Golfer Ken Brown
Full name: Kenneth John Brown
Date and place of birth: January 9, 1957, in Harpenden, England
Significant Wins
- 1978 Irish Open
- 1983 Dutch Open
- 1984 Glasgow Open
- 1985 Four Stars National Pro-Celebrity
- 1987 Southern Open
Brown won four official events on the European Tour. The Southern Open win listed above was his lone victory on the U.S. PGA Tour.
In the Majors
Ken Brown never won a major championship. His best finish was a tie for sixth place at the 1980 British Open. That was Brown's only Top 10 finish in a major.
Notable Notes: Although born in England, Ken Brown always played under the Scottish flag. After success as a youth international player and a win in the 1974 Hertfordshire Open, Brown turned pro in 1975.
Great things were expected of Brown as a player, and he had some successes. He had four finishes in the Top 10 of the European Tour's Order of Merit by the time he was 26. But he never had another.
And while Brown earned places on five European Ryder Cup teams, he became best-known, perhaps, for various eccentricities. For example, in his early years on tour he dressed frumpily and putted with a hickory-shafted putter. Brown's nickname was "The Walking 1-Iron" because he was so thin in his younger days.
Brown would sometimes refuse to speak to partners in team matches, or to amateur players in pro-ams. And he was a painfully slow player. Paired in the final group at the 1980 British Open with Tom Watson, Brown's glacial playing style caused them to finish three holes behind the next-to-last group.
Brown's greatest success was winning the Southern Open on the PGA Tour in 1987. It was also his final win. He retired from competitive golf in his mid-30s due to injuries.
Post-playing days, Brown worked for the BBC as a golf broadcaster, and later worked for American broadcast networks, too. ... He played on Team Europe in the Ryder Cup in 1977, 1979, 1983, 1985 and 1987. ... His Ryder Cup record was 4-9-0. ... Brown represented Scotland in the World Cup in 1977, 1978, 1979 and 1983.
