Charles Johns (1887 – 26 July 1947) was an English professional golfer. Johns was born in Devon but the family moved to London when he was very young and then to

Ashford, Middlesex Ashford is a town in Borough of Spelthorne, Spelthorne, in Surrey, England, including some areas within the London Borough of Hounslow. The town lies west of central London. Its name derives from a Ford (crossing), crossing point of the River ...

, near Ashford Manor Golf Club. Johns was an assistant to Harry Cawsey at Ashford Manor before moving to Southdown Golf Club near

Shoreham-by-Sea Shoreham-by-Sea (often shortened to Shoreham) is a coastal town and port in the Adur District, Adur district, in the county of West Sussex, England. In 2011 it had a population of 20,547. The town is bordered to its north by the South Downs, to ...

in 1907. Johns was runner-up in the 1908 Sussex Professional Tournament, losing to Jack Rowe 5&3 in the final. Johns first came to prominence in the 1909 Open Championship. He led after the first morning with a 72 and was second at the end of the day. Despite a poor third round he finished fourth, a shot behind the runners-up. His 72 remained the lowest round of the Championship. Within weeks of the Open he became the professional at Ashford Manor, replacing Harry Cawsey who was moving to a new position in Skegness. Johns completed a good season by qualifying for the final stage of the 1909 News of the World Match Play, reaching the quarter-finals. He won £10, the same as he earned by finishing fourth in The Open. He had less success in the period until the start of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, although he reached the final of the Southern Professional Foursomes Tournament in 1911. In April 1915 became the professional at Purley Downs near

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, replacing James Kinnell. This was perhaps a temporary appointment as he was re-appointed in April 1919, after serving during

. Kinnell was killed during the war. Johns remained at Purley Downs until shortly before his death. Johns had a return to form in the 1920s. He finished in the top 20 of the Open on four occasions and also reached the semi-final of the 1922

News of the World Match Play The British PGA Matchplay Championship was a match play golf tournament that began in 1903 and ran until 1979. Between 1903 and 1969, the event was sponsored by the now defunct British newspaper the '' News of the World'', and was commonly known ...

, losing to George Gadd at the 19th hole. In 1925 he won his only important event, the

Daily Mail Tournament The Daily Mail Tournament was a professional golf tournament played in the United Kingdom. The ''Daily Mail'' sponsored the St Andrews Tournament in 1919 and in 1920 continued their sponsorship with the start of the Daily Mail Tournament. The even ...

, winning £300 and a gold medal. Johns had only qualified for the event through two playoffs. After the Southern section qualifying round he was one of 15 players scoring 79 who had a 9-hole playoff for one remaining place in the main event. Johns and James Ockenden tied with the best score and then played another 9-hole playoff the following day. Johns had a younger brother, Jack (1891-1918), who was also a professional golfer. Jack was also at Ashford Manor and then at Southdown from 1913. He was killed in Belgium in August 1918.

Professional wins

*1925

*1929 Cuddington Professional Tournament

Results in major championships

''Note: Johns only played in The Open Championship.''
NT = No tournament
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johns, Charles English male golfers Sportspeople from Devonport, Plymouth 1887 births 1947 deaths