable 31 out, and 32 back while, taking the best
what?” Cotton replied: “Foolishly, i took far more luncheon that
score for each hole, he compiled an eclectic of 60 (twice 30).
i should have taken. people in their kindly way were bringing me
at the time, the Field pointed out that his first four rounds at
ice creams and the rest of it. the result was that before i got to
sandwich amounted to 270. “18 under fours! that is a record
the 9th green i was almost sick three times.”
that will probably stand for all time.” Well, not quite. But it
By then he was out in 40, before the wheels really started to come off with three consecutive fives. Without a five on his card for his first 57 holes at sandwich that week, Cotton was now ‘seven-over- fours’ for the last 12 holes! But having heard that his closest challenger, sid Brews, had now finished, and that an 83 would win it, Cotton dug deep into
would be 59 years before Greg norman (267) and nick Faldo (269) raised the bar once again. the Dunlop company famously named their next ball the ‘65’ in honour of Cotton’s record round while, half a century later, the gesture lived on as the Maxfli 65 following a corporate relaunch in the mid-1990s.
his reserves and somehow arrested the downward spiral with
in the aftermath of the 1934 championship, talk turned in-
ruthless fours at the tough 13th and again at suez (his fourth
evitably to Cotton’s status in the game and comparisons were
birdie of the week at this long par-five). after narrowly missing birdies at the 16th and 17th, he had
made not merely with contemporaries such as Gene sarazen, but with six-time open harry vardon – and even the great Bobby
finally righted the ship and victory was now a formality. But he
Jones, to whom we give the last word as quoted in the Daily
still needed a four at the last to beat sarazen’s 72-hole record.
Telegraph that week.
sadly, after bunkering his approach he missed the 10-footer
“i well remember the sandwich course. i could never break
and had to be content with a matching the four-round aggre-
70. i wish i had been there – but against that kind of golf maybe
gate of 283.
it is just as well i am safely at home!”
90 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM JULY 2011
SUBSCRIBE TODAY £39.99
8 ISSUES OF GOLF INTERNATIONAL delivered direct to your door
PLUS YOU WILL RECEIVE A DOZEN SRIXON Z-STAR BALLS Srixon Z-Star premium golf balls RRP £45 per dozen
INTRODUCING THE NEW ALL SRIXON Z-STAR GOLF BALL
£24.99
8 ISSUES OF GOLF INTERNATIONAL delivered direct to your door
(MAGAZINE ONLY)
Call our subscription Hotline on (020) 8955 7018 ...or click on the SUBSCRIPTIONS button online at:
www.golfinternationalmag.com PLEASE QUOTE SOURCE CODE: GiJULY103 Offer applies only to mailing addresses within the UK only and whilst stocks last