Herbert Gustavus Max Faulkner,

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(29 July 1916 – 26 February 2005) 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 won 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 ...

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 ...

Early life

Faulkner was born on 29 July 1916 in

Bexhill-on-Sea Bexhill-on-Sea (often shortened to Bexhill) is a seaside town and civil parish situated in the county of East Sussex in South East England. An ancient town and part of the local government district of Rother, Bexhill is home to a number of a ...

, the son of

Gus Gus is a masculine name, often a diminutive for Angus, August, Augustine, or Augustus, and other names (e.g. Aengus, Argus, Fergus, Ghassan, Gustav, Gustave, Gustafson, Gustavo, Gussie). It can also be used as the adaptation into English of t ...

(1893–1976), a professional golfer who had been assistant to James Braid before

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. After the war his father took a position at Pennard Golf Club on the

Gower Peninsula Gower ( cy, Gŵyr) or the Gower Peninsula () in southwest Wales, projects towards the Bristol Channel. It is the most westerly part of the historic county of Glamorgan. In 1956, the majority of Gower became the first area in the United Kingd ...

in south Wales where he stayed until 1925. His father was briefly at a golf facility in

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...

but in 1927 became the professional at Bramley Golf Club, just south of

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

, where he remained until 1945. Faulkner was outstanding at a number of sports but golf was his main interest. After leaving school he became an assistant to his father at Bramley. Faulkner was the eldest of three boys. His younger brother, Frank (1919–1941), who was also an assistant to his father, was killed in a road traffic accident near

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...

, while serving as a corporal in the Army, aged 21.

Pre-war golf career

Faulkner showed considerable talent when very young. He entered the first Daily Mirror Assistants' Tournament in September 1933, just two months after his 17th birthday. The event had prize money of £750, more than the Open Championship, and attracted 206 entries. There was a 36-hole qualifying contest on the first day, after which the leading 64 played match-play. Faulkner finished the stroke-play in a tie for 16th place. The following day, despite suffering from a muscle problem in his back, he won his two matches, before losing the following day at the last-16 stage. Faulkner played with his father in the 1934

Sunningdale Foursomes The Sunningdale Foursomes is an open foursomes golf tournament contested at the Sunningdale Golf Club, Berkshire in March. It was first contested in 1934 and has been held annually since, except between 1940 and 1947. The event is open to all go ...

, where they reached the semi-final before losing. The second Daily Mirror Assistants' Tournament was played in late May 1934. Faulkner again qualified for the match-play stage but lost his first match. Still aged 17, he entered the

1934 Open Championship The 1934 Open Championship was the 69th Open Championship, held 27–29 June at Royal St George's Golf Club in Sandwich, England. Henry Cotton dominated the championship, leading wire-to-wire on his way to a five-stroke win and his first of th ...

Royal St George's The Royal St George's Golf Club located in Sandwich, Kent, England, is a golf club in the United Kingdom and one of the courses on The Open Championship rotation and is the only Open rota golf course to be located in South East England. It has ...

. He had two rounds of 76 to qualify for the main event. In the championship he had two rounds of 78 and missed the cut. In September he qualified for the final stage of the

News of the World Match Play The British PGA Matchplay Championship was a match play golf tournament that began in 1903 and ran until 1979. Between 1903 and 1969, the event was sponsored by the now defunct British newspaper the ''News of the World'', and was commonly known b ...

, winning his first match and losing at the last-32 stage. 1935 was a less successful season for Faulkner. The Daily Mirror Assistants' Tournament became a stroke play event with sectional qualifying. Faulkner qualified well, finishing 4th in the strong Southern Section but missed the cut in the main tournament. 1936 started poorly with Faulkner failing to qualify for the final stages of the

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 ...

. In April he moved from Bramley and took a position at Sonning Golf Club, east of

Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, southeast England. Located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the rivers Thames and Kennet, the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway serve the town. Reading is east o ...

where Arthur Young was the professional. Faulkner was to be playing assistant and able to compete in all the leading tournaments. Faulkner entered the

1936 Open Championship The 1936 Open Championship was the 71st Open Championship, held 25–27 June at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England. Alf Padgham won his only major title, one stroke ahead of runner-up Jimmy Adams. Qualifying was scheduled for 22� ...

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 ...

. He just qualified with a score of 155 for the two qualifying rounds. Four steady rounds left him tied for 21st place in the championship. At the end of July he had his best finish in an important tournament, the Daily Mirror Assistants' Tournament, despite starting with a 77. A final round course-record 66 lifted him into a tie for 3rd place. In September he qualified for the final stage of the

where he won two matches before losing to

Percy Alliss Percy Alliss (8 January 1897 – 31 March 1975) was one of the leading English professional golfers in the 1920s and 1930s, winning many tournaments in Britain and Continental Europe. He was the father of commentator and former golfer Peter Allis ...

at the last-16 stage. Faulkner was joint leader at the halfway stage of the 1937

but fell back with two rounds 78 on the final day. The following week, in partnership with

Stanley Anderson Stanley Anderson (October 23, 1939 – June 24, 2018) was an American character actor who played Drew Carey's father on ''The Drew Carey Show''. Early years Born in Billings, Montana, Anderson attended Garfield Elementary School, Lincoln Junior ...

, he won the

Addington Foursomes The Addington Foursomes was a golf tournament played in Addington Golf Club near Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Gre ...

