The Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Award is named after the three-time British Open winner. A flamboyant man, he won the British Open in 1934, 1937 and 1948. He competed in 13 Opens between 1930 and 1952, finishing outside the top ten only once, when he finished tied for 13th.
In his first Open victory at Royal St. George's, he shot a then-record 65 in the second round, which also brought Dunlop No. 65. In 1987, at the age of 80, he accepted a knighthood but died on December 22 before the award could be officially announced in the New Year's Day 1980 Honors List.
Sir Henry initially confirmed the winner of the Rookie of the Year award. But now it is up to a panel of DP World Tour executives and members of the DP World Tour Championship Committee to make the ruling.
The award was first awarded in 1960, so it predates the start of the Tour in 1972, but the Tour still considers pre-1972 awards to be Tour awards. Before the advent of the European Tour, the award was given to the best rookie on the British PGA Tour. The first winner receives £100, equivalent to £3,040 in modern prices.
Until 1986, no one other than an Englishman, Scotsman or Welshman had won. That year, the Spaniards won. The next time the award was won by a non-British person was in 1991, when the winner was from Sweden, and the next non-British winner was also in 1996. Thirteen different nationalities have won the award this century.
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