Thomas Alfred Horton, (16 June 1941 – 7 December 2017) 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 ...

. He finished in the top ten of 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 ...

four times, won a number of important tournaments both before and after the founding of 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 fift ...

in 1972 and played in 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 ...

in 1975 and 1977. He reached 50 just before the founding of the

European Seniors Tour The Legends Tour is the current branding of the European Senior Tour, a professional tour for male golfers aged 50 and over, run by the PGA European Tour. The tour was branded as the Staysure Tour for the 2018 and 2019 seasons after UK-based insur ...

and won 23 times on the tour between 1992 and 2000.

Early life

Horton was born in

St Helens, Merseyside St Helens () is a town in Merseyside, England, with a population of 102,629. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, which had a population of 176,843 at the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 Census. St Helens i ...

; he moved to

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...

in 1945 and was brought up and educated on the island.

Professional career

Horton was an assistant at Ham Manor Golf Club near

Worthing Worthing () is a seaside town in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 111,400 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Brighton and Hov ...

, Sussex from 1959, later becoming the professional there. In 1974 he moved to Royal Jersey Golf Club. He celebrated 25 years there as professional before his retirement in 1999. Horton was one of the "Butten boys", a group of British professional golfers who were part of a training programme, funded by Ernest Butten, an entrepreneur and joint founder of

PA Consulting Group PA Consulting Group (formerly Personnel Administration) is a professional services firm that works with public, private and third-sector organisations. It was founded in 1943 by Ernest E. Butten, Tom H. Kirkham and Dr David Seymour, who used a n ...

. Starting in 1963, Butten funded a residential golf school at Sundridge Park in

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, char ...

, Kent.

Max Faulkner Herbert Gustavus Max Faulkner, OBE (29 July 1916 – 26 February 2005) was an English professional golfer who won the Open Championship in 1951. Early life Faulkner was born on 29 July 1916 in Bexhill-on-Sea, the son of Gus (1893–1976), a ...

was employed as the teaching professional. Horton was runner-up a number of times before his first important win, the

R.T.V. International Trophy The R.T.V. International Trophy was a professional golf tournament. In its first year, 1967, there was a professional team tournament between the four home nations at Edmondstown Golf Course, County Dublin. The next year the event became an ind ...

Cork Golf Club Cork Golf Club is a golf club located in Little Island, Cork, Republic of Ireland. History The club, founded in 1888, hosted the 1932 Irish Open, won by Alf Padgham and the 1932 England–Ireland Professional Match The England–Ireland Pr ...

in August 1968. He had been runner-up 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 1965 and 1967 and 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 into ...

earlier in 1968. He was also close to winning the Silentnight Tournament in 1965.

Dave Thomas Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * Dave (film), ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * Dave (musical), ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital ...

had taken the clubhouse lead. Playing with

Jimmy Martin James Henry Martin (August 10, 1927 – May 14, 2005) was an American bluegrass musician, known as the "King of Bluegrass". Early years Martin was born in Sneedville, Tennessee, United States, and was raised in the hard farming life of rural ...

, they reached the final hole with Horton needed a par 4 to beat Thomas while Martin needed a par to tie with Thomas. Martin missed a birdie putt from 10 feet and finished level with Thomas. Horton, however, drove into a bunker, missed a 5-foot putt and took a double-bogey 6 to finish one behind in third place. Horton won two important tournaments in 1970, the South African Open in February and the

Long John Scotch Whisky Match Play Championship The British PGA Matchplay Championship was a match play golf tournament that began in 1903 and ran until 1979. Between 1903 and 1969, the event was sponsored by the now defunct British newspaper the '' News of the World'', and was commonly known ...

in August. He became the first non-South African resident to win the South African Open since it had been first played in 1903, with a three stroke win over

Terry Westbrook Terrence E. Westbrook (born May 19, 1939) is a South African professional golfer. Early life Westbrook lost his left hand's middle finger and a large portion of his left thumb in a childhood accident. Despite this he managed to become a profe ...

. In the match play championship he beat Bobby Walker 5&4 in the semi-final before beating another Scot,

Ronnie Shade Ronald David Bell Mitchell Shade, MBE (18 October 1938 – 10 September 1986) was a Scottish professional golfer. Life and career Shade was born in Edinburgh and grew up playing golf at Duddingston Golf Club in that city. He enjoyed unrivalled ...

, 3&2 in the final, winning the first prize of £2,000. Horton had been four down against

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 ...

after 10 holes in their quarter-final match but came back to win on the 18th. Horton played on the

for many years with moderate success, winning four titles and finishing fifth on the Order of Merit in 1976 and tenth in both 1974 and 1978. His biggest win on the tour came in the 1978

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 ...

. Needing a par-3 on the 245-yard final hole at St Pierre, Horton missed the green but holed a 10-foot putt for a one stroke win over

Dale Hayes Dale Hayes (born 1 July 1952) is a South African professional golfer. Career outline Hayes won the 15–17 Boys category at the Junior World Golf Championships in 1969. He turned professional the following year and quickly became a successful p ...

Graham Marsh Graham Vivian Marsh MBE (born 14 January 1944) is a retired professional golfer who was one of the leading Australian players of his generation. During his career he won more than 70 tournaments around the world, including 10 on the European To ...

and Brian Waites, taking the first prize of £8,000. Horton had been in contention for a

place as early as 1965. That year he was 11th in the Ryder Cup points list before the final qualifying event, the

Esso Golden Tournament The Esso Golden Tournament was a golf tournament on the British PGA circuit from 1961 to 1967. It was played in a round-robin format at the Moor Park Golf Club in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, England. The event was sponsored by Esso, and was ...

