Prior to 1979, the British Open Singles Championship was awarded to the winner of the
Prince's Club Shield, including after the dissolution of the Prince's Club in 1940. The championship was held as a challenge event, where an event was only held should the incumbent title holder be challenged, as such it was not held annually. After the 1979 Championship between
Howard Angus and
Chris Ronaldson in a combined challenge for the
World Championship, it was agreed that the British Open would continue as an annual event and that the World Championship would remain a challenge event. ==Ladies singles==