1911 News of the World Match Play
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 3–5 October 1911 |
| Location | Walton-on-the-Hill, Surrey, England |
| Course(s) | Walton Heath Golf Club |
| Organised by | The PGA |
| Format | Match play – 18 holes (Final 36 holes) |
| Statistics | |
| Field | 32 players |
| Prize fund | £400 |
| Winner's share | £100 |
| Champion | |
 James Braid | |
| def. Ted Ray 1 up | |
The 1911 News of the World Match Play was the ninth News of the World Match Play tournament, played from 3 to 5 October 1911 at the Walton Heath Golf Club. 32 players competed in a straight knock-out competition, with each match contested over 18 holes, except for the final which was over 36 holes. The winner received £100 out of a total prize fund of £400. James Braid defeated Ted Ray by 1 hole in the final to win the tournament.
Qualification
[edit]Entry was restricted to members of the Professional Golfers' Association (PGA). Qualification was by a series of 36-hole stroke-play competitions; one for each of the eight PGA sections. The Southern section had 12 qualifiers, the Northern section 7, the Midland section 5, the Scottish, Welsh and Western sections 2 and the Eastern and Irish sections 1. Because of the large number of entries in the Southern section, two events were run with 6 qualifiers at each venue. Compared to 1910, the number of qualifiers from the Southern section was reduced by one with the Midland section increasing by one. In the event of a tie for places there was a playoff.
The qualifiers were:
- Eastern section: Ernest Riseborough
- Irish section: Charlie Pope
- Midland section: James Adwick, Jack Bloxham, Len Holland, George Tuck, Tom Williamson
- Northern section: Jack Gaudin, Walter Hambleton, Cyril Hughes, Bill Leaver, Ted Ray, Thomas Renouf, Sam Whiting
- Southern section at Acton Golf Club: James Braid, George Duncan, Fred Leach, James Sherlock, Josh Taylor, Harry Vardon
- Southern section at West Drayton Golf Club: Laurie Ayton, Snr, James Batley, Arthur Catlin, Sandy Herd, Charles Mayo, Fred Robson
- Scottish section: Tom Fernie, Willie Watt
- Western section: Ernest Firstbrook, Herbert Osborne
- Welsh section: Syd Ball, Peter Rainford
Format
[edit]The format was unchanged. Matches were over 18 holes except for the final which was over 36 holes. Extra holes were played in the event of a tied match. Two rounds were played on the first day, two more on the second day with the final on the third day.
Results
[edit]
w/o = Walk over
Prize money
[edit]Prize money was increased to £400. The winner still received £100 and a gold medal, but the runner-up now received £40 and a silver medal, losing semi-finalists £20 and a bronze medal, losing quarter-finalists £15, second round losers £10 and first round losers £5. The new distribution meant that all 32 qualifiers for the final stages received at least £5.
References
[edit]- ^ "Golf – Professional tournament for £400". The Times. 3 October 1911. p. 10.
- ^ "Golf – The £400 tourney – Last year's winner beaten". The Glasgow Herald. 4 October 1911. p. 14.
- ^ "Golf – The £400 tournament – Defeat of the Open Champion". The Glasgow Herald. 5 October 1911. p. 15.
- ^ "Golf – The £400 tournament – Braid beats Ray". The Glasgow Herald. 6 October 1911. p. 15.