History and Origin of the Claret Jug as a golf trophy
Golf Trophies Claret Jug – The History!
The trophy awarded to the winner of The Open Championship is officially known as the Championship Cup, but it is much more commonly called the “Claret Jug” because it is a claret jug.
The British Open trophy was made in the style of silver jugs used to serve claret at 19th Century gatherings. But the winner of The Open Championship hasn’t always received the Claret Jug as the trophy. The first handful of winners were awarded a belt. That’s right, a belt. Or “Challenge Belt,” as it was designated at the time.
The first Open Championship was played in 1860 at Prestwick. The belt was made of a wide, red Morocco leather and was adorned with silver buckles and emblems. This (seemingly) gaudy “trophy” might still be the British Open trophy today but for the golfing prowess of Young Tom Morris. When Young Tom Morris won in 1870, it was his third straight victory (he would win a fourth in 1872) and he walked off with the Challenge Belt. Suddenly, the British Open no longer had a trophy to award. And Prestwick didn’t have the wherewithal to commission one on its own.
So the club members at Prestwick came up with the idea of sharing the Open Championship with the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews and the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers. Prestwick proposed that the three clubs take turns staging the Open, and chip-in equally toward the creation of a new trophy. While the clubs tried to figure out what to do, 1871 came and went without an Open Championship being played. Finally, the clubs agreed to share the Open, and each contributed money for a new trophy.
When Young Tom Morris won the 1872 Open, the trophy had not yet been commissioned. So the 1873 winner – Tom Kidd – was the first to be awarded the Claret Jug Trophies.
That original Silver Claret Jug from 1873 has permanently resided at the R&A since 1927. The trophy that is presented to the British Open winner each year is a copy of the original, which the winner gets to keep for a year before returning it to the R&A to be passed on to the next champion.
Swatkins Silverware have been making silver awards for presentation since 1898 and at Silvertrophy.com we are proud of been the only dedicated retailer of Swatkin’s awards in the world!
The St Annes Claret Jug is the most similar silver claret jug we produce to the British Open Championship Trophy. It is hand made in the heart of England by craftsmen using the same techniques when they did in the 1870’s when the Open’s Claret Jug was produced.
We can supply it in a multi tiered base also to allow for many more names & years to be engraved on the plinth-bands.
We can engrave and supply you with this silver plated claret jug in about 5 days from placing your order. To see more details about this silver claret jug please click here
Watch our craftsmen at work adding the fine decoration by hand to the St Anne’s Claret Jugs below.