John Henry Oke (1 May 1880 – 8 March 1950) 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 ...

. He won the first Canadian Open in 1904. His brother,

George George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

(1892–1947), was also a professional golfer and was president of the PGA in 1930/31. Oke was born in

Northam, Devon Northam ( ) is a market town, civil parish and electoral ward in Devon, England, lying north of Bideford. The civil parish also includes the villages of Westward Ho!, Appledore, Torridge, Appledore, West Appledore, Diddywell, Buckleigh and Silfor ...

near

Royal North Devon Golf Club Royal North Devon Golf Club, commonly abbreviated as RND, was founded in 1864, and is the oldest golf course in England. The course was designed by Scottish golfer Old Tom Morris. Geography RND is located on Northam Burrows between Northam a ...

. By 1899 he was an assistant to J. H. Taylor at Mid-Surrey Golf Club. He entered 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 ...

from 1901 to 1903, finishing tied for 15th place in 1901 and tied for 29th in 1903. Oke was the professional at Royal Ottawa Golf Club in 1904 and 1905, during which time he won the first Canadian Open. In 1906 Oke became the professional at Sutton Coldfield Golf Club, just north of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

where he remained until moving to North Hants Golf Club in

Fleet, Hampshire Fleet is a town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Hart District of Hampshire, England, centred south-west of London and east of Basingstoke. It is the largest town of the Hart District, and has many large technology busi ...

in 1912. During his period at Sutton Coldfield he was a regular competitor in tournaments. As well as playing in the

, he qualified for the final stages of the

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 ...

in 1906, 1907 and 1908 and was runner-up in the Midland Professional Championship in 1910 and 1911. Oke left for the United States in April 1915 and played in the U.S. Open that year. He remained in America until his death in 1950, from cancer of the throat. He held a number of posts before his retirement in 1948.

Professional wins (1)

''Note: This list may be incomplete.'' *1904 Canadian Open

Results in major championships

''Note: Oke never played in the

Masters Tournament The Masters Tournament (usually referred to as simply the Masters, or as the U.S. Masters outside North America) is one of the four men's major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week in April, the Masters is the ...

or the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. The PGA is one of the four men's major golf champi ...

.''
CUT = Missed the cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oke, Jack English male golfers People from Northam, Devon 1880 births 1950 deaths