​The claret jug is widely regarded as golf’s most recognizable prize, yet it did not begin as the Open Championship trophy. When the Open first crowned a champion in 1860, Willie Park, Sr. received the Challenge Belt, a broad piece of leather crafted from red Morocco hide and embellished with silver buckles and emblems. The Open’s own site notes that the belt could be claimed by any player who won the championship in three consecutive years, a feat achieved by Young Tom Morris from 1868 through 1870, allowing him to keep the belt. In fact, 1871 passed without an Open because there was no trophy to present to a winner.
A resolution to restore the championship’s continuity finally came to fruition on September 11, 1872, when the three host clubs—Prestwick, the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, and The Royal and Ancient Golf Club (R&A)—reached an agreement. It was decided that the Champion would be awarded a medal, and each of the three clubs would contribute £10 toward the cost of a new trophy. The plan was to replace the belt with a new silver trophy, to be known as The Golf Champion Trophy, commonly referred to as the claret jug, reflecting its design crafted to resemble a traditional 19th-century claret jug.
The claret jug, created by Mackay Cunningham & Company of Edinburgh, was first awarded in 1872. However, it was not presented to the initial recipient, Young Tom Morris, because the trophy was not yet ready. Consequently, although Morris’s name was engraved as the first champion, the first actual recipient of the trophy was Tom Kidd in 1873. The original trophy remained in use through 1927. When Walter Hagen won in 1928, he received a replica while the original was placed on permanent display at the Royal and Ancient Golf Club’s clubhouse in St. Andrews, alongside the original Challenge Belt, which had been donated by the Morris family. Today’s champions receive a replica trophy with their name engraved, which they keep for one year before returning it to the R&A at the end of their reign. Each champion thus receives a trophy of their own to keep for the duration of their title.
It’s worth noting that the term claret jug is not an official designation. The trophy’s formal name remains The Golf Champion Trophy, designed in the style of the 19th-century wine jugs used for serving claret, a dry red wine produced in France’s Bordeaux region. There are also three additional replica jugs: one housed in the British Museum of Golf at St. Andrews, and two others used for traveling exhibitions. These replicas, along with the original, contribute to the trophy’s enduring legacy and its role in golf history.