, with the leading 10 making the team. However he finished last in the tournament and dropped to 14th place. From 1969 the Ryder Cup team was partly chosen by a selection committee. Horton was a strong candidate in 1969 and 1971 but was not selected until

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

Laurel Valley Golf Club Laurel Valley Golf Club is a golf club located just south of the Pittsburgh suburb of Ligonier, Pennsylvania. Designed by Dick Wilson and renovated by Arnold Palmer, the Laurel Valley golf course opened in 1959. Since its opening, the club has ho ...

. Four members of the 12-man team were selected by committee and with two US-based players chosen,

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 ...

and

Peter Oosterhuis Peter Arthur Oosterhuis (born 3 May 1948) is an English professional golfer and golf broadcaster. Oosterhuis played on the European circuit from 1969 to 1974, winning 10 tournaments and taking the Harry Vardon Trophy for heading the Order of Mer ...

, there were only two places for the remaining players. Despite finishing 15th in the points list, Horton was selected, making his debut at the age of 34. Horton lost his three pairs matches but on the final day he halved his match against

Hale Irwin Hale S. Irwin (born June 3, 1945) is an American professional golfer. He was one of the world's leading golfers from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s. He is one of the few players in history to win three U.S. Opens, becoming the oldest ever U.S. Op ...

in the morning singles and beat

Lou Graham Louis Krebs Graham (born January 7, 1938) is an American professional golfer who won six PGA Tour tournaments including the 1975 U.S. Open. Most of his wins were in the 1970s. Lou Graham was born in Nashville, Tennessee. He started playing g ...

in the afternoon. Horton played again in

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

at Royal Lytham. He was 5th in the Ryder Cup points list and gained an automatic spot for the first time. He lost the three matches he played, all by the same score, 5&4. The

was founded shortly after he reached its minimum age of fifty, and Horton was the dominant player in its early seasons, topping the money list in 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999. He was top of the tour's career money list for many years, before being overtaken by Carl Mason in 2007. Mason equalled Horton total of 23 victories in 2010 and had his 24th win the following year. Horton's career winnings on the senior tour exceeded £1,000,000 and he remains second on the list of most wins of the tour. Horton was captain of the PGA in 1978, captaining the

PGA Cup The PGA Cup is a men's golf competition for club professionals played between a Great Britain and Ireland team and a United States team. The winning team is presented with the Llandudno Trophy. The competition is run by the British PGA and the PG ...

team the same year at

St Mellion St Mellion ( kw, Sen Melyan) is a village and rural civil parish in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish is about south of Callington and is in the St Germans Registration District. To the north, the parish is bordered by Callingto ...

Honours

In the 2000 New Year Honours, Horton was awarded an

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

for services to golf, and he was made an honorary life member of the

in 2012.

Death

Horton was taken ill at the Annual General Meeting of the Royal Jersey Golf Club on 7 December 2017 and died later that evening in hospital.

Photo gallery

Commerative stone Jersey GC with Tommy Horton.jpg, Tommy at the Vardon commemorative stone Royal Jersey G.C. Tommy4.jpg, Tommy Horton Tiger Woods and Tommy.jpg, Tiger Woods & Tommy Harry Vardon .jpg, Foreword by Tommy Horton Tommy Horton Swinging.jpg, Tommy in full swing Tommy in Florida 2015.jpg, Tommy at the Tony Jacklin Pro-Am Florida 2015

Professional wins (41)

European Tour wins (4)

European Tour playoff record (0–1)

Safari Circuit wins (1)

Swedish Golf Tour wins (1)

Other Great Britain and Ireland wins (4)

Other wins (4)

*1970 South African Open *1973 Nigerian Open *1975 Gambian Open *1985 Togo Open

European Senior Tour wins (23)

''*Note: The 1997 Scottish Seniors Open was shortened to 36 holes due to the

Funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales The funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, started on Saturday 6 September 1997 at 9:08am in London, when the tenor bell of Westminster Abbey started tolling to signal the departure of the cortège from Kensington Palace. The coffin was carried ...

.'' European Senior Tour playoff record (4–1)

Other senior wins (4)

*1995 British Senior Club Professional Championship *1996 British Senior Club Professional Championship *1997 British Senior Club Professional Championship *1998 British Senior Club Professional Championship

Results in major championships

''Note: Horton only played in the Masters Tournament and the Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1979 and 1982 Open Championships)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 6 (1971 Open Championship – 1976 Open Championship) *Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (four times)

Team appearances

(representing Great Britain and Ireland):

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 England):

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

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 ...

(representing England): 1971 (winners), 1974 (winners), 1975, 1976 (winners), 1977 *Sotogrande Match/

Hennessy Cognac Cup The Hennessy Cognac Cup was a biennial team golf tournament contested from 1976 to 1984. The contests in 1976, 1978 and 1980 were between teams of professional male golfers; one team representing Great Britain and Ireland, the other team representi ...

(representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1974 (winners), 1976 (winners) *

: 1978 (winners, non-playing captain) *

Praia d'El Rey European Cup The Praia d'El Rey European Cup was an annual professional golf tournament played at Praia d'El Rey, Portugal. It was played in 1997, 1998 and 1999 between teams of men representing the European Seniors Tour and ladies representing the Ladies Europ ...

: 1997 (winners, captain), 1998 (tie, captain), 1999 (captain)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Horton, Tommy English male golfers European Tour golfers European Senior Tour golfers Ryder Cup competitors for Europe Members of the Order of the British Empire Sportspeople from St Helens, Merseyside 1941 births 2017 deaths