Frank Ball (golfer) explained

Frank Ball
Birth Place:West Kirby, Cheshire, England
Spouse:Lucille Ball
Status:Professional
Prowins:3
Masters:DNP
Usopen:T22: 1928
Pga:DNP

Frank Ball (born) was an English professional golfer who played in the early 20th century. He tied for third place in the 1924 Open Championship.[1]

Early life

Ball was born circa 1892 in West Kirby, Cheshire (now Merseyside), England, to William Henry Ball and Hannah Silcock Roscoe. He had four brothers and four sisters. His birthplace was but a short distance south of the Royal Liverpool Golf Club at Hoylake.

Frank's father, William (1856–1926), was a greenkeeper from Hoylake.[2] Frank's brothers Tom, Sydney, William Henry (Harry) were also professional golfers, as was Harry's son Errie.

Golf career

In 1923 Ball reached the final of two important tournaments within a month. In late-June he lost to Arthur Havers in the Glasgow Herald Tournament but in mid-July he won the Broxbourne Tournament beating James Sherlock.[3] [4]

The 1924 Open Championship was held 26–27 June at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England. The American golfer Walter Hagen won the second of his four Open Championships, one stroke ahead of runner-up Ernest Whitcombe.[5] [6] Ball finished in a tie for third place with Macdonald Smith.

He sailed from Southampton on 29 October 1926 aboard RMS Andania[7] to find new opportunities in America and quickly found work at the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia.[8] His career and whereabouts after moving to Atlanta is somewhat of a mystery.

Death

Ball's date of death is unknown.

Professional wins (3)

Results in major championships

Tournament1920192119221923192419251926192719281929
U.S. OpenT22T32
The Open ChampionshipT61T19T16T3T24
Tournament193019311932193319341935
U.S. Open
The Open ChampionshipT27
Note: Ball only played in The Open Championship and the U.S. Open.
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Notes and References

  1. Book: Brenner, Morgan G. . The Majors of Golf: Complete Results of the Open, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and the Masters, 1860–2008 . 1 . 2009 . McFarland . 978-0-7864-3360-5.
  2. News: The Times . 24 February 1926 . 6 . Death of William Ball.
  3. News: Gleneagles – "Glasgow Herald" tournament – Arthur Havers wins . The Glasgow Herald . 25 June 1923 . 9.
  4. News: Broxbourne Tournament . . 11 . 16 July 1923.
  5. News: Hagen scores 301 to win British Open golf title . Milwaukee Sentinel . Universal Service . Prew . Robert J. . 28 June 1924 . 9 . 17 May 2013.
  6. News: Hagen wins British title by one stroke . Milwaukee Journal . Associated Press . 28 June 1924 . 6 . 17 May 2013.
  7. Web site: RMS Andania Manifest - U.S. Department of Labor, Immigration Services, Form 500-A. ancestry.com . 17 May 2015.
  8. News: Ball, last inaugural Masters participant, dies at 103 . Golf Channel . 10 May 2015 . 24 September 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924023417/http://www.golfchannel.com/news/golf-central-blog/last-surviving-1934-masters-participant-dies-103/ . dead .