John Jones (22 February 1863 – 16 June 1921) 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 ...

who played in the late 19th and early 20th century. He had two top-10 finishes in the U.S. Open.

Early life

Jones was born in Hoylake,

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, England in 1863 and emigrated to the United States in 1897. His wife Ellen Maria (née Roberts) joined him the next year. There are few references to him before he emigrated, although he did play in the 1895

Irish Championship Meeting Professional Tournament The Irish Championship Meeting Professional Tournament was a series of golf tournaments played in Ireland. The Irish Championship Meeting had been instituted in 1892 by the Golfing Union of Ireland. The main event was the Irish Amateur Open Champ ...

at Royal Portrush Golf Club, losing to David Herd in the first round. In America Jones took a job as the head professional at Myopia Hunt Club until 1912. He would put his "home course advantage" to good use when the USGA selected Myopia to host four U.S. Opens between 1898 and 1908.

Golf career

1898 U.S. Open

Jones tied for eighth place in the 1898 U.S. Open, held at Myopia Hunt Club in South Hamilton, Massachusetts. His scores of 83-84-90-90=347 put him in a tie with three other players, one of which was

Herbert Leeds Herbert Corey Leeds (January 30, 1855 – September 29, 1930) was an American amateur golfer and golf course architect. Leeds tied for eighth place in the 1898 U.S. Open held at Myopia Hunt Club in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, a golf course o ...

, the designer of the course. The other two players tied on 347 were Robert McAndrews and Bernard Nicholls. None of the four players won any prize money.

Fred Herd Fred Herd (26 November 1873 – 14 March 1954) was a Scottish professional golfer from St Andrews. In 1898 he won the fourth U.S. Open at Myopia Hunt Club, in South Hamilton, Massachusetts. This was the first U.S. Open to be played over 72 hol ...

(brother of Sandy Herd) won the event—his only major championship victory—by 7 shots from

Alex Smith Alexander Douglas Smith (born May 7, 1984) is an American former quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. He played college football at Utah, where he received first-team All-American honors and won the 20 ...

1908 U.S. Open

The 1908 U.S. Open—once again contested at the Myopia Hunt Club—featured strong winds in the first two rounds that plagued many of the players, but Jones managed his game well under the difficult circumstances. His score of 162 after the conclusion of the second round put him in second place alone, trailing Willie Smith (who was on 159) by only 3 strokes. Jones posted rounds of 81-81-87-82=331 and finished in fifth place, winning $70 in prize money. Fred McLeod won the tournament in a playoff over Smith. At the age of 50 Jones played in the qualifying round of the

1913 Open Championship The 1913 Open Championship was the 53rd Open Championship, held 23–24 June at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England. J.H. Taylor won the championship for the fifth and final time, eight strokes ahead of runner-up Ted Ray, the defen ...

at his original home club, Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake. He played on the third day of qualifying, scored 80 and 79 and missed the qualifying mark by two strokes. He was representing

Owasco Owasco is a town in Cayuga County, New York, United States. It is part of the traditional territory of the Cayuga nation. The population was 3,793 at the 2010 census. Owasco is in the eastern part of Cayuga County and is at the southeast city line ...

County Club, New York.

Death and legacy

Jones died on 16 June 1921 in

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

, although his gravestone is in Hamilton, Massachusetts.

Results in major championships

''Note: Jones played only in the U.S. Open.'' DNP = Did not play
T = Tied for a place
Yellow background for top-10

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, John English male golfers English emigrants to the United States People from Hoylake Sportspeople from Wirral 1863 births 1921 deaths