Quiz! Can You Name Every Player To Win On Either The PGA Tour Or European/DP World Tour As An Amateur Since 1945?
11 men have achieved the feat between 1945 and 2024. A number went on to enjoy significant success in the professional game. Can you name them all?


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…
If you enjoyed this quiz, try one of the others below:
Name every player to win a men's Major with a z in their name...
Name every major winner of this century...
Get the Golf Monthly Newsletter
Subscribe to the Golf Monthly newsletter to stay up to date with all the latest tour news, equipment news, reviews, head-to-heads and buyer’s guides from our team of experienced experts.
Fergus is Golf Monthly's resident expert on the history of the game and has written extensively on that subject. He has also worked with Golf Monthly to produce a podcast series. Called 18 Majors: The Golf History Show it offers new and in-depth perspectives on some of the most important moments in golf's long history. You can find all the details about it here.
He is a golf obsessive and 1-handicapper. Growing up in the North East of Scotland, golf runs through his veins and his passion for the sport was bolstered during his time at St Andrews university studying history. He went on to earn a post graduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Fergus has worked for Golf Monthly since 2004 and has written two books on the game; "Great Golf Debates" together with Jezz Ellwood of Golf Monthly and the history section of "The Ultimate Golf Book" together with Neil Tappin , also of Golf Monthly.
Fergus once shanked a ball from just over Granny Clark's Wynd on the 18th of the Old Course that struck the St Andrews Golf Club and rebounded into the Valley of Sin, from where he saved par. Who says there's no golfing god?
-
Ex-Prisoner And Australian Bike Gang Member Locks Up DP World Tour Card
Once imprisoned for assault, Ryan Peake went on to win the New Zealand Open earlier this year and has now wrapped up a DP World Tour card for 2026
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
Former LIV Golfer Eugenio Chacarra Earns Full DP World Tour Status Via Hero Indian Open Victory
The Spaniard carded a final-round 71 to triumph by two strokes and wrap up his card just months after being dropped by the LIV Golf League
By Jonny Leighfield Last updated
-
Quiz! 10 Questions Every Golfer Should Know The Answer To
There are some things every self-respecting golfer might be expected to know. Do you know the answers to all these questions?
By Roderick Easdale Published
-
Quiz! How Well Do You Know Arnold Palmer?
He was the first golfing superstar of the television age, but how well do you know his career?
By Roderick Easdale Published
-
Quiz! Can You Guess Which European Countries Have The Most Golfers?
Golf is increasing in popularity across this continent, but do you know which countries in Europe have the most golfers?
By Roderick Easdale Published
-
Quiz! How Well Do You Know Old Tom Morris, The 'Father Of Golf'?
He was one of the most influential men in defining golf as we now play it, but how well do you know his career?
By Roderick Easdale Published
-
Quiz! Can You Name Which European Countries Have The Most Golf Courses?
Do you know which 10 countries in Europe have the most golf courses?
By Roderick Easdale Published
-
Quiz! Can You Name Every Golfer To Break 60 On the PGA Tour?
A sub-60 round was first made on the PGA Tour in 1977, and there have been 13 more instances since – can you name them all?
By Roderick Easdale Published
-
Quiz! How Well Do You Know Rory McIlroy?
The man from Northern Ireland has had lots written about him, but how well do you know his career?
By Roderick Easdale Published
-
Quiz! Name All Tiger Woods' 15 Major Wins
He has won 15 Majors. Can you name them all?
By Roderick Easdale Published