Harry William Vardon was born in Jersey in the Channel Islands on the 20th of March 1937. As was common at the time, Vardon didn’t play a huge amount of golf as a youngster, but did show an aptitude for the sport when working as a caddy in his teens. Both he and his brother Tom enjoyed the sport, but the fact that they were from a relatively poor family meant that he struggled to gain a huge amount of experience; a fact which wasn’t helped on account of his father being actively against his golf-playing interests.
Harry followed Tom to England in the spring of 1890 in order to develop his golfing skills, getting a job as a greenskeeper at Studley Royal Golf Club before then becoming the professional at Bury Golf Club a year later. He developed a demanding practice regime for himself, also changing the face of the game by refusing to play in the ‘proper’ dress of the time of an uncomfortable shirt and jacket and instead playing in ‘knickerbockers’. He won the Open Championship for the first time in 1896, winning another five to set a record that remains in place today.
During his professional career, Vardon won 48 tournaments as well as 21 team events, which was the most achieved by a single player at that point in the sport’s history. His dominance was demonstrated at the end of the 19th century when he won 14 of 17 tournaments entered, coming second in the other three. After suffering from tuberculosis in 1903, Vardon struggled with his health and turned to coaching, also writing a book on golf instruction as well as inspirational tomes. He died in 1937, aged 66, of pleurisy and possibly lung cancer.
Harry Vardon’s Major Wins
| Years | Masters | US PGA | U.S. Open | Open |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1896 | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ |
| 1898 | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ |
| 1899 | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ |
| 1900 | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ | ✕ |
| 1903 | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ |
| 1911 | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ |
| 1914 | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ |
Masters Wins: Never Played
Harry Vardon stopped playing golf professionally in 1929, meaning that he never got to play in the Masters Tournament, which wasn’t created until five years later. Is it likely he would ever have won it if he had got to take part in it? It is obviously all but impossible to tell, with the Channel Islands-born player good enough to win the US Open once during his career. He didn’t play much golf when he was younger, but showed a natural aptitude for the sport when he worked as a caddy as a teenager. As a 20-year-old, he took a job as a greenskeeper at Studley Royal Golf Club, so he would no doubt have loved the luscious nature of the Augusta National course.
PGA Championship Wins: Never Played
The PGA Championship was established in 1916, but was initially limited to members of the Professional Golfers Association of America after which it was named. As a result, it was another tournament that Vardon never got to play in, instead being limited to the two Opens at the time. Known as being part of the ‘Great Triumvirate alongside James Braid and J. H. Taylor, the trio were able to dominate golf around the world for nearly 20 years. They were also thought to be a big part of the reason for golf’s increased global popularity at the time. That he was able to do this without taking part in two of the Majors is impressive in itself.
US Open Wins: 1
Whilst Vardon didn’t play in either of two of America’s big tournaments, one of the Majors that he did take part in and win was the US Open. In spite of the fact that it was founded in 1895, he didn’t take part in it for the first time until 1900, at which point he had already won the Open Championship three times. It was as much to do with the cost of getting to the United States at the time as anything else, but when Vardon did make his debut in the competition he won it. He then didn’t take part again for 12 years, finishing second in 1913 and then playing in for the final time in 1920, when he ended up finishing tied-second.
1900 – Only Major Outside Britain
Would Harry Vardon have won more US Opens if it had been cheaper and easier for him to get to America? Almost certainly, given that he played in three and won one, came second in the other and tied-second in the third. The one that he won took place in 1900 at Chicago Golf Club in Wheaton, Illinois. It was a stroke play event with a field of 62 and no cut, played over 72 holes. His great rival J. H. Taylor led him by three shots at the end of the first round, with Vardon moving into first place after following up his opening round 79 with a 78. The third round saw him shoot 76, then a final round 80 gave him the win by two shots.
