Willie Dunn Sr. (19 August 1821 – 14 February 1878) was a Scottish

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 during the mid-to-late 19th century. He was born in Musselburgh, Scotland, in 1821 and died there. Dunn 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 ...

, with his best result being seventh in the 1861 Open Championship.

Early life

Willie Dunn was born in Musselburgh, Scotland, on 19 August 1821. Along with his twin brother, Jamie, he played in many challenge matches between 1840–60. Dunn apprenticed under the Gourlay family and was keeper of the greens at

Blackheath Blackheath may refer to: Places England *Blackheath, London, England ** Blackheath railway station **Hundred of Blackheath, Kent, an ancient hundred in the north west of the county of Kent, England *Blackheath, Surrey, England ** Hundred of Blackh ...

until 1864 when he returned to the Thistle Golf Club at

Leith Links Leith Links ( gd, Fìghdean Lìte) is the principal open space within Leith, the docks district of Edinburgh, Scotland. This public park is divided by a road into two main areas, a western section and an eastern section, both being largely flat ...

Golf career

The 1861 Open Championship

Dunn placed seventh in the 1861 Open Championship, carding consistent rounds of 61-59-60=180. The 1861 Open Championship 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 ...

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 was the second

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 ...

and the first to open to amateurs as well as professionals. Ten professionals and eight amateurs contested the event, with

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 ...

winning the championship by 4 shots from

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 ...

Family

Dunn had two sons, Thomas Dunn and Willie Dunn Jr.

Death

Dunn died in

Musselburgh Musselburgh (; sco, Musselburrae; gd, Baile nam Feusgan) is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, east of Edinburgh city centre. It has a population of . History The name Musselburgh is Ol ...

, Scotland, of

epithelioma Epithelioma is an abnormal growth of the epithelium, which is the layer of tissue that covers the surfaces of organs and other structures of the body. Classification Epitheliomas can be benign growths or malignant carcinomas. They are classifi ...

of lip—a form of skin cancer—in 1878.

Results in major championships

''Note: Dunn played only in the Open Championship.'' NT = no tournament
F? = competed, finish unknown
"T" indicates a tie for a place

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunn, Willie Sr. Scottish male golfers Golfers from Musselburgh 1821 births 1878 deaths