Bernard "Ben" Sayers (23 June 1856 – 9 March 1924) 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 ...

, who later became a distinguished golf teacher, golf course designer and manufacturer of golf clubs and equipment. Sayers had a reputation for making good quality

gutta-percha Gutta-percha is a tree of the genus ''Palaquium'' in the family Sapotaceae, which is primarily used to create a high-quality latex of the same name. The material is rigid, naturally biologically Chemically inert, inert, resilient, electrically n ...

golf balls.

Playing career

Sayers was born in

Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

, Scotland. After moving to Haddington with his family at the age of 12, Sayers began to play golf after being given a club by his uncle. He was short at but strong, and on the verge of becoming a professional acrobat when he began to take golf seriously. He moved to North Berwick and after enjoying success in competitions at

Dunbar Dunbar () is a town on the North Sea coast in East Lothian in the south-east of Scotland, approximately east of Edinburgh and from the Anglo–Scottish border, English border north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. Dunbar is a former royal burgh, and ...

Hoylake Hoylake () is a coast, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is at the north west of the Wirral Peninsula, near West Kirby and where the River Dee, Wales, River Dee meets the Irish Sea. At the 2021 United K ...

and other courses he took up ballmaking, and also began to enter

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 tied for second in the 1888 Open Championship and was third in

1889 Events January * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the Dakotas ...

. Although he won 24 top-level tournaments he never lifted the "Old Claret Jug". In January 1911, he took up the post of head professional at The Golf Club of Monte Carlo. While there, he was known for taking wagers on the course, presumably betting on himself against all takers of his challenges.

Instructor, club maker, and golf course architect

Sayers was a golf instructor to royalty, nobility and fellow professionals. In his day he taught Her Majesty

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was List of British royal consorts, queen-consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 Januar ...

, George, Prince of Wales (later

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

), Princess Victoria, the Duchess of Connaught and Princess Patricia of Connaught. He also instructed the great lady champion

Dorothy Campbell Dorothy Lee Campbell (24 March 1883 – 20 March 1945) was a Scottish amateur golfer. Campbell was the first woman to win the American, British and Canadian Women's Amateurs. Early life She was born into a golfing family in North Berwick, Mid ...

(a member of the

World Golf Hall of Fame The World Golf Hall of Fame was, until recently, located at World Golf Village between Jacksonville, Florida and St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States. It is unusual amongst sports halls of fame in that a single site honored both men ...

) and Frenchman

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. He was the first player from outside Scotland and England to win a major ...

, who became the first overseas player to win the Open Championship. He was also an innovative club maker, and patented several new club designs (see for example GB 21,122 and GB 24,473). His course designing credits include the East course at North Berwick, Moffat, Rothesay, Craigielaw Links, the Merchants of Edinburgh, Adare Manor, West Monmouthshire, the Spey Bay Golf Club in

Banffshire Banffshire (; ; ) is a historic county in Scotland. The county town is Banff, although the largest settlement is Buckie to the west. The historic county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975. Since 1996 the area has been spli ...

, and the Ballathie Hotel course in

Perthshire Perthshire (Scottish English, locally: ; ), officially the County of Perth, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore, Angus and Perth & Kinross, Strathmore ...

Ben Sayers & Son

The Ben Sayers & Son factory in North Berwick was responsible for creating several revolutionary pieces of golf equipment, from gutta-percha balls and the "Benny" putter (the first to have a square-edged handgrip) to, in later years, the first set of carbon-shafted clubs and a specially commissioned putter for

Jack Nicklaus Jack William Nicklaus (; born January 21, 1940), nicknamed "the Golden Bear", is an American retired professional golfer and List of golf courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greate ...

. Ben Sayers Jnr. also designed the first "oversized" driver (the "Dreadnaught"). Ben Sayers is believed to be the oldest golf equipment company still surviving. Now owned by Tandem Group, after operating from North Berwick for 126 years, production was moved to China in 2003.

Death and legacy

Sayers died on 9 March 1924 at North Berwick, Scotland. He was one of the best players to play in the Open Championship and never win.

Results in The Open Championship

''Note: Sayers played only in The Open Championship.''
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
? = Competed, finish unknown
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10

Team appearances

* England–Scotland Professional Match (representing Scotland): 1903 (winners), 1904 (tie), 1905 (tie), 1906, 1907, 1909, 1910, 1912 (tie), 1913

References

External links

Ben Sayers factfile
at www.northberwick.org.uk
Ben Sayers official website
at BenSayers.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sayers Scottish male golfers British golf course architects Golf equipment manufacturers Golfers from Edinburgh Sporting goods brands People from Leith People associated with East Lothian 1856 births 1924 deaths