George Daniel Brown (1836–1902) was an English

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

. He also specialized as a ball and club maker. Brown finished fifth in the

1860 Open Championship The 1860 Open Championship was a golf competition held at Prestwick Golf Club, in Ayrshire, Scotland. It is now regarded as the first Open Championship. Until his death in 1859, Allan Robertson was regarded as top golfer in the world. The Open ...

and repeated the feat in the

1863 Open Championship The 1863 Open Championship was the fourth Open Championship and was again held at Prestwick Golf Club. Eight professionals and six amateurs contested the event in wet and windy weather, with Willie Park, Sr. winning the championship for the se ...

. In total, Brown had three top-10 finishes in

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

Early life

Brown was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, in 1836.

Golf career

1860 Open Championship

The

was a

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

competition held at

Prestwick Golf Club Prestwick Golf Club is a golf course in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is approximately southwest of Scotland's largest city, Glasgow. Prestwick is a classic links course, built on the rolling sandy land between the beach and the hin ...

, in

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Re ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. It is now regarded as the first

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

. Eight golfers contested the event, with

Willie Park, Sr. William Park Sr. (30 June 1833 – 25 July 1903) was a Scottish professional golfer. He was a 4-time winner of the Open Championship. Early life Park was born in Wallyford, East Lothian, Scotland. Like some of the other early professional gol ...

winning the championship by 2 shots from

Tom Morris, Sr. Thomas Mitchell Morris (16 June 1821 – 24 May 1908), otherwise known as Old Tom Morris, and The Grand Old Man of Golf, was a Scottish golfer. He was born in St Andrews, Fife, the "home of golf" and location of the St Andrews Links, and died t ...

also known as "Old Tom Morris". Brown scored 192 in three rounds of play.

1863 Open Championship

The

was the fourth Open Championship and was again held at

. Eight professionals and six amateurs contested the event in wet and windy weather, with

winning the championship for the second time, by two shots from

Brown carded rounds of 58-61-57=176 but did not win any prize money; only the top 4 finishers received a cash prize.

Details of play

As in previous years, the contest was held over three rounds of the 12-hole links course. For the first time there was prize money for those finishing 2nd, 3rd and 4th, although the winner only received the Challenge Belt for the next year.

Davie Park Davie Park (born ) was a Scottish professional golfer who played during the mid-to-late 19th century. Park had five top-10 finishes in The Open Championship. His best performance came in 1866 Open Championship when he placed second. Early lif ...

, younger brother of Willie, led after the first round with a score of 55. An excellent second round 54 meant that Willie led by four strokes. Eventually Willie won by two strokes from Morris, spoiling Morris's attempt at a third consecutive win, which would have given him outright possession of the Challenge Belt which had been donated by Archibald Montgomerie, the Earl of Eglinton, although Morris took the second prize of £5.

Death and legacy

Brown died in 1902 in London, England. He is best known for having three top-10 finishes in the Open Championship.

Results in major championships

''Note: Brown only played in The Open Championship.'' DNP = Did not play
Yellow background for top-10

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, George Daniel English male golfers Golfers from London 1836 births 1902 deaths