Peter Alliss (28 February 1931 – 5 December 2020) was 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 earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...
, television presenter, commentator, author and
golf course designer
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". Th ...
. Following the death of
Henry Longhurst
Henry Carpenter Longhurst (18 March 1909 – 21 July 1978) was a British golf writer and commentator. For 45 years, he was golfing correspondent of the '' Sunday Times''. During World War II, Longhurst was also a member of parliament (MP) for Ac ...
in 1978, he was regarded by many as the "Voice of golf". In 2012 he was inducted into the
World Golf Hall of Fame
The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site honors both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 go ...
in the Lifetime Achievement category.
Between 1952 and 1969, Alliss won 20 professional tournaments, including three
British PGA Championship
The BMW PGA Championship is an annual men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour. It was founded in 1955 by the Professional Golfers' Association, and originally called the British PGA Championship.
History
The BMW PGA Championship ...
s, in 1957, 1962 and 1965. He had five top-10 finishes 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 ...
, coming closest in 1954 at
Royal Birkdale
Royal Birkdale Golf Club is a golf course in the United Kingdom in North West England, located in Southport, Merseyside. It is one of the clubs in the rotation for both the Open Championship and Women's British Open and has hosted the Open Champ ...
when he finished four shots behind the champion
Peter Thomson Peter Thomson may refer to:
* Peter Thomson (golfer) (1929–2018), Australian golfer
* Peter Thomson (diplomat) (born 1948), Fiji's Permanent Representative to the United Nations
* Peter Thomson (footballer) (born 1977), English footballer
* Peter ...
.
Alliss played on eight
Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...
teams between 1953 and 1969 with a record of 10 wins, 15 losses and 5 halved matches. He played on Great Britain's victorious
1957 Ryder Cup Team. Peter and his father
Percy
The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use ...
were the first father and son to both participate in and both win the Ryder Cup. Alliss also represented England in the
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 ...
on 10 occasions.
Early life
Alliss's father
Percy
The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use ...
was one of the leading British professional golfers in the 1920s and 1930s, winning many tournaments in Britain and Continental Europe. Peter Alliss was born in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
while his father was employed as a club professional at the
Wannsee
Wannsee () is a locality in the southwestern Berlin borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Germany. It is the westernmost locality of Berlin. In the quarter there are two lakes, the larger ''Großer Wannsee'' (Greater Wannsee, "See" means lake) and the ...
Golf Club. He weighed at birth, reputed to be a European record at the time.
Peter had an older brother, Percy Alexander, known as Alec. Alec was born in 1924 and was also a professional golfer.
Percy returned from Germany in early 1932, when Peter was about a year old. Peter attended a private boarding school in the south of England
which he left at the age of 14, the minimum school leaving age.
Playing career
In 1946, Alliss played golf for England boys against Scotland, winning both his foursomes and singles matches. In the subsequent
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 ...
, Alliss was the favourite but lost in the quarter-finals to Donald Dunstan from Manchester at the 19th hole.
Alliss turned professional in 1947, at the age of 16, as an assistant to his father at
Ferndown
Ferndown is a town and civil parish in Dorset in southern England, immediately to the north of Bournemouth and Poole. The parish, which until 1972 was called ''Hampreston'', includes the communities of Hampreston, Longham, Stapehill and Trick ...
Golf Club in
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...
. Peter and Percy travelled to the
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 ...
in
Hoylake
Hoylake is a coast, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is at the north west of the Wirral Peninsula, near West Kirby and where the River Dee, Wales, River Dee meets the Irish Sea. Historic counties of En ...
to play in the
1947 Open Championship. Peter scored 86 in his first qualifying round on the Championship course and failed to qualify. Percy also struggled on the Hoylake course and failed to qualify by a stroke after rounds of 74 and 82.
In 1948, Alliss impressed in the
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 ...
but came to more prominence in the
Manchester Evening Chronicle Tournament where his 69 was the only score under 70 on the final day. He finished tied for 9th and won the assistants' prize. He also won the assistant's prize in the West of England Championship. The
PGA Assistants' Championship was restarted in 1949 and Alliss finished tied for 2nd place, five strokes behind
Harry Weetman
Harry Weetman (25 October 1920 – 19 July 1972) was an English professional golfer.
Weetman won many tournaments on the British PGA circuit in the pre-European Tour era and won the Harry Vardon Trophy for lowest stroke average in 1952 and 1956. ...
