Abe Mitchell

{{Short description|English professional golfer (1887–1947)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2018}} {{For|the baseball player|Abe Mitchell (baseball)}} {{Infobox golfer | name = Abe Mitchell | image = Abe Mitchell c1920.jpg | image_size = 250 | caption = Mitchell c. 1920 | fullname = Henry Abraham Mitchell | nickname = | birth_date = {{Birth date|1887|1|18|df=y}} | birth_place = East Grinstead, Sussex, England | death_date = {{Death date and age|1947|6|11|1887|1|18|df=y}} | death_place = St Albans, England | height =  | weight =  | nationality = {{ENG}} | spouse = | partner = | children = | college = | yearpro = 1913 | extour =  | prowins = 29 | pgawins = 2 | otherwins = 27 | majorwins =  | masters = DNP | usopen = T17: 1922 | open = 4th/T4: 1914, 1920, 1929 | pga = DNP | usamateur = DNP | britamateur = 2nd: 1912 | wghofid =  | wghofyear =  | award1 =  | year1 =  | award2 = | year2 = | awardssection =  }} '''Henry Abraham Mitchell''' (18 January 1887 – 11 June 1947) was an English professional golfer. Mitchell had eight top-10 finishes out of 17 appearances in the Open Championship, his best performance being fourth in 1920. He was runner-up in the 1912 Amateur Championship and won the 1924 Miami Open.

==Early life== Mitchell was born in East Grinstead, Sussex on 18 January 1887.<ref name=who>{{cite book |last=Elliott |first=Len |author2=Barbara Kelly |title=Who's Who in Golf |year=1976 |publisher=Arlington House |location=New Rochelle, New York |isbn=0-87000-225-2 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/whoswhoingolf00elli/page/134 134–5] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/whoswhoingolf00elli/page/134 }}</ref><ref name=nyt>{{cite news |title=Abe Mitchell, 60, British Golf Star (Obituary) |newspaper=The New York Times |date = 12 June 1947 }}</ref> He was the illegitimate son of Mary Mitchell. Mary married a Mark Seymour in 1890 and Abe was brought up by his grandparents, George and Sophia Mitchell. Mark and Mary had a son Mark, Abe's half-brother, who also became a successful professional golfer.<ref>{{cite web|title=Through the Green – Abe Mitchell – The man of the Ryder Cup |pages=10–17 |url=http://www.golfcollectors.co.uk/u/cms/TTG_86_2008September.pdf |date=September 2008 |accessdate=31 March 2016}}</ref>

== Amateur career == Mitchell was a fine amateur, and played for England against the Scots in 1910 and won. He won the Golf Illustrated Gold Vase twice in 1910 and 1913, and played in two Open Championships as an amateur.<ref name="nyt" /> He was also runner-up in the 1912 Amateur Championship, losing to John Ball on the second extra hole.<ref name="who" /><ref name="nyt" />

==Professional career== In 1913, he turned professional and was attached to Sonning Golf Club in Berkshire.<ref name="nyt" /> Mitchell won many golf tournaments in Great Britain<ref name="nyt" /> and toured the United States frequently,<ref name="nyt" /> winning the 1924 Miami Open, and entered three U.S. Opens.

Mitchell led at the halfway stage in the 1920 Open Championship before collapsing in the third round, when he shot 84 and finished four shots behind winner George Duncan, who had been 13 shots off the lead after two rounds.

In a match held on 26 July 1921, Mitchell and George Duncan were paired in a foursomes match and won against Chick Evans and Charles Mayo at Edgewater Golf Club in Chicago, Illinois where Mayo was serving as the head professional.<ref name="Edgewater">{{cite news |title=British Golfers Defeat Evans and Mayo |url=http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82014086/1921-07-27/ed-1/seq-3/#date1=1836&index=3&rows=20&words=GOLFERS+MAYO&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1922&proxtext=golfer+Mayo&y=11&x=18&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 |accessdate=10 May 2015 |newspaper=Norwich Bulletin |location=Norwich, Connecticut |date=27 July 1921}}</ref>

Mitchell was supposed to be the player-captain of Great Britain's first Ryder Cup team in 1927, but was unable to make the voyage to the United States due to appendicitis.<ref name=ryder>[http://www.rydercup.com/2008/europe/history/index.html Ryder Cup History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081113001900/http://www.rydercup.com/2008/europe/history/index.html |date=13 November 2008 }}. rydercup.com</ref> He did play on the next three teams in 1929, 1931, and 1933. Mitchell possibly<ref name=figure/> was Samuel Ryder's personal golf instructor from 1925 at Verulam Golf Club, St Albans.<ref name=who/><ref name=ryder/> The figure on top of the Cup trophy is modeled after Mitchell.<ref name=figure>Prezioso, Andrew (25 September 2014) [http://www.rydercup.com/usa/news/nine-facts-about-ryder-cup-trophy-you-may-not-have-known Nine things to you know about the Ryder Cup trophy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180531201251/http://www.rydercup.com/usa/news/nine-facts-about-ryder-cup-trophy-you-may-not-have-known |date=31 May 2018 }}. rydercup.com</ref>

Mitchell had the lowest round at the 1933 Open Championship at St Andrews, carding a fine 68, and won the Tooting Bec Cup.

