Graham Henning was a South African professional golfer. Henning was born into a golfing family. His brothers Allan, Brian, and Harold all became professional golfers. In addition, his son

Nic Henning Nic Henning (born 26 April 1969) is a South African professional golfer. Professional career Henning states he had "no choice" but to become a professional golfer as he was born into a big golfing family; his father, Graham Henning, and three ...

is a professional golfer. In the late 1960s and early 70s Henning was briefly one of the top golfers in South Africa. He recorded several 1st and 2nd place finishes in top international events across Europe and Africa. This excellent play helped him qualify for South Africa's 1969 World Cup team.

Professional career

Henning's first top performance on the international stage was at the 1967

Engadine Open The Engadine Open was a golf tournament in Switzerland from 1962 to the late 1960s. The event was played at Engadine Golf Club near St. Moritz St. Moritz (also german: Sankt Moritz, rm, , it, San Maurizio, french: Saint-Moritz) is a high Alpi ...

. After opening with an even par 70 Henning fired consecutive rounds of 67 and 66 to get into contention. As the final round started he was at −7, one back of Australia's

Randall Vines Randall Vines (born 6 June 1945) is an Australian professional golfer. Vines was one of the top Australian golfers of his generation, winning a number of worldwide tournaments. He may be best remembered for his sterling 1968 season which included ...

. Henning fired an astonishing final round 62 to outplay Vines by 11 and win by 10 strokes. Two years later, in 1969, he would play excellently on the international circuit. In February, he won the 1969

General Motors Open The General Motors Open was a golf tournament on the Southern Africa Tour from 1966 to 1975. The event was held at Wedgewood Golf Club in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Gary Player won the event four times. It was also the site of Peter Oosterhui ...

at the Wedgewood Golf Course in

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, S ...

, South Africa. He defeated compatriot Hugh Inggs by two shots. A month later he nearly won again on the South African circuit. He held the 36-hole lead at the Rhodesian Masters before shooting a "disastrous" third round 75 (+4) and ultimately finishing one behind, this time losing to Inggs. In June, he tied England's

Alex Caygill Gordon Alexander Caygill (born 24 April 1940) is an English professional golfer. He had considerable early success as a young professional from 1960 to 1963 but then had a lean period, partly due to a stomach ulcer. He made a comeback in the late ...

at the

Martini International The Martini International was a men's professional golf tournament that was held from 1961 to 1983. It was hosted by several different golf clubs in England, Scotland and Wales. It was part of the British PGA tournament circuit, which evolved int ...

on the European circuit. Henning had a chance to win outright but hit his drive in the woods on the last hole and would make bogey. In August, he finished runner-up to Italy's

Roberto Bernardini Roberto Bernardini (born 21 January 1944) is an Italian professional golfer. He represented Italy 9 times in the World Cup between 1966 and 1975. Most of his success came in continental Europe as he won a number of tournaments in his native Ital ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

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 ...

, one stroke behind. His final high finishes were in the early 1970s. In 1971 he would finish a distant runner-up to England's

Peter Oosterhuis Peter Arthur Oosterhuis (born 3 May 1948) is an English 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 ...

at the

Transvaal Open The Transvaal Open was a golf tournament in South Africa. In later years it was a fixture on the South African Sunshine Circuit. Winners * 1911 Laurie Waters * 1912 ''No tournament'' * 1913 Jock Brews * 1914–18 ''No tournament'' * 1919 Laurie W ...

. The following year he would win two team events with brother Harold. After his touring career was over Henning was the club professional at Wanderers for many years.

Professional wins

Southern African circuit wins (5)

*1967 Bata Bush Babes Tournament, Rhodesian Dunlop Masters *1969

*1972 International Better-Ball (with Harold Henning), Ellerines Team Tournament (with Harold Henning)

European circuit win (2)

*1967

*1969

(tied with

)

Team appearances

Professional *

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 South Africa):

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 ** Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

References

South African male golfers 20th-century South African people {{SouthAfrica-sport-stub