| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 4–6 July 1956 |
| Location | Hoylake, England |
| Course(s) | Royal Liverpool Golf Club |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 71[1] |
| Length | 6,960 yards (6,364 m)[2] |
| Field | 96 players, 49 after cut[3] |
| Cut | 153 (+11) |
| Prize fund | £3,750 $10,500 |
| Winner's share | £1,000 $2,800 |
| Champion | |
 Peter Thomson | |
| 286 (+2) | |
The 1956 Open Championship was the 85th Open Championship, held 4–6 July at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England. Two-time defending champion Peter Thomson of Australia won his third consecutive Open, three strokes ahead of runner-up Flory Van Donck of Belgium. It was the third of five Open titles for the 26-year-old Thomson.[1]
Qualifying took place on 2–3 July. Entries played 18 holes on the Championship course and 18 holes at Wallasey. With a record 360 entries it was decided that, for the first time, qualifying would be in groups of three rather than the usual two.[4] The number of qualifiers was limited to a maximum of 100. Ties for 100th place would not qualify. The qualifying score was 152 and 96 players qualified. Gary Player and Peter Thomson led the qualifiers on 140.[5] The maximum number of players making the cut after 36 holes was set at 50. Ties for 50th place did not make the cut. Prize money was unchanged with £1,000 for the winner out of a total purse of £3,750.
- ^ a b "Thomson wins third straight British Open". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. 7 July 1956. p. 11. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
- ^ "Smalldon leads British Open, Al Balding tied for third". Montreal Gazette. Canadian Press. 5 July 1956. p. 34.
- ^ "Media Guide". The Open Championship. 2011. p. 80. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
- ^ "New measure in Open golf - Threesomes in two qualifying rounds". The Times. 7 June 1956. p. 3.
- ^ "Player and Thomson lead qualifiers in Open - Unexpected failure of Mills". The Times. 4 July 1956. p. 5.