Walter Lees (14 December 1916 – 9 July 2012) 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 was the younger brother of

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...

and Harold, both professional golfers. Lees won the 1946

Midland Professional Championship The Midland Professional Championship is an annual golf tournament played in the English Midlands. The event is organised by the Midlands Region of the Professional Golfers' Association. It is the oldest tournament in professional golf having be ...

at Sandwell Park Golf Club, 4 strokes ahead of Jack Cawsey and Leslie Cliffe. He was runner-up in the 1949

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 ...

Moortown Golf Club Moortown Golf Club is a golf club located in Alwoodley, near Leeds, England. It was founded in 1909, and the championship golf course was designed by Dr Alister MacKenzie.

. The tournament was run as a match-play event that year and Lees won five matches to reach the final, beating

Roberto De Vicenzo Roberto De Vicenzo (14 April 1923 – 1 June 2017) was a professional golfer from Argentina. He won a record 229 professional tournaments worldwide during his career, including seven on the PGA Tour and most famously the 1967 Open Championship. ...

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and

Dai Rees David James Rees, (31 March 1913 – 15 November 1983) was one of the Britain's leading golfers either side of the Second World War. The winner of many prestigious tournaments in Britain, Europe and farther afield, Rees is best remembered as ...

. Having beaten Rees in the morning, he met Sam King In the afternoon final. One down after 8 holes he lost the next five to give King a 6&5 victory. The next month he finished 17th 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 ...

. He had been in 6th place after a good third round 69, just two shots behind the leaders, but a last round 78 dropped his down the field. Lees was an assistant at Abbeydale Golf Club from 1933 but after the war he was an assistant to his brother Arthur at Dore and Totley. He became the professional at Shipley Golf Club in 1948 and was there until he retired in 1985.

Professional wins

*1946

Results in major championships

''Note: Lees only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lees, Walter English male golfers Sportspeople from Sheffield Sportspeople from Shipley, West Yorkshire Golfers from Yorkshire 1916 births 2012 deaths