, 10 years his senior.
From June 1949 to June 1951, Alliss served two years'
National Service
National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939.
The ...
in the
RAF
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
. This limited his golfing activities although he did play in a few tournaments during this period.
In 1952, Alliss finished tied for 5th place in the
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 ...
, qualifying him for the
Gor-Ray Cup, the Assistants' Championship, from 20 to 22 May. He won three of his four matches comfortably but only beat John Vamplew at the 21st hole in the quarter-finals. In the 36-hole final he beat Tony Harman 5&4.
Alliss had a slow start to the 1953 season but had a good July, finishing tied for 9th 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 ...
and third in the
Irish Open. In mid-August, Alliss was included in a group of 17 from which the
Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...
team would be chosen. The
PGA arranged a series of trial matches at Wentworth starting on 23 September, and Alliss performed well enough that he was included in the team which was announced on 26 September. Alliss was just 22 years old, the second youngest British Ryder Cup player at that time, a few months older than
Henry Cotton in
1929
This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...
. Alliss was paired with
Harry Weetman
Harry Weetman (25 October 1920 – 19 July 1972) was an English professional golfer.
Weetman won many tournaments on the British PGA circuit in the pre-European Tour era and won the Harry Vardon Trophy for lowest stroke average in 1952 and 1956. ...
in the opening day foursomes but lost 2&1. Late on the final day, all matches had been completed except for the two singles matches involving Alliss against
Jim Turnesa
James R. Turnesa (December 9, 1912 – August 27, 1971) was an American professional golfer and winner of the 1952 PGA Championship, beating Chick Harbert 1-up in the match-play final. He was one of seven famous golfing brothers; Phil (1896–19 ...
and 23-year-old
Bernard Hunt
Bernard John Hunt, MBE (2 February 1930 – 21 June 2013) was an English professional golfer.
Hunt was born in Atherstone, Warwickshire. He turned professional in 1946 and was a leading player on the European circuit in the 1950s and 1960s. ...
against
Dave Douglas. The British team needed 1½ points from these two matches to win the Ryder Cup or a point to tie. Alliss had gone 1 up at the 14th but he 3-putted the 15th while Turnesa got down in two from a bunker. Alliss then went out of bounds at the 17th to give Turnesa the lead. Turnesa was in the trees at the last and still short of the green in 3. However, Alliss, just off the green in 2, fluffed his chip, and eventually halved the hole in 6, to guarantee that the USA would retain the Ryder Cup. In the final match, at the 18th, Bernard Hunt missed a 4-foot putt that he needed to hole to win his match and so the USA won 6½ to 5½.
Alliss's first major success came in the 1954
Daks Tournament
The Daks Tournament was an important professional golf tournament held in England from 1950 to 1971 and was generally held in early June. 17 of the 22 events were held at the Wentworth Club. Neil Coles enjoyed considerable success in the event wi ...
at
Little Aston Golf Club
Little Aston Golf Club is an 18 hole members golf club located within the Little Aston Park Private Estate in Sutton Coldfield, England which has hosted a variety of leading professional and amateur tournaments including the Schweppes PGA Clos ...
. On the final day he was drawn with Bernard Hunt in the first pair out. Alliss scored 70 in the morning round and 67 in the afternoon.
Bobby Locke
Arthur D'Arcy "Bobby" Locke (20 November 1917 – 9 March 1987) was a South African professional golfer. He is generally regarded as one of the greatest golfers of all time. He won The Open Championship four times and 15 PGA Tour events in total ...
, the eventual runner-up, was able to see Alliss finishing his final round before he started his own. Three hours after Alliss had finished, Locke need a 4 at the last to tie with Alliss. However, he put his second into a bunker at the front of the green and took 5. Alliss and Hunt had taken 4 hours and 10 minutes for their two rounds of the 6,681 yards course. Alliss said: "We took all the time we wanted to play our shots, but we walked smartly between the strokes." Two weeks later, in the
1954 Open Championship, Alliss improved on his 1953 performance, finishing tied for 8th place. The season ended with Alliss playing for the British Isles against the Rest of Europe in the inaugural
Joy Cup
The Joy Cup was an annual men's professional team golf competition between teams representing the British Isles and the Rest of Europe. It was played from 1954 to 1958. The British Isles won all four contests that were played. The trophy was provi ...
.
