William Gordon Cunningham (1934 – 8 November 1989) was a Scottish

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 ...

. He won the 1969

Scottish Professional Championship The Scottish Professional Championship was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament which was open only for Scottish players. The final champion was John Higgins. History The Scottish Professional Championship was held in Edinburgh in Dece ...

. He played 11 times in the

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 ...

, making the cut six times including five times in succession between 1965 and 1969.

Professional career

Cunningham was an assistant at Royal Wimbledon from the late-1950s until 1960. He had a top-10 finish in the 1958

Coombe Hill Assistants' Tournament The Coombe Hill Assistants' Tournament was a professional golf tournament for assistant professionals played from 1951 to 1964. History The Coombe Hill Club had held a 36-hole tournament for southern assistants for a few years before 1951. Howev ...

. In 1959 and 1960 he qualified for the

, but missed the cut on both occasions. Cunningham was then at Sandy Lane in

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

until the mid-1960s. He made a number of appearances in British events in this period. He qualified for the

in 1963, 1964 and 1965, making the cut for the first time in 1965. In 1965 he was tied for fourth place in the

Gallaher Ulster Open The Gallaher Ulster Open was a professional golf tournament that was played in Northern Ireland between 1965 and 1971. It was last played the year prior to the formation of the formally organised professional tour which evolved into the Europea ...

. Cunningham returned to Scotland in 1966 as the professional at Stranraer, enabling him to play more events on the British circuit. In May 1966 he made a good start to the season with a top-20 finish in the

Swallow-Penfold Tournament The Penfold Tournament was a golf tournament on the British PGA tournament circuit. Since the circuit later evolved into the European Tour, the tournament is recognised as an official European Tour event from 1972. It was played between 1932 and ...

and was then tied for third place in the

Blaxnit (Ulster) Tournament The Blaxnit (Ulster) Tournament was a golf tournament played in Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the isl ...

behind

Tony Jacklin Anthony Jacklin CBE (born 7 July 1944) is a retired English golfer. He was the most successful British player of his generation, winning two major championships, the 1969 Open Championship and the 1970 U.S. Open. He was also Ryder Cup captain ...

. In July he again made the cut in the

and the following week was sixth in the

French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...

, the leading British player. In late August he was tied for fourth place in the

Carroll's International The Carroll's International was a professional golf tournament played in the Republic of Ireland from 1963 to 1974. It was part of the British PGA tournament circuit, which evolved into the European Tour, and as such is recognised as an official ...

. In 1967 Cunningham finished tied for 31st place in the Open, his best finish. He had some success in the Shell Winter Tournament in late 1967, finishing tied for first place with Eric Brown in one of the semi-finals. In 1968 Cunningham moved to Troon Municipal where he was the professional until his death in 1989. In May 1968, the week before his move, he finished tied for third place in the

Penfold Tournament The Penfold Tournament was a golf tournament on the British PGA tournament circuit. Since the circuit later evolved into the European Tour, the tournament is recognised as an official European Tour event from 1972. It was played between 1932 and ...

, just a stroke behind the winner. In June Cunningham played in the

for the first time, finishing third behind Eric Brown, and the following month he won the Cutty Sark Tournament at Pollok. Cunningham was the joint winner, with Brian Barnes, of the

Tooting Bec Cup The Tooting Bec Cup is a trophy currently awarded by the Professional Golfers' Association of Great Britain and Ireland to the association member born in, or with a parent or parents born in, the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland who returns ...

for his second round of 70 in the 1968 Open Championship at

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 11,3 ...

, awarded by the PGA for the lowest round by a British or Irish professional. He had had an opening round of 80 but his round of 70 enabled him to make the cut and he finished tied for 35th place. In 1969 Cunningham won the Scottish Professional Championship at

Machrihanish Machrihanish ( gd, Machaire Shanais, ) is a village in Argyll, on the west coast of Scotland. It is a short distance north of the tip of the Mull of Kintyre, which faces out towards Northern Ireland and the Atlantic. Machrihanish bay The main ...

and later in the year won the Scottish Uniroyal Tournament at the Bruntsfield Links. He also made the cut in the Open Championship for the fifth successive year. Cunningham had a top-10 finish in the 1970 John Player Classic, the richest ever tournament in Britain. He won £1,175, the largest prize of his career. In 1971 he was a joint runner-up in the

Penfold-Bournemouth Tournament The Penfold Tournament was a golf tournament on the British PGA tournament circuit. Since the circuit later evolved into the European Tour, the tournament is recognised as an official European Tour event from 1972. It was played between 1932 and ...

, four strokes behind

Neil Coles Neil Chapman Coles, MBE (born 26 September 1934) is an English professional golfer. Coles had a successful career in European golf, winning 29 important tournaments between 1956 and 1982. After reaching 50, he won a further 14 important Seniors ...

. In 1972 Cunningham qualified for the Open Championship for the last time, equalling his best-ever finish, tied for 31st place. Later in the year he was selected for the 8-man Scottish team in the

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 ...

. Cunningham played on the European Tour in its augural season, 1972, with little success. He played less in 1973 and then only occasionally in tour events. He reached the last-16 of the

Piccadilly Medal The Piccadilly Medal was a men's professional golf tournament on the British PGA tournament circuit that was played in 1962 and from 1964 to 1976. Since the circuit later evolved into the European Tour, the tournament is recognised as an official ...

in 1973, before losing to

Jimmy Kinsella James J. Kinsella (born 25 May 1939) is an Irish professional golfer. Kinsella played on the European Tour in the 1970s, winning the 1972 Madrid Open. He played on the European Seniors Tour in its first three seasons, 1992–94. Professional wi ...

Personal life

Cunningham died on 8 November 1989, at the age of 55.

Professional wins (3)

*1968 Cutty Sark Tournament *1969

, Scottish Uniroyal Tournament

Results in major championships

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

Team appearances

(representing Scotland): 1972

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Gordon Scottish male golfers People from Ardrossan People from Troon 1934 births 1989 deaths