Ballantine Tournament

Last updated

Ballantine Tournament
Tournament information
Location Virginia Water, Surrey, England
Established1960
Course(s) Wentworth Club
Final year1961
Final champion
Neil Coles
England relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Wentworth Club
Location in England

The Ballantine Tournament was a professional golf tournament played at the Wentworth Club in England. The event was played twice, in 1960 and 1961 and was sponsored by George Ballantine & Son Ltd, whisky proprietors.

The 1960 event was the first major tournament in Britain in which the use of the larger "American" ball (1.68 in, 42.67 mm) was compulsory. [1] The larger ball was also used in 1961.

Winners

YearWinnerCountryScoreMargin
of victory
Runner-upWinner's
share (£)
Ref
1960 Christy O'Connor Snr Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland 2772 strokes Flag of Scotland.svg John Panton 1,250 [2]
1961 Neil Coles Flag of England.svg  England 2775 strokes Flag of England.svg Ken Bousfield 1,500 [3]

Related Research Articles

The Women's Open is a major championship in women's professional golf. It is recognised by both the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour as a major. The reigning champion is Lilia Vu, who won at Walton Heath Golf Club in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Amateur Championship</span> Amateur golf tournament

The Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which has been held annually in the United Kingdom since 1885 except during the two World Wars, and in 1949 and 2019 when Ireland hosted the championship. It is one of the two leading individual tournaments for amateur golfers, alongside the U.S. Amateur. It normally has the widest international representation of any individual amateur event, with 38 golf federations from all six continents represented in the 2018 championship.

Neil Chapman Coles, MBE is an English professional golfer. Coles had a successful career in European golf, winning 29 important tournaments between 1956 and 1982. After reaching 50, he won a further 14 important Seniors tournaments between 1985 and 2002, winning his final European Seniors Tour event at the age of 67. He also played in eight Ryder Cup matches between 1961 and 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Masters</span> British golf tournament

The Betfred British Masters is a professional golf tournament. It was founded in 1946 as the Dunlop Masters and was held every year up to 2008, except for 1984. Dunlop's sponsorship ended in 1982, and the name sponsor changed frequently thereafter, with the words "British Masters" usually also in the tournament's official name. The tournament was not held from 2009 to 2014 but returned to the schedule in 2015.

The German Open was a men's golf tournament. It was first staged in 1911 when the winner was Harry Vardon. The following year the champion was another of the Great Triumvirate of late 19th and early 20th century British golfers, John Henry Taylor. The tournament was then not played again for over a decade. It was played each year from 1926 to 1939; Percy Alliss won five times in this era, Auguste Boyer four times and Henry Cotton three.

Brian George Charles Huggett, is a Welsh professional golfer. He won 16 events on the European circuit between 1962 and 1978, including two after the formal start of the European Tour in 1972. In 1968 he won the Harry Vardon Trophy for leading the Order of Merit and he was in third place in 1969, 1970 and 1972. He won 10 times on the European Seniors Tour between 1992 and 2000, including the 1998 Senior British Open.

Malcolm Edward Gregson was an English professional golfer. After a promising start to his career as an amateur and assistant professional, he had one exceptional year, 1967, when he won the Harry Vardon Trophy and played in the Ryder Cup, but had only limited success afterwards. After reaching 50 he played on the European Senior Tour, winning five times.

The Piccadilly Medal was a men's professional golf tournament on the British PGA tournament circuit that was played in 1962 and from 1964 to 1976. Since the circuit later evolved into the European Tour, the tournament is recognised as an official European Tour event from 1972. It was played in a variety of formats. From 1962 to 1967 it was a 72-hole stroke-play event, in 1968 it was a four-ball better-ball match play event, from 1969 to 1975 it was a knockout stroke-play event while in 1976 it reverted to the 72-hole stroke-play format. From 1964 to 1968 the event was played on the East course at Wentworth, just before the Piccadilly World Match Play Championship which was played on the West Course there. Carreras withdrew their golf sponsorship after the 1976 season.

The Daks Tournament was an important professional golf tournament held in England from 1950 to 1971 and was generally held in early June. 17 of the 22 events were held at the Wentworth Club. Neil Coles enjoyed considerable success in the event winning the tournament four times and being a runner-up on four occasions. The tournament was sponsored by DAKS.

The English Men's Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship for the Brabazon Trophy is the national amateur stroke play golf championship in England. It has been played annually since 1947 and is organised by the England Golf.

Lionel Platts was an English professional golfer. He finished 7th in the PGA Order of Merit in both 1964 and 1965. He played in the 1965 Ryder Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leeds Cup</span>

The Leeds Cup is a golf tournament that has been played annually in northern England since 1902. The event is organised by the north region of the Professional Golfers' Association. It is the oldest trophy in professional golf that is still played for. The Tooting Bec Cup is older, having been first played for in 1901, but is no longer contested.

Geoffrey Michael Hunt is an English professional golfer, the younger brother of Bernard Hunt. Hunt is best remembered for playing in the 1963 Ryder Cup with his brother Bernard, the first brothers to play in the same Ryder Cup team since the Whitcombe brothers in 1935.

Ralph Peter Mills was an English professional golfer. He played in the Ryder Cup in 1957 and 1959.

Douglas Norman Sewell was an English professional golfer. Before turning professional he had a successful amateur career, playing in the Walker Cup in 1957 and 1959.

The Coombe Hill Assistants' Tournament was a professional golf tournament for assistant professionals played from 1951 to 1964.

The Bowmaker Tournament was an invitation pro-am golf tournament played from 1957 to 1970. Except in the first and final years the tournament was held at Sunningdale Golf Club. The main event was a 36-hole stroke play event for the professionals played over two days. There was also a better-ball event for the professional/amateur pairs.

The Carling Tournament was a professional golf tournament played in the United Kingdom from 1960 to 1962.

Brian J. Bamford was an English professional golfer. He won the Schweppes PGA Close Championship in 1961.

The Dunlop Tournament was a professional golf tournament played in the United Kingdom from 1949 to 1961. It replaced by the "Dunlop-Southport Tournament". It was sponsored by Dunlop. The last event was played in 1961 when Dunlop withdrew their funding, although the continued to support the Dunlop Masters. The tournament was generally played in early May, except in 1951 when it was played in April and 1961 which was played in late June and early July. and was played over 72 holes of stroke play. From 1950 to 1958 the tournament was played over 90 holes. The first two rounds were played on two different courses after which there was cut and the remaining three rounds were played on the main course.

References

  1. "New golf fixture with large ball". The Times. 7 January 1960. p. 3.
  2. "O'Connor's victory at Wentworth". The Glasgow Herald . 22 August 1960. p. 4.
  3. "Magnificent final round by Coles". The Glasgow Herald . 9 October 1961. p. 9.