==Personal life and death == thumb|Wedding of Mitchell and Deag Mitchell married Dora Deag on 27 November 1920 in Tunbridge Wells.<ref>[http://www.hertfordshire-genealogy.co.uk/data/answers/answers-2012/ans12-030-mitchell.htm Abe MITCHEL (Golfer), St Albans, 1925–1947]. hertfordshire-genealogy.co.uk (September 2012)</ref> He died suddenly in St Albans, England at age 60.<ref name=who/><ref name=nyt/>

==Amateur wins== {{expand list|date=February 2011}} *1910 Golf Illustrated Gold Vase *1913 Golf Illustrated Gold Vase

==Professional wins (29)== {{expand list|date=February 2011}}

===PGA Tour wins (2)=== * 1922 Southern Open (tie with Leo Diegel) * 1924 Miami Open

Source:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Abe Mitchell |url=https://www.pgatour.com/player/17155/abe-mitchell |access-date=2025-09-16 |publisher=PGA Tour}}</ref>

===Other wins (27)=== *1919 St Andrews Tournament ("Victory Open") (tie with George Duncan), News of the World Match Play *1920 McVitie & Price Tournament (tie with James Braid), News of the World Match Play, Kent Professional Championship *1921 McVitie & Price Tournament, Glasgow Herald Tournament *1922 Glasgow Herald Tournament *1925 Daily Dispatch Northern Professional Championship, Evening Standard Tournament *1926 Evening Standard Target Tournament, Roehampton Invitation *1927 Roehampton Invitation, Daily Mail Tournament, Hertfordshire Open Championship *1928 Roehampton Invitation, Ryder Tournament (joint winner with Bill Davies) *1929 Leeds Cup, News of the World Match Play, Irish Open, Selsdon Park Tournament, Hertfordshire Open Championship *1932 Bristol Evening World Tournament, Hertfordshire Open Championship *1934 Dunlop-Southern Tournament, Addington Foursomes (with Rex Hartley), Hertfordshire Open Championship

==Results in major championships== thumb|right|265px|Mitchell, c. 1911, demonstrating proper fairway wood technique – notice the white perpendicular lines drawn to show correct ball placement in the stance. {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;" !Tournament !1910 !1911 !1912 !1913 !1914 !1915 !1916 !1917 !1918 !1919 |- |align=left|U.S. Open |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"|NT |style="background:#eeeeee;"|NT |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |- |align=left|The Open Championship |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |CUT |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |WD |style="background:yellow;"|T4 |style="background:#eeeeee;"|NT |style="background:#eeeeee;"|NT |style="background:#eeeeee;"|NT |style="background:#eeeeee;"|NT |style="background:#eeeeee;"|NT |- |align=left|The Amateur Championship |style="background:yellow;"|SF |style="background:yellow;"|QF |style="background:yellow;"|2 |R128 |– |– |– |– |– |– |} {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;" !Tournament !1920 !1921 !1922 !1923 !1924 !1925 !1926 !1927 !1928 !1929 |- |align=left|U.S. Open |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |WD |T17 |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |- |align=left|The Open Championship |style="background:yellow;"|4 |T13 |19 |style="background:yellow;"|T8 |WD |style="background:yellow;"|5 |style="background:yellow;"|T5 |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |T21 |style="background:yellow;"|T4 |} {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;" !Tournament !1930 !1931 !1932 !1933 !1934 !1935 !1936 !1937 !1938 !1939 |- |align=left|U.S. Open |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |WD |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |- |align=left|The Open Championship |T13 |T12 |style="background:yellow;"|T10 |style="background:yellow;"|T7 |WD |CUT |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |CUT |} ''Note: Mitchell only played in The Open Championship, U.S. Open, and The Amateur Championship.'' {{legend|yellow|Top 10}} {{legend|#eeeeee|Did not play}} NT = No tournament<br> WD = withdrew<br> CUT = missed the half-way cut<br> R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play<br> "T" indicates a tie for a place

Sources: U.S. Open,<ref>[http://champsdatabase.usga.org/ USGA Championship Database] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101221024412/http://champsdatabase.usga.org/ |date=21 December 2010 }}</ref> Open Championship,<ref>[http://www.opengolf.com/en/History/PreviousOpens.aspx?eventid=2003040&view= www.opengolf.com]</ref> Amateur Championship – 1910,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/AmericanGolfer/1910/ag42z.pdf |title=Foreign Notes |magazine=The American Golfer |date=July 1910 |pages=152–8}}</ref> 1911,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC&dat=19110602&printsec=frontpage |title=Golf – The Amateur Championship |newspaper=The Glasgow Herald |date=2 June 1911 |page=9}}</ref> 1912,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/AmericanGolfer/1912/ag83d.pdf |title=The British Amateur Championship |magazine=The American Golfer |date=July 1912 |pages=195–200}}</ref> 1913<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/AmericanGolfer/1913/ag103d.pdf |title=The British Amateur Championship |magazine=The American Golfer |date=July 1913 |pages=220–9 |access-date=31 December 2010 |archive-date=7 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100807143824/http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/AmericanGolfer/1913/ag103d.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Team appearances== '''Amateur''' *England–Scotland Amateur Match (representing England): 1910 (winners), 1911, 1912

'''Professional''' *Great Britain vs USA (representing Great Britain): 1921 (winners), 1926 (winners) *Seniors vs Juniors (representing the Seniors): 1928 (winners) *Ryder Cup (representing Great Britain): 1929 (winners), 1931, 1933 (winners) *England–Scotland Professional Match (representing England): 1932 (winners), 1933 (winners), 1934 (winners)

==References== {{Commons category|Abe Mitchell}} {{reflist}}

{{navboxes|title=Abe Mitchell in the Ryder Cup |list1= {{1929 Great Britain Ryder Cup team}} {{1931 Great Britain Ryder Cup team}} {{1933 Great Britain Ryder Cup team}} }}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Abe}} Category:English male golfers Category:Ryder Cup competitors for Europe Category:Sportspeople from East Grinstead Category:Sportspeople from St Albans Category:1887 births Category:1947 deaths