27 Sep 1930: Bobby Jones completes Grand Slam

On this day in 1930, American golfer Bobby Jones completed the Grand Slam.

I recently wrote about the Grand Slam in tennis; the list of calendar-year Grand Slam winners in golf is much shorter, as it’s only been done once. Bobby Jones won the four ‘major’ men’s tournaments in 1930:

• The Open Championship (British Open)
• U.S. Open
• U.S. Amateur
• British Amateur

The term ‘Grand Slam’ was coined by sportswriter O. B. Keeler of the Atlanta Journal, borrowed from the card game bridge; I am partial to the term “Impregnable Quadrilateral“.

In today’s professional era, The Masters and the PGA Championship have replaced the two amateur competitions as ‘major’ events.

Tiger Woods held all four titles at the same time in 2000-2001, but not all in the same calendar year. Four other players have completed the career Grand Slam, three American:

• Gene Sarazen (completed 1935)
• Ben Hogan (1953)
• Gary Player (1965) – South Africa
• Jack Nicklaus (1966)

Image: Bobby Jones, circa 1921