The gap between the very highest level of elite amateur golfers and those in the paid ranks has reduced in recent years with youngsters increasingly making a fast transition from college golf programmes to the main professional tours. But the instances of amateur players winning events on either the PGA or DP World Tours remain rare. Only a very few of the most talented amateur golfers have the self-belief and confidence to stand up against a field of established professional players and show them a clean pair of heels.
In the early years of major golf, amateur players enjoyed a good deal of success with one man standing out. Bobby Jones won seven major titles in just a seven-year stretch. Between 1923 and 1930, Jones won four US Open titles and three Open Championships.
He wasn’t the first man to win a major as an amateur though. That honour goes to John Ball who won the 1890 Open Championship at Prestwick. Another Royal Liverpool man, and the first editor Golf Monthly, Harold Hilton, was a two-time Open Champion, at Muirfield in 1892 and then at his home club in 1897.
Francis Ouimet won the US Open as a 21-year-old at Brookline, famously beating Harry Vardon and Ted Ray in a playoff. Jerome Travers, Chick Evans and Johnny Goodman also won the US Open as amateurs.
No amateur has won a major since Goodman in 1933 but unpaid golfers have enjoyed victories on the main professional circuits. Since 1945, 11 players have won events on either the PGA Tour or DP World Tour as amateurs. Here below is a chance for you to see if you can name them. There are some clues to help you out. See how you get on…
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