Arthur James Lacey (20 May 1904 – 6 August 1979) 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 ...

who 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 ...

on four occasions in the 1930s. He also played in the

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

and

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Feb ...

Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States, with hosting duties alternating between venues in Europe and the United States for each edition. The cup is named after the English businessman S ...

matches, and was then selected as non-playing captain of the Great Britain and Ireland side for those matches in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

. He was chairman of the PGA from 1949 to 1951.

Early life

Lacey was the son of another Arthur Lacey, the greenkeeper at

Burnham Beeches Golf Club Burnham Beeches Golf Club is a golf club, located in Burnham, Buckinghamshire, England. Established in 1891, it is the oldest golf club in Buckinghamshire. Burnham Beeches' 18-hole golf course was built on land owned by the City of London Corpo ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

. Arthur, senior was also a golfer, winning the first competition of the Golf Greenkeepers' Association at

Bushey Hall Golf Club Bushey Hall Golf Club, founded by Robert Stewart Clouston in 1889, is one of the oldest parkland golf courses in Hertfordshire. Originally opened as a nine-hole course, it was extended to the full 18 holes by 1893 and is now a 6,005-yard course ...

in 1912 with scores of 80 and 79. Arthur senior later moved to

Ifield, West Sussex Ifield is a former village and now one of 14 neighbourhoods within the town of Crawley in West Sussex, England. Ifield is in the west of the town and is bordered by Ifield West, Horsham, Langley Green to the north east, West Green to the east ...

. Lacey had a younger brother

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

who was also a successful golfer.

Golf career

Lacey's most notable victories as a player came in the Belgian Open of 1931 and 1932, and the

French Open The French Open (), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a tennis tournament organized by the French Tennis Federation annually at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. It is chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam ...

in 1932, and he continued to be a regular high finisher in British professional events in the 1930s. 1937 was his most successful year winning the Yorkshire Evening News and Dunlop-Metropolitan tournaments and finishing seventh in The Open Championship, behind winner Henry Cotton but ahead of several of that year's American Ryder Cup side, including major champions

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 ...

Ralph Guldahl Ralph J. Guldahl (November 22, 1911 – June 11, 1987) was an American professional golfer, one of the top five players in the sport from 1936 to 1940. He won sixteen PGA Tour-sanctioned tournaments, including three majors (two U.S. Opens and one ...

Sam Snead Samuel Jackson Snead (; May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an American professional golfer who was one of the top players in the world for the better part of four decades (having won PGA of America and Senior PGA Tour events over six decades) an ...

and

Denny Shute Herman Densmore "Denny" Shute (October 25, 1904 – May 13, 1974) was an American professional golfer who won three major championships in the 1930s. Life and career Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Shute was the son of a golf pro from England; Hermon ...

. Lacey was professional at

The Berkshire Golf Club ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' ...

Ascot, Berkshire Ascot () is a town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in Berkshire, England. It is south of Windsor, east of Bracknell and west of London. It is most notable as the location of Ascot Racecourse, home of the Royal Ascot meeti ...

from 1934 to 1952 having previously been at Selsdon Park (1928 to 1933),

Leighton Buzzard Golf Club Leighton Buzzard Golf Club is a golf club near the village of Heath and Reach, north of Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, England. The club was founded in 1925 with a 9-hole golf course, that was later extended to 18 holes. The course has been ra ...

(1927 to 1928) and an assistant at

Gerrards Cross Golf Club Gerrards Cross Golf Club is a golf club, located at Chalfont Park in Chalfont St Peter, Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the ...

. Lacey also served as a rules official, and in that capacity was involved in a controversial ruling during the final round of the

1958 Masters Tournament The 1958 Masters Tournament was the 22nd Masters Tournament, held April 3–6 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. Arnold Palmer won the first of his four Masters titles, one stroke ahead of runners-up Doug Ford and Fred Hawkins. It ...

. He allowed

Arnold Palmer Arnold Daniel Palmer (September 10, 1929 – September 25, 2016) was an American professional golfer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most charismatic players in the sport's history. Since embarking on a professional career in ...

, who was in strong contention, to play two balls when Palmer's tee shot plugged in wet turf on the 12th hole. Palmer's original attempt from the plugged lie gave him a double bogey, while he made a par with his second ball after taking a free drop, which he had had to argue with Lacey to obtain. Palmer's actual score on the hole would be decided after further discussion. Bobby Jones ruled half an hour later that Palmer's par would count, and Palmer went on to win, ahead of a bitter

Ken Venturi Kenneth Paul Venturi (May 15, 1931May 17, 2013) was an American professional golfer and golf broadcaster. In a career shortened by injuries, he won 14 events on the PGA Tour including a major, the U.S. Open in 1964. Shortly before his death in ...

, who as Palmer's playing partner lost his composure when Palmer received the favourable ruling. The incident has been debated heavily in golf circles ever since.''Arnie and Jack: Palmer, Nicklaus, and Golf's Greatest Rivalry'', by Ian O'Connor, 2008

Tournament wins

''this list may be incomplete'' *1931 Belgian Open *1932 Belgian Open,

*1933

Yorkshire Evening News Tournament The Yorkshire Evening News Tournament was a professional golf tournament that was held in the Leeds area of Yorkshire, England between 1923 and 1963. It was a fixture on the British PGA tournament circuit, which would later become the European To ...

*1937

, Dunlop-Metropolitan Tournament

Results in major championships

''Note: Lacey only played in The Open Championship.''
NT = No tournament
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

(representing Great Britain):

(winners),

(non-playing captain) * Seniors vs Juniors (representing the Juniors): 1928 *

England–Scotland Professional Match The England–Scotland Professional Match was an annual men's professional golf competition between teams representing England and Scotland. It was played from 1903 to the start of World War I and was then revived in 1932 and played until the star ...

(representing England): 1932 (winners), 1933 (winners), 1934 (winners), 1936 (winners), 1937 (winners), 1938 (winners) * England–Ireland Professional Match (representing England): 1932 (winners), 1933 (winners) *Coronation Match (representing the Ladies and Professionals): 1937 *

Llandudno International Golf Trophy The Llandudno International Golf Trophy was a professional team match play golf tournament that was played at the Maesdu Golf Club from 28 to 30 September 1938. The tournament was contested between England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. It was int ...

(representing England): 1938 (winners) * Great Britain–Argentina Professional Match (representing Great Britain): 1939 (winners, captain)

References

*Alliss, Peter: "The Who's Who of Golf", (1983), Orbis Publishing Ltd. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lacey, Arthur English male golfers Ryder Cup competitors for Europe People from Burnham, Buckinghamshire 1904 births 1979 deaths 20th-century English sportsmen