George Lyall Fotheringham (9 July 1883 – 8 April 1971) was a Scottish-American professional golfer who played in the early 20th century. He won the South African Open five times and was a founding member of the

PGA of America The Professional Golfers' Association of America (PGA of America) is an American organization of golf professionals that was founded in 1916. Consisting of nearly 29,000 men and women members, the PGA of America's undertaking is to establish ...

Early life

Fotheringham was born in

Carnoustie Carnoustie (; sco, Carnoustie, gd, Càrn Ùstaidh) is a town and former police burgh in the council area of Angus, Scotland. It is at the mouth of the Barry Burn on the North Sea coast. In the 2011 census, Carnoustie had a population of 1 ...

, Scotland, on 9 July 1883. As a boy he caddied and apprenticed as a club maker.

Golf career

In 1903 he moved to

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

Colony of Natal The Colony of Natal was a British colony in south-eastern Africa. It was proclaimed a British colony on 4 May 1843 after the British government had annexed the Boer Natalia Republic, Republic of Natalia, and on 31 May 1910 combined with three o ...

and took up a position as professional at the Royal Durban Golf Club and remained there until 1914. He won the South African Open five times, in 1908, 1910, 1911, 1912 and 1914. He finished tied for 13th place in the

1912 Open Championship The 1912 Open Championship was the 52nd Open Championship, held 24–25 June at Muirfield in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland. Ted Ray led wire-to-wire and won the championship, four strokes ahead of runner-up Harry Vardon, the defending champ ...

held at

Muirfield Muirfield is a privately owned golf links which is the home of The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers. Located in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland, overlooking the Firth of Forth, Muirfield is one of the golf courses used in rotation for The ...

. In 1914 he was posted as professional at the Williamsport Country Club in

Williamsport, Pennsylvania Williamsport is a city in, and the county seat of, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. It recorded a population of 27,754 at the 2020 Census. It is the principal city of the Williamsport Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a popul ...

Founding member of PGA of America

He was one of the founding members of the

and played in the first two

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...

tournaments, in 1916 and 1919. The tournament was not held during the war years of 1917 and 1918.

PGA Championship

Fotheringham played in the first two PGA Championship tournaments, held in

1916 Events Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 1 – The British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that had been stored and cooled. * J ...

and

1919 Events January * January 1 ** The Czechoslovak Legions occupy much of the self-proclaimed "free city" of Pressburg (now Bratislava), enforcing its incorporation into the new republic of Czechoslovakia. ** HMY ''Iolaire'' sinks off the ...

. He lost his match in 1916 to

Jim Barnes James Martin Barnes (April 8, 1886 – May 24, 1966) was an English golfer and a leading figure in the early years of professional golf in the United States. He is one of three native Britons (with Tommy Armour and Rory McIlroy) to win three di ...

8 and 7 but defeated

Eddie Loos Edward Wallace Neal Loos (July 31, 1893 – July 9, 1950) was an American professional golfer who played in the early-to-mid 20th century. His best performance in a major golf championship was a T10 finish in the 1924 U.S. Open. He won the ...

8 and 6 in 1919 and finished the event tied for ninth place. He finished second in both the 1920 Philadelphia Open and the 1924

New Jersey Open The New Jersey State Open Championship is the New Jersey state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the New Jersey State Golf Association. It has been played annually since 1921 at a variety of co ...

Death and legacy

He died in

West Long Branch, New Jersey West Long Branch is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 8,097,PGA of America The Professional Golfers' Association of America (PGA of America) is an American organization of golf professionals that was founded in 1916. Consisting of nearly 29,000 men and women members, the PGA of America's undertaking is to establish ...

and for winning the South African Open five times.

Tournament wins (5)

''Note: This list may be incomplete.'' *1908 South African Open *1910 South African Open *1911 South African Open *1912 South African Open *1914 South African Open Source:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fotheringham, George Scottish male golfers American male golfers PGA Tour golfers Golf administrators Scottish emigrants to the United States Golfers from Carnoustie People from West Long Branch, New Jersey Scottish emigrants to South Africa 1883 births 1971 deaths