Open Championship Wins: 6
One of Harry Vardon’s standout features was his willingness to go against the grain, coming up with a gruelling training regime for himself and becoming one of the first golfers to eschew the typical ‘proper’ dress at the time of shirt and tie with uncomfortable jacket. Perhaps that is why he was able to win a record six Open Championship titles, taking part in the tournament for the first time in 1893 when he finished tied-23rd. A year later and he was tied-fifth before coming tied-ninth in 1895 and then winning the competition fore the first time a year on. He finished in the top ten in his first 15 entries into the tournament.
1896 – Playoff Victory Over 36 Holes at Muirfield
Muirfield in Scotland was the location for Vardon’s first Open Championship win in 1896. The field was made up of 63 players, with no cut and a prize fund of £90. His opening round of 83 was followed up by a 78, meaning that he sat six shots off the lead at the end of the first day of golf. A third round of 78 and a fourth of 77 was enough to put him tied-first alongside his great rival J. H. Taylor, forcing a play-off. They headed to North Berwick the day after the final two rounds, playing 36-holes to decide the winner. Vardon took a two shot lead into the second round, again finishing two shots ahead of his rival to win by four.
1898 – Claret Jug Lifted after First Ever Cut
The 1898 iteration of the Open Championship was played at Prestwick Golf Club in South Ayrshire, Scotland. There were 76 players in the field initially, with a cut after the second round seeing this drop to 43. Vardon was never in any danger of missing out, ending day one in second place thanks to a first round of 79 and a second of 75, putting him just three off Willie Park Jr. in the lead. The final day saw him open proceedings with a score of 77 and follow that up with an even more impressive 76 for a total of 307 for the tournament. That meant that he finished one shot clear of Park and five ahead of J. H. Taylor.
1899 – Five Stroke Win at Royal St George’s
Vardon’s first win outside of Scotland in the Open Championship came at Royal St. George’s Golf Club in Sandwich. There were 97 other players looking to take the win from the defending champion, which was reduced to 42 after the cut. On the opening day, Vardon scored an opening round of 76, following it up with the same score in the afternoon. That put him in first place, a shot ahead of J. H. Taylor and four clear of James Braid and Willie Park Jr. An 81 might have caused trouble on the morning of day two but was actually one of the better scores, then a 77 in the afternoon saw him seal his third title by five shots from Jack White.
1903 – Vardon 1-2
It was back to Scotland and Prestwick Golf Club for Vardon’s fourth Open Championship title. With 124 players in the field, reduced to 59 after the cut, Vardon had his work cut out to win another Claret Jug. This one was perhaps all the more special, on account of the fact that the player that came second was his younger brother Tom. Vardon opened his account with a 73 to be tied first, then in the afternoon claimed the spot in his own right after scoring a 77. The third round on the Thursday morning resulted in a 72, which was one of the best scores of the day, then a 78 in the afternoon saw him win the competition by six shots.
1911 – Eight Year Wait Ended at Sandwich
After an eight year absence from the winner’s podium, Vardon was back to collect his fifth Claret Jug at another course he’d won at previously: Royal St George’s Golf Club. There were 226 players vying for the trophy, which was reduced to 73 after the cut in the wake of the second round. Vardon had opened his account with a 74, putting him tied-sixth and three off the top. In the second round he scored another 74, which put him tied-second, then a 75 in the third round was enough to see him move to the front by three shots. He ended up tied with Arnaud Massy after shooting 80 in the final round, winning the play-off when Massy conceded after 34 holes.
1914 – Record Sixth Open Title
With the outbreak of the First World War just weeks away, the golfing fraternity headed to Prestwick Golf Club in South Ayrshire for the final Open Championship of Vardon’s career. After scoring 73 in his opening round, Vardon had the lead by one stroke. A 77 in his second round kept him in the same position, but a 78 in the third round resulted in J.H. Taylor taking the lead. The pair went out together for the final round, followed by a large crowd, with the fourth hole being the deciding one. Taylor shot seven after finding the water, whilst a four for Vardon saw him move into the lead. A final round of 78 was enough to seal the win by three shots.