The 1904 News of the World Match Play was the second News of the World Match Play tournament. It was played from Tuesday 4 to Thursday 6 October at Mid-Surrey Golf Club. 32 players competed in a straight knock-out competition, with each match contested over 18 holes, except for the final which was over 36 holes. The winner received ã100 out of a total prize fund of ã240. J.H. Taylor defeated Alfred Toogood 5 & 3 in the final to win the tournament.
Entry was restricted to members of the Professional Golfers' Association (PGA). Qualification was by a series of 36-hole stroke-play competitions; one for each of the five PGA sections. The Southern section had 16 qualifiers, the Northern section had 6, the Midland 5, the Scottish section 3 and the Irish section 2. In the event of a tie for places there was a playoff. Compared to 1903 the Northern section had one additional qualifier and the Scottish section one less.
The qualifiers were:
The format was unchanged. Matches were over 18 holes except for the final which was over 36 holes. Extra holes were played in the event of a tied match. Two rounds were played on the first day, two more on the second day with the final on the third day.
Source:
w/o = Walkover
Prize money was increased to ã240 with the addition of 8 ã5 prizes for the losers in the second round. The winner received ã100 and a gold medal, the runner-up ã30 and a silver medal, the losing semi-finalists ã15 and a bronze medal, while the third round losers received ã10 and the second round losers received ã5.