Francis Patrick Eyre (c. 1898 – 1 September 1974) was an Australian professional golfer. He won the 1926 Sun-Herald Tournament and the 1930
Australian Open
The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
.
Early life
Eyre was the son of Edward "Happy" Eyre, a life-saver at Manly beach and rugby union player. Frank Eyre himself was also a rugby union player in the early 1920s. He became the professional at Long Reef Golf Club,
Collaroy, New South Wales
Collaroy is a suburb in northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Collaroy is 22 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Northern Beaches Council. It is part of the ...
The Australian Golf Club
The Australian Golf Club is a golf club located in Rosebery, a suburb of Sydney, Australia. Although it survived numerous course location changes, it is arguably the oldest golf club in Australia. To date the course has held 20 Australian Open ...
, beat Arthur Le Fevre 6&5 in the final. He won the first prize of £195 and a gold medal valued at £5. The event was widely regarded as the professional championship of Australia. Eyre had qualified for the final stages in 1925 at
Royal Melbourne Golf Club
Royal Melbourne Golf Club is a 36-hole golf club in Australia, located in Black Rock, Victoria, a suburb southeast of Melbourne. Its West and East courses are respectively ranked number 1 and 6 in Australia. The West course is ranked in the to ...
, losing to Tom Howard, the eventual winner, in the quarter finals.
Eyre won the 1930
Queensland Open
The Queensland Open originally called the Queensland Championships and also known as the Queensland Lawn Tennis Championships and the Queensland State Championships was a tennis tournament played in Brisbane, Australia, from 1888 to 1994. Th ...
, beating
Harry Sinclair
Harry Alan Sinclair (born 1959) is a New Zealand film director, writer and actor. In his early career he was an actor and member of The Front Lawn, a musical theater duo. He went on to write and direct several short films, a TV series and thr ...
in playoff at Royal Queensland. He had been runner-up in the event in 1926. Eyre won the 1930
Australian Open
The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, finishing 7 strokes ahead of the runners-up, amateur
George Fawcett
George Fawcett (August 25, 1860 – June 6, 1939) was an American stage and film actor of the silent era.
Biography
Born in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1860, Fawcett graduated from the University of Virginia. His initial inclination was to ...
and
Rufus Stewart
William Rufus Clyde Stewart (27 September 1893 – 23 April 1964) was an Australian professional golfer. He won the 1927 Australian Open and the 1929 Australian Professional Championship. In 1928 he travelled to Britain and America, playing in ...
. It was the first to be held at the
Metropolitan Golf Club
The Metropolitan Golf Club is one of the renowned sandbelt courses of Melbourne and is widely recognised as one of the finest championship courses in Australia. It is located in Oakleigh South, in the city's south-eastern suburbs, approximately ...
and Eyre was the first to be presented with the Stonehaven Cup, presented by
Lord Stonehaven
John Lawrence Baird of Urie, 1st Viscount Stonehaven, 1st Baron Stonehaven, 2nd Baronet, 3rd of Ury, (27 April 1874 – 20 August 1941) was a British politician who served as the eighth Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1925 to 19 ...
, the
Governor-General of Australia
The governor-general of Australia is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in Australia.Dunlop Cup, beating Tom Heard in the final.
Later life
In 1963, Eyre retired as professional at Long Reef Golf Club, having been the professional there for over 40 years. He died on 1 September 1974, aged 76.
Queensland Open
The Queensland Open originally called the Queensland Championships and also known as the Queensland Lawn Tennis Championships and the Queensland State Championships was a tennis tournament played in Brisbane, Australia, from 1888 to 1994. Th ...
,
Australian Open
The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
Vicars Shield
The Vicars Shield was a professional team golf competition between the states of Australia. It was first played in 1930 and continued as an interstate event until 1956. It was the professional equivalent of the amateur Australian Men's Interstate ...
(representing New South Wales): 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933 (winners)