James Francis O’Grady Bruen (8 May 1920 – 3 May 1972) was an Irish amateur golfer. He won the 1946

Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship (sometimes referred to as the British Amateur or British Amateur Championship outside the UK) is a golf tournament which has been held annually in the United Kingdom since 1885 except during the two World Wars, and in 19 ...

and was in the British

Walker Cup The Walker Cup is a golf trophy contested in odd-numbered years by leading male amateur golfers in two teams: United States, and Great Britain and Ireland. The official name is the Walker Cup Match (not "Matches" as in Ryder Cup Matches). It is ...

team in 1938, 1949 and 1951. He is regarded as one of Ireland's leading amateur golfers.

Early life

Bruen was born in

Finaghy Finaghy ( or ; ) is an electoral ward in the Balmoral district of Belfast City Council, Northern Ireland. It is based on the townland of Ballyfinaghy ().Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, Northern Ireland on 8 May 1920. He moved to

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

at an early age. He was educated at the Presentation Brothers College, Cork.

Golf career

As a 15-year-old Bruen entered the 1935

Boys Amateur Championship The Boys Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which is held annually in the United Kingdom. The competition is organised and run by The R&A. History The Boys Amateur Championship was first played at Royal Ascot in 1921. In 1921 boys had to ...

Royal Aberdeen Golf Club Royal Aberdeen Golf Club in Aberdeen, Scotland, was founded in 1780 and claims to be the sixth oldest golf club in the world. It was founded as the Society of Golfers at Aberdeen, and became the Aberdeen Golf Club in 1815 subsequently receiving r ...

but lost his first match. He entered again the following year at Birkdale Golf Club. He only won his first round match at the 19th hole but won his next five matches more comfortably to reached the final, where he met a Scot, William Innes. The 36-hole was very one-sided. Bruen was 7 up after 9 holes and remained 7 up at the end of the morning round. Bruen continued to dominate in the afternoon and eventually won 11&9, to become the first Irish winner of the championship. In May 1937 Bruen travelled to

Royal St George's Golf Club The Royal St George's Golf Club located in Sandwich, Kent, England, is a golf club in the United Kingdom and one of the courses on The Open Championship rotation and is the only Open rota golf course to be located in South East England. It has ...

for his first

. Prior to main event he was runner-up in the St George's Vase and, the following day, in the Prince of Wales Cup. In the Amateur Championship, three day later, he met American

Dick Chapman Richard Davol Chapman (March 23, 1911 – November 15, 1978) was an American amateur golfer. ''Time'' magazine crowned Chapman "the Ben Hogan of amateur golf". Chapman was born in Greenwich, Connecticut. He was the 1940 U.S. Amateur golf ch ...

in his first match and lost 2&1. In June, Bruen won the Irish Amateur Close Championship at Ballybunion Golf Club, beating five-times champion, John Burke, in the final. In July, he played in the Irish Open and finished as leading amateur, tied for 6th place. Bruen chose not to play in the

but was selected for the Irish team in the annual amateur international matches, which took place in early September. He then played in the

Irish Amateur Open Championship The Irish Amateur Open Championship is an amateur golf tournament held annually in Ireland and organised by the Golf Ireland. The championship has been played as a 72-hole stroke-play event since 1958. Previously it was played as a match-play to ...

but lost in the first round to J A Flaherty. The early part of 1938 was dominated by the

. Trials were arranged in early May, at which Bruen performed exceptionally well and he was selected for the event in early June at St Andrews. Bruen missed the

in late May. In the Walker Cup foursomes he played with Harry Bentley in the first match. They were 3 down at lunch but recovered to halve the match. On the second day Bruen was again out first against

Charlie Yates Charles Richardson Yates (September 9, 1913 – October 17, 2005) was an American amateur golfer. He is noted for winning the 1938 Amateur Championship, captaining the United States Walker Cup team and being the long-time Secretary of Augusta Nat ...

