Charles Harold Ward (16 September 1911 – August 2001) was a prominent English golfer of the 1940s, winner of the British Order of Merit in both 1948 and 1949, and twice finishing third in The Open Championship, in 1948 and 1951.[1] He would add his name, at some stage, to the roll of honour of almost every leading event in British professional golf, with the exception of the Open.

Charlie Ward
Personal information
Full nameCharles Harold Ward
Born(1911-09-16)16 September 1911
Birmingham, England
DiedAugust 2001 (age 89)
Devon, England
Sporting nationality England
Career
StatusProfessional
Professional wins17
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipDNP
U.S. OpenDNP
The Open Championship3rd/T3: 1948, 1951
Achievements and awards
Harry Vardon Trophy1948, 1949

Ward was born in Birmingham, England. Like many players his age, Ward's best years were denied to him by World War II, so it was fitting that he should win the first professional event played after VE Day, the Daily Mail Victory Tournament at St Andrews. After his victory he returned late to his posting at an RAF base and as a punishment, was confined to barracks.[1] Ward would win three events in 1948 (one of them in a tie), and gained more recognition for his 1949 season, his three wins that year including the rich Spalding and North British-Harrogate Tournaments and then the British Masters, also played that year at St Andrews.

Further victories followed in 1950 (the Daily Mail Tournament at Walton Heath, which Ward won in a playoff against Bobby Locke and Australian Ossie Pickworth) and 1951 (the Dunlop Tournament and the Lotus Tournament) before Ward's final victory on the British circuit in 1956, the British PGA Championship at Maesdu.

Ward represented Great Britain on three occasions in the Ryder Cup, in 1947, 1949 and 1951,[1] although he only enjoyed one victory in his six matches, losing twice to Sam Snead and once to Ben Hogan.

Ward died after a short illness in August 2001, a month short of his 90th birthday.[2]

Tournament wins

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Results in major championships

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Tournament 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
The Open Championship T17 T28 T13 T30
Tournament 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
The Open Championship NT NT NT NT NT NT T4 T6 T3 T4
Tournament 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
The Open Championship CUT 3 CUT T17 CUT CUT T17 CUT CUT T35
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965
The Open Championship CUT CUT

Note: Ward only played in The Open Championship.

  Top 10
  Did not play

NT = No tournament
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Alliss, Peter (1983). The Who's Who of Golf. Orbis Publishing. pp. 307–308. ISBN 0-85613-520-8.
  2. ^ Simcox, Jamie (11 August 2001). "Wales Open: Lawrie finds form to go out on own". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 21 July 2008.[dead link]