. Faulkner was one of the leading qualifiers for the

1937 Open Championship The 1937 Open Championship was the 72nd Open Championship, held 7–9 July at Carnoustie Golf Links in Carnoustie, Scotland. Henry Cotton won the second of his three Open titles, two strokes ahead of runner-up Reg Whitcombe. The Ryder Cup w ...

Carnoustie Golf Links Carnoustie Golf Links is in Carnoustie, Angus, Scotland. Carnoustie has four courses – the historic Championship Course, the Burnside Course, the Buddon Links Course and a free-to-play short, five-hole course called The Nestie. Carnoustie G ...

, tying for 6th place. In the championship itself he had a second 83 and missed the cut. He again performed well in the Daily Mirror Assistants' Tournament, despite a poor first day. Final day rounds of 70 and 72 lifted him into 4th place. The following week he finished 3rd in the Irish Open. In early 1938 Faulkner became the professional at Leamington Spa Golf Club. He had a less successful season but did finish tied for 4th in the Irish Open. Faulkner left his position at Leamington in early 1939 and played the rest of the season as an unattached professional. He qualified for the

1939 Open Championship The 1939 Open Championship was the 74th Open Championship, held 5–7 July at the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland. Dick Burton won his only major title, two strokes ahead of runner-up Johnny Bulla. The purse was £500 with a winner's sha ...

and was joint-leader after the first round with 70, eventually finishing tied for 23rd place. He again performed well in the Irish Open finishing tied for 7th place.

War service

Faulkner had qualified for the final stage of the 1939

. The event was delayed until late April 1940 but Faulkner lost his first round match. Faulkner played relatively little golf during the war, although he played a number of exhibition matches in the winter of 1942/43. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Faulkner served in the

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

as a Physical Training (PT) instructor. He took up

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...

, becoming services champion.

Post-war golf career

Faulkner's tournament career restarted immediately after the war. In September 1945 he was runner-up in the

, a stroke behind

Charlie Ward Charlie Ward Jr. (born October 12, 1970) is a former American professional basketball player. Ward was an exceptional football player as well, winning the Heisman Trophy, Davey O'Brien Award, and College Football National Championship while quart ...

. During his career he won 16 regular tournaments in Europe, including three

Spanish Open Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

s, with his last being the 1968 Portuguese Open at the age of 52. He also won the PGA Seniors Championship on two occasions. His greatest achievement was his victory in the

1951 Open Championship The 1951 Open Championship was the 80th Open Championship, held 4–6 July at Royal Portrush Golf Club in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Until 2019, it was the only time the championship was played outside England or Scotland. In it, Max Faulk ...

at Royal Portrush. With a round still to be played he had a 6-stroke lead and is reported to have signed autographs with the postscript "1951 Open Champion". Helped by what he called a "mystery guiding light", he went on to finish with a score of 3 under par, two ahead of

Antonio Cerdá Antonio Cerdá (10 December 1921 – 28 November 2010) was an Argentine professional golfer. Cerdá finished second in the 1951 Open Championship to Max Faulkner, and second in the 1953 Open Championship to Ben Hogan, among seven consecutive top ...

, and said later "It was all I ever wanted. The Open meant everything to me." Faulkner played in five

Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...

matches, including the historic

1957 1957 (Roman numerals, MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday, common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, t ...

contest at Lindrick where the Great Britain team won for the first time since

1933 Events January * January 11 – 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 independence, against the wis ...

. Faulkner was believed to have over 300

putter A putter is a club used in the sport of golf to make relatively short and low-speed strokes with the intention of rolling the ball into the hole from a short distance away. It is differentiated from the other clubs (typically, irons and woods) ...

s, always searching for the perfect one. He very rarely used a conventional set of

clubs Club may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Club'' (magazine) * Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character * Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards * Club music * "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea'' Brands and enterprises ...

, sometimes having several of the same club with a variety of shaft lengths and flexes. He was known for his shotmaking ability, being able to make the ball curve in the air even on short lofted shots.

Honours

In 2001, on the 50th anniversary of the Open triumph, Faulkner was honoured with an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

for services to golf.

Death

Faulkner lived in his later years at

Pulborough Pulborough is a large village and civil parish in the Horsham district of West Sussex, England, with some 5,000 inhabitants. It is located almost centrally within West Sussex and is south west of London. It is at the junction of the north–south ...

, Sussex and died on 26 February 2005, aged 88, of pneumonia at St Richard's Hospital,

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ...

Professional wins (19)

Important wins (14)

Other wins (3)

*1937

(with

) *1947 West of England Professional Championship *1964 Southern Professional Championship

Senior wins (2)

*1968 PGA Seniors Championship *1970 PGA Seniors Championship

Major championships

Wins (1)

Results timeline

''Note: Faulkner only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1974 Open Championship)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

(representing Great Britain):

1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January– February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the count ...

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – ...

, 1953,

(winners) * Slazenger Trophy (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1956 (winners) * Amateurs–Professionals Match (representing the Professionals): 1956 (winners), 1957 (winners) *

PGA Cup The PGA Cup is a men's golf competition for club professionals played between a Great Britain and Ireland team and a United States team. The winning team is presented with the Llandudno Trophy. The competition is run by the British PGA and the ...

(representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1975

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Faulkner, Max English male golfers Winners of men's major golf championships Ryder Cup competitors for Europe Officers of the Order of the British Empire Royal Air Force Physical Training instructors People from Bexhill-on-Sea 1916 births 2005 deaths