, who had won the Amateur Championship the previous week. Bruen was again 3 down at lunch and eventually lost 2&1. Despite Bruen's disappointment the match was won 7–4 by the British team with one match halved. This was their first win in the Walker Cup after 9 defeats and they wouldn't win again until 1971. Later in the month, Bruen successfully defended the Irish Amateur Close Championship at Castle Golf Club, beating Redmond Simcox 3&2 in the final. In July Bruen entered 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 ...

for the first time. He qualified comfortably with rounds of 73 and 76. In the first round at

he scored 70 to be joint leader but took 80 on the second day. At the time 36 holes were played on the final day and the field was restricted to a maximum of 40. Bruen was tied for 43rd and missed the cut. Later in the month he played in the Irish Open and again finished as leading amateur, tied for 10th place. In the

in September he won most of his matches comfortably and beat James Mahon 9&8 in the 36-hole final, becoming the first golfer to win both Irish Amateur titles in the same year since 1911. Bruen played in the 1939

Royal Liverpool Golf Club The Royal Liverpool Golf Club is a golf club in Wirral in Merseyside, England. It was founded in 1869 on what was then the racecourse of the Liverpool Hunt Club. It received the "Royal" designation in 1871 due to the patronage of the Duke of ...

. He reached the quarter-final where he lost to eventual winner Alex Kyle. In a close match Kyle was 1 up as they reached the final hole, Kyle having won the long 16th with a birdie 4. Kyle put his second shot into a bunker 40 yards from the hole while Bruen was 10 to 12 feet from the hole in two. Kyle then played from under the lip of the bunker to 4 feet and also stymied Bruen. Bruen two-putted and Kyle holed his putt for the match. In the Irish Amateur Close Championship at Rosses Point Golf Club the following month, Bruen again lost at the quarter-final stage, beaten by eventual winner Gerry Owens. In July Bruen played in the

at St Andrews. In qualifying he had two rounds of 69 on the Old and New Courses to lead the field by 4 strokes. In the Championship itself he had steady rounds of 72-75-75-76 and finished in a tie for 13th place, the leading amateur, despite a 9 at the 6th hole of the final round. In the Irish Open two weeks later, Bruen led after rounds of 66 and 74. On the final day he scored 75 and 81 to drop into 6th place, leading amateur for the third successive year. With the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

important amateur events in the United Kingdom came to a stop. The Irish Amateur Close Championship was held in 1940 with Bruen losing at the last-16 stage. Thereafter both the Open and Close events were cancelled, resuming in 1946, although some domestic Irish events continued. Bruen won the first

after the war at Birkdale Golf Club, beating the 1937 champion

Robert Sweeny Jr. Robert John Vincent Sweeny Jr. (July 25, 1911 – October 21, 1983) was an American amateur golfer, socialite, businessman and Second World War Royal Air Force bomber pilot. He competed in all four men's major golf championships, including many M ...

4&3 in the 36-hole final. He was the first Irishman to win the title. Such was his power that he broke three iron clubs during the week. Because of work commitments Bruen didn't play in any of the other major events of the season. In early 1947 Bruen damaged his wrist. He withdrew from consideration for the

1947 Walker Cup The 1947 Walker Cup, the 11th Walker Cup Match, was played on 16 and 17 May 1947, on the Old Course at St Andrews, Scotland. The United States won by 8 matches to 4. The match should have been played in the United States; the previous match, in 1 ...

team and played no golf for the remainder of 1947 and for the whole of 1948. He resumed golf in early 1949, playing in the amateur international which were held in May. He also played in the

Golf Illustrated Gold Vase The Golf Illustrated Gold Vase was a prestigious amateur golf tournament in England. It was a 36-hole scratch stroke play Stroke play, also known as medal play, is a scoring system in the sport of golf in which the total number of strokes is co ...

where he tied for 6th after a disappointing second round. Despite withdrawing from the Amateur Championship, he was chosen for the

1949 Walker Cup The 1949 Walker Cup, the 12th Walker Cup Match, was played on August 19 and 20, 1949, on the West course at Winged Foot Golf Club, Mamaroneck, New York. The United States won by 10 matches to 2. Format Four 36-hole matches of foursomes were playe ...

team, to be held at

Winged Foot Golf Club Winged Foot Golf Club is a private golf club in the northeastern United States, located in Mamaroneck, New York, a suburb northeast of New York City. The club was founded in 1921, by a group largely made up of members of The New York Athletic Cl ...

