| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 14–17 July 1983 |
| Location | Southport, England |
| Course(s) | Royal Birkdale Golf Club |
| Tour(s) | European Tour PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 71[1] |
| Length | 6,968 yards (6,372 m)[1] |
| Field | 151 players 83 after 1st cut 63 after 2nd cut[1] |
| Cut | 146 (+4) (1st cut) 217 (+4) (2nd cut)[1] |
| Prize fund | £400,000 $600,000 |
| Winner's share | £40,000 $60,000 |
| Champion | |
 Tom Watson | |
| 275 (−9) | |
The 1983 Open Championship was a men's major golf championship and the 112th Open Championship, held from 14 to 17 July at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England. It was the sixth time the course had hosted, with the first in 1954.
Defending champion Tom Watson won his fifth Open Championship, one stroke ahead of runners-up Andy Bean and Hale Irwin.[2][3] It was his second consecutive Open win and third in the last four,[4] but was helped by Irwin "whiffing" a one-inch putt on the 14th hole on the third day, which cost him a chance of a play-off with Watson for the tournament.[5]
At age 33, this was Watson's eighth and final major title; he had won three of the last six majors, but had not won any event for twelve months.[6][5]
Watson was the fifth to win five Open Championships, last accomplished in 1965 by Peter Thomson, also at Royal Birkdale. He was the first to successfully defend the title in over a decade, since Lee Trevino in 1972 at Muirfield.[2] Of his five Open wins, this was the only one outside Scotland.[7][8]
Seven years earlier at Royal Birkdale in 1976, defending champion Watson posted an 80 in the third round, finishing with a pair of sixes, and missed the 54-hole cut by a stroke.[9]
- ^ a b c d "Media guide". The Open Championship. 2011. pp. 51, 203. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
- ^ a b Paul, Ian (18 July 1983). "Watson picks up Open trophy − then drops it". Glasgow Herald. p. 1.
- ^ Husar, John (18 July 1983). "Watson flashes the V sign". The Chicago Tribune. p. 3, sec. 4.
- ^ Radosta, John (18 July 1983). "Watson's birdie on 16th vaults him to 5th British Open crown". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Florida. (New York Times). p. 12B.
- ^ a b Jenkins, Dan (25 July 1983). "Breaking clear of the crowd". Sports Illustrated. p. 12.
- ^ "Watson wins 5th in Britain". Youngstown Vindicator. (Ohio). Associated Press. 25 July 1983. p. 15.
- ^ "Tom Watson's four championships in the British Open". Chicago Tribune. 17 July 1983. p. 5, sec. 3.
- ^ Husar, John (18 July 1983). "Watson strangles that choker label". The Chicago Tribune. p. 1, sec. 4.
- ^ "Ballesteros holds off world's best". Glasgow Herald. 10 July 1976. p. 16.