Robert Stewart Burns (born 11 May 1899) 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 was in the team for the

1929 Ryder Cup The 2nd Ryder Cup Matches were held at the Moortown Golf Club in Leeds, England. It was very cold, with hail and at one point heavy snow on the greens. About two thousand spectators saw America gain a narrow lead after the foursome matches befo ...

but did not play in any matches. He was Scottish Professional Champion three times.

Early life

Burns was born on 11 May 1899 in Stirling, Scotland, the son of George Burns, a gardener, and Jane. He served in the 7th

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

during World War I, having been as assistant at Stirling Golf Club before the war. His older brother James was also a professional golfer. Before the war, James had been an assistant at Stirling Golf Club and then professional at Falkirk Tryst Golf Club for six years. James also served in the 7th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and was killed in action on 23 April 1917 during the

Second Battle of Arras The Battle of Arras (also known as the Second Battle of Arras) was a British Empire, British offensive on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the First World War. From 9 April to 16 May 1917, British troops attacked German Empi ...

Golf career

In 1919 Burns became the professional at Falkirk Tryst Golf Club, where his brother had been the professional before the war. In 1924 he became the professional at Cruden Bay Golf Club before being attached to Hendon Golf Club, near London, from 1929 to 1933. He was then at Murrayfield Golf Club until World War II. Burns won the

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 ...

in 1925, 1927 and 1928. In 1925 he won by 5 strokes from Tom Fernie, while in 1927 he won by 3 from

Duncan McCulloch Duncan McCulloch (1893–1968) was one of the leading Scottish-based professional golfers of the inter-war period. He was Scottish Professional Champion in 1929 and 1930. Early life McCulloch was born in Troon, Scotland on 31 January 1893 to Joh ...

. In 1928 Burns was level with

Gordon Lockhart Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...

after three rounds but a final round of 68 gave him victory by 11 strokes. His best performance in The Open Championship was at Sandwich in

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

where he was tied for 6th place after two rounds. A third round of 75 improved his position to a tie for 5th place but a final round of 83 dropped him to 16th place. The team for the

was selected in January 1929. With his performance in the 1928 Open and his three wins in the Scottish Professional Championship Burns was chosen as one of the ten-man team. It was originally planned that, as in 1927, only eight players should be used by each team, the same players being used in the foursomes and singles. However, Hagan, the American captain, wished to use all 10 of his players. This was agreed to, although Duncan, the British captain, announced that he would only play eight as originally intended. Burns and Percy Alliss were left out and did not play. Burns had performed poorly in the

Frinton Invitation Tournament The Frinton Invitation Tournament was a professional golf tournament played at Frinton Golf Club in Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England. It was invitation event held in early 1927 and 1929, before the Ryder Cup, and provided competition for most of t ...

and the

Roehampton Invitation Tournament The Roehampton Invitation Tournament was a British golf tournament played each April at the Roehampton Club from 1920 to 1935. From 1922 the tournament was played over three days. There was 36 holes of stroke play on the first day with the leading ...

, which had been played in the weeks before the event, although in late March he had won the Middlesex Professional Championship at Hendon, by 5 strokes.

Tournament wins

*1925

*1927

*1928

*1929 Middlesex Professional Championship

Results in major championships

''Note: Burns only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

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 ...

(representing Great Britain):

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 ...

(winners) * England–Scotland Professional Match (representing Scotland): 1932

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, Stewart Scottish male golfers Ryder Cup competitors for Europe Golfers from Stirling 1899 births Year of death missing