Aubrey Basil Boomer (1 November 1897 – 2 October 1989) was a professional golfer who played in the early 20th century. Boomer had three 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 ...

. He was a frequent competitor in the French Open and won the event five times.

Early life

Boomer was born on 1 November 1897 and grew up in

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 Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

. His father George was a school teacher in

Grouville Grouville is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey in the Channel Islands. The parish is around east of St Helier. The parish covers a surface area of 4,354 vergées (7.8 km²). The parish includes the south-east portion of the main island o ...

and had, in 1902, designed the La Moye Golf Club. Aubrey's brother

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 ...

(1885–1949) was also a professional golfer.

Golf career

Ryder Cup

Boomer played in the first two Ryder Cup matches. In the 1927 Ryder Cup contested at

Worcester Country Club Worcester Country Club is a private country club and golf course in Worcester, Massachusetts. The course hosted the first Ryder Cup in 1927, and was the site of the 1925 U.S. Open, which was won by Willie Macfarlane. Worcester also hosted the 1 ...

in Massachusetts the British team was defeated 9½–2½. At his death he was the last surviving member of the 1927 British team, although he was out-lived by Gene Sarazen.

French Open

Boomer won the French Open five times—in 1921, 1922, 1926, 1929, and 1931. In the 1921 French Open, Boomer won in a playoff against

Arnaud Massy Arnaud George Watson Massy (; 6 July 1877 – 16 April 1950) was one of France's most successful professional golfers, most notable for winning the 1907 Open Championship. Early life Massy was born in Biarritz, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France. The ...

, his former golf teacher. Massy picked up his ball on the 34th hole after being 8 shots behind after 33 holes. Massy had been 3 shots up after 9 holes. In his 1929 victory he beat the St Cloud course record with a score of 61.

Horton Smith Horton Smith (May 22, 1908 – October 15, 1963) was an American professional golfer, best known as the winner of the first and third Masters Tournaments. Tournament career Born in Springfield, Missouri, Smith turned professional in 1926 and w ...

was second with Gene Sarazen third. In the 1922 French Open he beat the La Boulie course record, scoring 65 in the third round. Boomer won by 9 strokes from Eugène Lafitte, setting a record score for any national championship.

Belgian Open

Boomer twice finished second in the Belgian Open, in 1920 and 1924. In the 1924 tournament he came second on 146.

Walter Hagen Walter Charles Hagen (December 21, 1892 – October 6, 1969) was an American professional golfer and a major figure in golf in the first half of the 20th century. His tally of 11 professional majors is third behind Jack Nicklaus (18) and Tig ...

won with a score of 143. In 1926, one of his best years, he finally broke through and won the event.

1924 Open Championship

The 1924 Open Championship was held 26–27 June at

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, England.

won the second of his four Open Championships, one stroke ahead of runner-up

Ernest Whitcombe Ernest Robert Whitcombe (17 October 1890 – 14 July 1971) was an English professional golfer. Over the course of his career he had nine wins in professional tournaments and was runner-up in the 1924 Open Championship. Early life Whitcombe was ...

. Boomer finished tied for sixth place in the event.

1927 Open Championship

The 1927 Open Championship was held 13–15 July at the

Old Course at St Andrews The Old Course at St Andrews, also known as the Old Lady or the Grand Old Lady, is considered the oldest golf course. It is a public course over common land in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland and is held in trust by the St Andrews Links Trust under ...

in St Andrews, Scotland. Amateur Bobby Jones successfully defended the title with a six-stroke victory, the second of his three victories at the Open Championship. Boomer and

Fred Robson Frederick Robson (25 April 1885 – 3 November 1952) was an English professional golfer who played in the early 20th century. Robson was a frequent competitor in the Open Championship. His best performance was a tie for second with Aubrey Boo ...

tied for second place, six shots back.

Death

He suffered a stroke in

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...

and died later in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

on 2 October 1989.

Tournament wins (19)

* 1921

Open de France The Open de France is a European Tour golf tournament. Inaugurated in 1906 it is the oldest national open in Continental Europe and has been part of the European Tour's schedule since the tour's inception in 1972. The 100th edition of the event ...

* 1922

, Belgian Open * 1923 Letchworth Tournament * 1924 Dutch Open * 1925 Dutch Open, Roehampton Tournament * 1926 Dutch Open,

, Belgian Open,

Daily Mail Tournament The Daily Mail Tournament was a professional golf tournament played in the United Kingdom. The ''Daily Mail'' sponsored the St Andrews Tournament in 1919 and in 1920 continued their sponsorship with the start of the Daily Mail Tournament. The even ...

, Glasgow Herald Tournament * 1927 Dutch Open, South Open (Argentina) * 1928 Grand Prix PGA France * 1929

* 1931

* 1932 Italian Open * 1938 Grand Prix PGA France

Results in major championships

''Note: Boomer never played in the Masters Tournament nor the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...

.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

* Great Britain vs USA (representing Great Britain): 1926 (winners) * Ryder Cup (representing Great Britain):

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 ...

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) *France–Great Britain Professional Match (representing Great Britain): 1929 (winners)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boomer, Aubrey Jersey male golfers Ryder Cup competitors for Europe People from Grouville 1897 births 1989 deaths