Eric George Lester (14 September 1917 – 18 May 1996) 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 won some important tournaments in Britain, including the 1956 Swallow-Penfold Tournament, and had a number of good finishes in the Open Championship, finishing tied for 8th place in

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...

. He also had a successful seniors career winning the 1974

PGA Seniors Championship The PGA Seniors Championship is a European Senior Tour golf tournament for men aged fifty and above. It was founded in 1957 and became part of the European Senior Tour on its founding in 1992. It was not held in 2016 or 2017 but returned in 201 ...

. He played for the British Isles in the 1956 Joy Cup but never made the

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 ...

team. At , he was noted as being one of the taller golfers of his generation.

Golf career

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito ...

, his first Open, he started badly with an 83 but then scored 70 and finished tied for 17th place. The 70 won him the

Tooting Bec Cup The Tooting Bec Cup is a trophy currently awarded by the Professional Golfers' Association of Great Britain and Ireland to the association member born in, or with a parent or parents born in, the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland who returns ...

for the lowest single-round score by a British or Irish player, shared with

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 ...

. The 1954 Swallow-Harrogate Tournament was played in two distinct parts with separate prize money. There was a 72-hole stroke-play event with £1500 prize money. The leading 16 then played knockout match-play over the next two days. This second stage had prize money of £600, so that the total prize money was £2100. Lester finished sixth in the stroke-play stage to qualify for the match-play stage. He beat John Fallon 4&3 and

Arthur Lees Arthur Lees (21 February 1908 – 26 March 1992) was an English professional golfer who played from the 1930s to 1960s. He was a member of four Great Britain Ryder Cup teams in the late 1940s and 1950s, and won several tournaments in Europe dur ...

5&4 to reach the semi-finals. He beat

5&3 to reach the final and then beat

Antonio Cerdá Antonio Cerdá (10 December 1921 – 28 November 2010) was an Argentine professional golfer. Professional career Cerdá solo runner-up second in the 1951 Open Championship to Max Faulkner. Two years later he finished joint runner-up at the 1953 ...

2 up to win the tournament. Lester was 1 up going to the last hole and when Cerdá put his ball into a muddy patch, he conceded the match. Lester won the 1956 Swallow-Penfold Tournament at The Royal Burgess Golfing Society course at

Barnton, Edinburgh Barnton () is a suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland, in the north-west of the city, between Cramond and Corstorphine Hill and west of Davidsons Mains. Part of the area was traditionally known as "Cramond Muir" in reference to Cramond to the north. ...

. His total of 275 put him a stroke ahead of

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), ...

and earned him the £1,000 first prize. Lester tied with

Harold Henning Harold Henning (3 October 1934 – 1 January 2004) was a South African professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour. He won professional tournaments on the highest level in Africa, Australia, Asia, North America and Eu ...

in the 1959

Spalding Tournament The Spalding Tournament was a professional golf tournament played in the United Kingdom. It was played annually from 1946 to 1960. The total prize money was £1500 in 1946, £1250 in 1947 and 1948, £1350 from 1949 to 1959 and £2250 in 1960. Th ...

Moor Park Golf Club Moor Park Golf Club is a country club located in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, England. It has two eighteen-hole golf courses, the High Course and the West Course, of which the High Course has hosted many professional and elite amateur tournamen ...

. Both players scored 278 and shared the first and second prizes, taking home £250 each. 56-year-old Lester won the 1974

at Lundin Links. His 282 was 4 shots better than

Ken Bousfield Kenneth Bousfield (2 October 1919 – 25 May 2000) was one of the leading British golfers of the immediate post-World War II period. Professional career Bousfield won a number of tournaments on the European circuit in the 1950s and 1960s, inclu ...

and gave him the £750 first prize. Two days later he played

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. ...

for the World Senior Championship but lost 5&4.

Tournament wins

''this list may be incomplete'' *1953 West of England Professional Championship *1954 Swallow-Harrogate Match Play Tournament *1956 Swallow-Penfold Tournament, Leeds Cup *1959

(tie with

) *1963 West of England Professional Championship *1974

Results in major championships

''Note: Lester only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

* Joy Cup (representing the British Isles): 1956 (winners) *

Slazenger Trophy The Slazenger Trophy was a men's professional team golf competition; one team representing Great Britain and Ireland, the other team representing the British Commonwealth and Empire. It was played just once, in 1956. Format The cup was contested ...

(representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1956 (winners) *

Amateurs–Professionals Match The Amateurs–Professionals Match was an annual men's team golf competition between teams of golfers from Great Britain and Ireland representing amateurs and professionals. It was played from 1956 to 1960. The Professionals won four of the five c ...

(representing the Professionals): 1957 (winners), 1959 (winners)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lester, Eric English male golfers Sportspeople from West Bromwich 1917 births 1996 deaths 20th-century English sportsmen