Mamaroneck, New York Mamaroneck ( ) is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Village of M ...

in mid-August. The United States won the match 10–2 with Bruen losing both his matches. Most of the team played in the United States Amateur Championship later in August, Bruen losing in the first round, and they then travelled to Toronto to play an international match before their return home. After the 1949 Walker Cup, Bruen took more time off from golf, only returning for the 1950 amateur internationals, held that year at Royal St David's Golf Club,

Harlech Harlech () is a seaside resort and community in Gwynedd, north Wales and formerly in the historic county of Merionethshire. It lies on Tremadog Bay in the Snowdonia National Park. Before 1966, it belonged to the Meirionydd District of the 19 ...

, in late September. The following week he played in the

Daily Telegraph Foursomes Tournament The Daily Telegraph Foursomes Tournament was a golf tournament played in England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northw ...

Formby Golf Club Formby Golf Club is a golf links in Formby, Merseyside, England. History Founded in 1884, the course was redesigned by Willie Park Jr. in 1912. Over the years the course has undergone some changes, including some in 1922 by James Braid. Major ...

. 32 professionals and 32 leading amateurs were invited and drawn into pairs, Bruen being paired with

Wally Smithers Walter Douglas Smithers (25 August 1904 – 27 January 1993) was an English professional golfer. He tied for 8th place in the 1949 Open Championship. Golf career Smithers was assistant professional at Royal Ottawa Golf Club from 1928 to 1935. ...

. They reached the final where they beat Bill Branch and the Welsh amateur

Mervyn Jones Mervyn Thomas Jones (born 23 November 1942) is a British diplomat who was Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands The Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands is the representative of the British monarch in the United Kingdom's British Ove ...

4&2. In April 1951 Bruen took part in the trials for the

. He did well enough to be selected for the 10-man team. Bruen was paired with John Llewellyn Morgan of Wales in the foursomes. Bruen had a recurrence of his wrist injury during the match. The match was close until the 8th hole on the afternoon round but, with Bruen's wrist getting worse, the American pair then won 6 holes in a row to win 5&4. Bruen withdrew from the singles. The

1951 Walker Cup The 1951 Walker Cup, the 13th Walker Cup Match, was played on 11 and 12 May 1951, at Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, Lancashire, England. The United States won by 6 matches to 3 with 3 matches halved. Format Four 36-hole matches of foursomes ...

effectively marked the end of Bruen's competitive career. He made attempts to return, entering the Amateur Championship in 1953 and 1954 but withdrawing on both occasions.

Personal life

Bruen married Eleanor Cremin in 1945 and had six children. He ran a successful insurance broking business of James Bruen and Sons Ltd in Cork. Bruen died from a heart attack in

Bon Secours Hospital, Cork The Bon Secours Hospital, Cork is a private hospital in Cork, Ireland. The hospital is part of Bon Secours Mercy Health. This includes sister hospitals in Dublin, Galway, Limerick and Tralee. The hospital has over 18,000 admissions and 29,000 o ...

on 3 May 1972, five days short of his 52nd birthday.

Amateur wins

*1936

*1937 Irish Amateur Close Championship *1938

, Irish Amateur Close Championship *1946

The Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship (sometimes referred to as the British Amateur or British Amateur Championship outside the UK) is a golf tournament which has been held annually in the United Kingdom since 1885 except during the two World Wars, and in 19 ...

*1950

(with

)

Major championships

Wins (1)

Results timeline

''Note: Bruen only played in the Amateur Championship, the Open Championship and the U.S. Amateur.''
LA = Low amateur
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R256, R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

(representing Great Britain): 1938 (winners), 1949,

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bruen, Jimmy Irish male golfers Amateur golfers Sportspeople from Belfast 1920 births 1972 deaths