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John Ball

England · born , Hoylake, England · died

1major championship

Summary

  • First major 1890 The Open
  • Runner-up in majors 1 time
  • Other titles 1888 The Amateur, 1890 The Amateur, 1892 The Amateur and 1894 The Amateur and 4 more

Wins

  1. 1888 The Amateur Championship Prestwick Golf Club · 5 & 4
  2. 1890 The Open Prestwick Golf Club · 164 · by 3 strokes from Archie Simpson and Willie Fernie
  3. 1890 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 4 & 3
  4. 1892 The Amateur Championship Royal St George's Golf Club · 3 & 1
  5. 1894 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 1 up
  6. 1899 The Amateur Championship Prestwick Golf Club · 37 holes
  7. 1907 The Amateur Championship St Andrews Links · 6 & 4
  8. 1910 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 10 & 9
  9. 1912 The Amateur Championship Royal North Devon Golf Club · 38 holes

Near misses

  1. 1887 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · runner-up to Horace Hutchinson · 1 up
  2. 1892 The Open Muirfield · runner-up to Harold Hilton
  3. 1895 The Amateur Championship St Andrews Links · runner-up to Leslie Balfour-Melville · 19 holes

Rivals

Beat him

Moments

  1. 1890 Open Ball became the first amateur and the first Englishman to win the Open.
  2. 1890 Open Needing to play the last four holes in 20 to beat Fernie's 167, Ball took 18 (5-4-5-4).

Records and firsts

  1. 1890 Open First Open champion from: England

Results by championship

    Best day

    1890 The Open

    Prestwick Golf Club · 164 · by 3 strokes from Archie Simpson and Willie Fernie

    Ball became the first amateur and the first Englishman to win the Open.

    Needing to play the last four holes in 20 to beat Fernie's 167, Ball took 18 (5-4-5-4).

    Record: England

    Chosen by rule: the major win our record tables single out. Year page: 1890.

    Career line, 1887–1912

    The Open
    1890 The Open: won1892 The Open: runner-up to Harold Hilton
    The Amateur
    1887 The Amateur: runner-up1888 The Amateur: won1890 The Amateur: won1892 The Amateur: won1894 The Amateur: won1895 The Amateur: runner-up1899 The Amateur: won1907 The Amateur: won1910 The Amateur: won1912 The Amateur: won
    189019001910

    12 results. Hover or tap a mark; click it for the year.

    • Major win
    • Other win
    • Runner-up

    John Ball was born on December 24, 1861, in Hoylake, England. Ball won one major championship: the 1890 Open.

    See John Ball in our rooms: The Open and Every Ground.

    Cards you pull this visit stack here. Tap one to go back to it.

    The record

    Wins in the majors (1)

    1. 1888 The Amateur Championship Prestwick Golf Club · 5 & 4
    2. 1890 The Open Prestwick Golf Club · 164 · by 3 strokes from Archie Simpson and Willie Fernie
    3. 1890 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 4 & 3
    4. 1892 The Amateur Championship Royal St George's Golf Club · 3 & 1
    5. 1894 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 1 up
    6. 1899 The Amateur Championship Prestwick Golf Club · 37 holes
    7. 1907 The Amateur Championship St Andrews Links · 6 & 4
    8. 1910 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 10 & 9
    9. 1912 The Amateur Championship Royal North Devon Golf Club · 38 holes

    Near misses

    1. 1887 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · runner-up to Horace Hutchinson · 1 up
    2. 1892 The Open Muirfield · runner-up to Harold Hilton
    3. 1895 The Amateur Championship St Andrews Links · runner-up to Leslie Balfour-Melville · 19 holes

    Other wins in championships we cover

    1. 1888 The Amateur Championship Prestwick Golf Club · 5 & 4
    2. 1890 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 4 & 3
    3. 1892 The Amateur Championship Royal St George's Golf Club · 3 & 1
    4. 1894 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 1 up
    5. 1899 The Amateur Championship Prestwick Golf Club · 37 holes
    6. 1907 The Amateur Championship St Andrews Links · 6 & 4
    7. 1910 The Amateur Championship Royal Liverpool Golf Club · 10 & 9
    8. 1912 The Amateur Championship Royal North Devon Golf Club · 38 holes

    Records and firsts

    Rows from our record tables that name this player, worded as the tables word them.

    1. 1890 Open First Open champion from: England

    Sources

    Every fact on this page comes from Golf Network News data sets compiled in October 2026 (Masters, PGA Championship, The Open, U.S. Women's Open, Ryder Cup, PGA Tour 2024–2026, major host sites, Champions Dinner menus, and the U.S. Open and state rooms). These are the sources those rows cite.

    1. where2golf
    2. R&A player
    3. R&A 1890
    4. GC 1890
    5. Wikipedia: The Amateur Championship
    6. Wikipedia: John Ball (golfer)
    7. golfbible.co.uk: amateur championship
    8. golfcompendium.com: british amateur championship winners
    9. Wikipedia: Freddie Tait