In early 1955, Alliss travelled to the USA and played in a number of events there. On his return he missed the cut in the
Spalding Tournament
The Spalding Tournament was a professional golf tournament played in the United Kingdom. It was played annually from 1946 to 1960. The total prize money was £1500 in 1946, £1250 in 1947 and 1948, £1350 from 1949 to 1959 and £2250 in 1960. Th ...
but then won the 5-round
Dunlop Tournament at Wentworth. After this win Alliss had a disappointing season and although he finished tied for 5th in the
Dunlop Masters
The Betfred British Masters is a professional golf tournament. It was founded in 1946 as the Dunlop Masters and was held every year up to 2008, except for 1984. Dunlop's sponsorship ended in 1982, and the name sponsor changed frequently therea ...
, he was not chosen for the Ryder Cup team. Alliss had not been in the top 7 in the Order of Merit after the Open Championship and was relying on being one of the three selections after the Dunlop Masters. 1956 was a relatively disappointing year, although the year ended on a high note when he won the
Spanish Open
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
by 6 strokes at the new course at Real Club de Golf El Prat.
1957 started with Alliss moving from Ferndown to nearby
Parkstone
Parkstone is an area of Poole, Dorset. It is divided into 'Lower' and 'Upper' Parkstone. Upper Parkstone - "Up-on-'ill" as it used to be known in local parlance - is so-called because it is largely on higher ground slightly to the north of t ...
Golf Club, where he was appointed full professional, following the death of
Reg Whitcombe
Reginald Arthur Whitcombe (10 April 1898 – 11 January 1957) was an English professional golfer.
Whitcombe began his career at Came Down Golf Club in Dorset and served in the British armed forces during World War I. He was the professional at P ...
. The year was much more successful than 1956. In early April he won the
PGA Close Championship
The BMW PGA Championship is an annual men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour. It was founded in 1955 by the Professional Golfers' Association, and originally called the British PGA Championship.
History
The BMW PGA Championship ...
in
Llandudno by 3 strokes. Later in the month, he finished second in the
Spalding Tournament
The Spalding Tournament was a professional golf tournament played in the United Kingdom. It was played annually from 1946 to 1960. The total prize money was £1500 in 1946, £1250 in 1947 and 1948, £1350 from 1949 to 1959 and £2250 in 1960. Th ...
and in May he was tied for second 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 ...
. He was third in the
Yorkshire Evening News Tournament
The Yorkshire Evening News Tournament was an international golf tournament in the English Yorkshire area before the European Tour was founded. It was a match play tournament for most of its existence, but switched to stroke play in the 1940s. The ...
in June and tied for 12th in the
1957 Open Championship. Qualification rules for the
1957 Ryder Cup had been changed and covered the whole of the 1956 season, ending with the 1957 Open. After his disappointing 1956 Alliss started 1957 in 18th place but his good season lifted him to 5th, earning him a place in the team. His good form continued with a joint-second 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 ...
and another second place in the
Dunlop Masters
The Betfred British Masters is a professional golf tournament. It was founded in 1946 as the Dunlop Masters and was held every year up to 2008, except for 1984. Dunlop's sponsorship ended in 1982, and the name sponsor changed frequently therea ...
. Alliss finished second in the Order of Merit with a stroke average of 71.21, behind
Eric Brown on 70.99. The Ryder Cup ended in a rare victory for the British team, although Alliss lost both his matches and was the only British player to lose his singles.
In October 1958, Alliss won the Italian, Spanish and Portuguese Opens in three successive weeks.
His first round of 63 in the 1961 British PGA Championship was a tournament record at the time and remained the joint-lowest round in the tournament until
Robert Karlsson
Robert Karlsson (born 3 September 1969) is a Swedish professional golfer who has played on the European Tour and the PGA Tour, and now plays on the PGA Tour Champions.
Early life
Karlsson was born in Katrineholm, Sweden where his father Björn ...
's round of 62 in 2010.
Alliss's competitive career was almost over by the time the
European Tour
The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fi ...
was formally established in 1972, but he played in some events in the Tour's early years, making his last appearance on the tour in 1974.
Broadcasting career
His first television work was for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
at the 1961 Open Championship, when he was still a golfer who had competed in the tournament. After his retirement as a player, Alliss worked full-time in television, becoming the lead BBC golf commentator in 1978.
Alliss gave
'', which involved a scene where Connery, as Bond, played golf against gold magnate
in Buckinghamshire.