Donald Swaelens (1935 – 25 April 1975) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

Golf career

Like his father Jules, Swaelens made his career as a club professional at Royal Latem Golf Club. He also worked as a touring professional, intermittently playing on the European circuit. He won the 1966

Woodlawn Tournament The Woodlawn International Invitational was a men's professional golf tournament held at Woodlawn Golf Course on the Ramstein Air Base, near Ramstein-Miesenbach in West Germany between 1958 and 1968. It was usually held the week following the Ger ...

, played at the

Ramstein Air Base Ramstein Air Base or Ramstein AB is a United States Air Force base in Rhineland-Palatinate, a state in southwestern Germany. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA) and also ...

in West Germany, the 1967 German Open, and the 1971

Agfa-Gevaert Tournament The Agfa-Gevaert Tournament was a golf tournament in England from 1963 to 1971. It was played at Stoke Poges Golf Club in Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire. It was sponsored by Agfa-Gevaert Agfa-Gevaert N.V. (Agfa) is a Belgian-German multinatio ...

, also in West Germany. In 1972, Swaelens joined the

European Tour The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...

during its inaugural season. In 1973, he finished tied for second, with

Dale Hayes Dale Hayes (born 1 July 1952) is a South African professional golfer. Career outline Hayes won the 15–17 Boys category at the Junior World Golf Championships in 1969. He turned professional the following year and quickly became a successful p ...

, in the Viyella PGA Championship held at Wentworth, three shots behind

Peter Oosterhuis Peter Arthur Oosterhuis (born 3 May 1948) is an English professional golfer and golf broadcaster. Oosterhuis played on the European circuit from 1969 to 1974, winning 10 tournaments and taking the Harry Vardon Trophy for heading the Order of Mer ...

. This would be the best finish of the his European Tour career. In 1974, he finished third in the Dutch Open at Koninklijke Haagsche Golf & Country Club. He also finished T-7 at that year's

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

, the best finish of his career at a major championship. Until

Nicolas Colsaerts Nicolas Colsaerts (born 14 November 1982) is a Belgian professional golfer currently playing on the European Tour and previously on the PGA Tour. Early life Colsaerts, also known as "The Belgian Bomber", was born in Schaerbeek, Belgium. Coming ...

played in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

, he was the only Belgian golfer to be invited to the

Masters Tournament The Masters Tournament (usually referred to as simply The Masters, or the U.S. Masters outside North America) is one of the four major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week of April, the Masters is the first maj ...

, although the cancer prevented him from taking part. Swaelens died two weeks after the 1975 Masters Tournament at the age of 39 from cancer.

Memorial Tournament

The Donald Swaelens Memorial (later called the Donald Swaelens Challenge) is played each year celebrating his memory. The tournament was originally an 8-man professional tournament sponsored by

Laurent-Perrier Laurent-Perrier () is a Champagne house founded in 1812. It is the main company of the Laurent-Perrier Group, whose other flagship brands include the houses of Salon, De Castellane and Delamotte. Laurent-Perrier Group also acquired Chateau Ma ...

but is now an amateur tournament. Winners of the trophy include: *1976

Seve Ballesteros Severiano Ballesteros Sota (; 9 April 1957 – 7 May 2011) was a Spanish professional golfer, a World No. 1 who was one of the sport's leading figures from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. A member of a gifted golfing family, he won 90 inte ...

*1977

Nick Faldo Sir Nicholas Alexander Faldo, (born 18 July 1957) is an English retired professional golfer and television commentator. A top player of his era, renowned for his dedication to the game, he was ranked No. 1 on the Official World Golf Ranking for ...

*1978

*1993

Lara Tadiotto Lara may refer to: Places * Lara (state), a state in Venezuela *Electoral district of Lara, an electoral district in Victoria, Australia * Lara, Antalya, an urban district in Turkey * Lara, Victoria, a township in Australia * Lara de los Inf ...

*1995

Arnaud Langenaeken Arnaud may refer to: People * Arnaud (given name) or Arnauld (formerly Arnoul), the French form of the German given name Arnold * Arnaud (surname) or Arnauld (formerly Arnoul), the French form of the name Arnold * Arnauld family, a noble French f ...

*1998

(when 15 years old)

Professional wins

European circuit wins (4)

*1966

Woodlawn International Invitational The Woodlawn International Invitational was a men's professional golf tournament held at Woodlawn Golf Course on the Ramstein Air Base, near Ramstein-Miesenbach in West Germany between 1958 and 1968. It was usually held the week following the Ge ...

, Omnium International d'Evian *1967 German Open *1971

Other wins (9)

*1958

Gleneagles Hotel Foursomes Tournament The Gleneagles Hotel Foursomes Tournament was a pro-am golf tournament played at the Gleneagles Hotel, Auchterarder, Perthshire, Scotland. The event was held annually from 1953 to 1966. From 1953 to 1957 it was called the Gleneagles-Saxone Foursom ...

(with Ian McDonald) *1966

Memorial Olivier Barras The Mémorial Olivier Barras is a professional golf tournament that is held annually at Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club in Crans-Montana, Valais, Switzerland. It was founded in 1965 in memory of Olivier Barras, a nine-time Swiss champion golfer who di ...

*1967 Omnium of Belgium,

*1969 Omnium of Belgium *1970 Omnium of Belgium *1971 Omnium of Belgium *1972 Omnium of Belgium *1973 Omnium of Belgium

Results in major championships

''Note: Swaelens only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1968 and 1970)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

(representing Belgium):

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 ...

, 1962,

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cov ...

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

, 1969,

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

Joy Cup The Joy Cup was an annual men's professional team golf competition between teams representing the British Isles and the Rest of Europe. It was played from 1954 to 1958. The British Isles won all four contests that were played. The trophy was provi ...

(representing the Rest of Europe): 1958 *

Double Diamond International The Double Diamond International was a team golf tournament that was played from 1971 to 1977. It was hosted in England for the first three years, and then in Scotland. From 1974 and 1977 the event was preceded by an individual 36-hole stroke pla ...

(representing Continental Europe): 1972, 1973, 1974 (captain) *

Marlboro Nations' Cup The Philip Morris International was a professional team golf tournament, played from 1972 and 1976. The 1972 and 1973 tournaments were called the Marlboro Nations' Cup. There was no tournament in 1974 but the event was played in 1975 and 1976 under ...

(representing Belgium): 1972, 1973 * Sotogrande Match (representing the Continent of Europe): 1974

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Swaelens, Donald Belgian male golfers European Tour golfers Sportspeople from East Flanders People from Sint-Martens-Latem 1935 births 1975 deaths