Mabel Harrison (1886 – 22 April 1972) was an Irish golfer, winner of the Irish Ladies' Close Championship in 1910, 1911, and 1912. (Some news reports referred to her, apparently in error, as Mary Harrison.)

Early life

Frances Mabel Harrison was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, the daughter of Robert Francis Harrison and Agnes Blanche Bagwell. Her parents married at

St. George's Church, Dublin St. George's Church is a former parish church in Dublin, Ireland, designed by Francis Johnston, it is considered to be one of his finest works. The structure is located at Hardwicke Place, just north of the city centre, though when it was ope ...

. Her father was a prominent barrister in Dublin; her grandfather Michael Harrison was a judge. MabelHarrison1918

Career

Mabel Harrison is counted alongside May Hezlet and

Rhona Adair Rhona Kathleen Adair (2 September 1881 – 27 March 1961) was an Irish amateur golfer. She won the British Ladies Amateur twice and the Irish Ladies' Close Championships four times at the start of the twentieth century. Life Adair was born ...

as a pioneer of Irish women's golf. She began playing golf in competition when she was still a teenager. She joined the Malahide Island Club as golfer in 1905, and is remembered as one of the club's "most famous members". She was also a member of the Hermitage and Royal Portrush clubs. In April 1906, she finished in the final eight of the Irish Ladies' Close Championship in Newcastle. "She is a long driver and a powerful iron player, and with a little practice will easily take her place among the scratch players," noted a commentator in 1907."The Sportswoman"
''Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News'' 66(January 5, 1907): 814. She had "an admirable overlapping finger grip", so much that a close-up photo of her hands on the club were included and analysed in articles about women golfers. She played for Ireland at international matches in

Birkdale Birkdale is an area of Southport, within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, though historically in Lancashire, in the north-west of England. The area is located on the Irish Sea coast, approximately a mile away from the centre of S ...

in 1909, and at Turnberry in 1912. Harrison won the Irish Ladies' Close Championship at the Malahide Island Club in 1911. She won the Irish Ladies' Close Championship for three years, 1910, 1911, and 1912. In October 1913 she traveled to North America, to play in the 1913

United States Women's Amateur Golf Championship The U.S. Women's Amateur is the leading golf tournament in the United States for female amateur golfers. It is played annually and is one of the 13 United States national golf championships organized by the United States Golf Association (USGA). F ...

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

(she lost to Gladys Ravenscroft). She also played and the Canadian ladies' open in Montreal in 1913. She was still competing as a golfer in 1919, as "Mrs. Frank Casement". During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

she was also active with the Soldiers' and Sailors' Families relief in Dublin.

Personal life and legacy

Mabel Harrison married in 1916, to an Irish military doctor who served in World War I, Francis Casement. They had a son, Francis Charles Casement (1920-1976), and a daughter, Alison Sheila Casement (1925-2015). She was widowed when Francis Casement died in 1967; she died in Ballymoney in 1972. There is an annual Mabel Harrison Scratch Cup event, named in her memory, held by the Royal Portrush Golf Club.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Mabel 1972 deaths 1886 births Irish female golfers Amateur golfers Sportspeople from Dublin (city)