Longtime PGA member Ball, who played in 1st Masters, dies at 103

STUART, Fla. – Samuel Henry "Errie" Ball, who played in the first Masters, died Wednesday. The English golf pro was 103.

Ball's daughter, Leslie Adams Gogerty, says her father died at Martin Hospital South in Stuart, Florida. Ball was most recently director of golf at Willoughby Golf Club in Stuart.

He was a PGA of America member for 83 years, which the organization says is a membership record. Ball was inducted into the PGA Golf Professional Hall of Fame in 2011.

Ball played in the first Augusta National Invitation Tournament in 1934, which later became the Masters. He also competed in 19 Senior PGA Championships and shared second place in the 1962 tournament.

Gogerty says her father, born in Wales, was encouraged to come to the United States by golf great Bobby Jones.