Eric Lester

Eric George Lester (14 September 1917 – 18 May 1996)[1][2] was an English professional golfer. 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. He also had a successful seniors career winning the 1974 PGA Seniors Championship. He played for the British Isles in the 1956 Joy Cup but never made the Ryder Cup team. At 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m), he was noted as being one of the taller golfers of his generation.

Eric Lester
Personal information
Full nameEric George Lester
Born(1917-09-14)14 September 1917
West Bromwich, England
Died18 May 1996(1996-05-18) (aged 78)
Bristol, England
Height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Nationality England
Career
Turned professional1950
Professional wins6
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipDNP
U.S. OpenDNP
The Open ChampionshipT8: 1958

Golf career

In 1953, 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 for the lowest single-round score by a British or Irish player, shared with Dai Rees.

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.[3] He beat John Fallon 4&3 and Arthur Lees 5&4 to reach the semi-finals.[4] He beat Dai Rees 5&3 to reach the final and then beat Antonio Cerdá 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.[5]

Lester won the 1956 Swallow-Penfold Tournament at The Royal Burgess Golfing Society course at Barnton, Edinburgh. His total of 275 put him a stroke ahead of Max Faulkner and earned him the £1,000 first prize.[6]

Lester tied with Harold Henning in the 1959 Spalding Tournament at Moor Park Golf Club. Both players scored 278 and shared the first and second prizes, taking home £250 each.[7]

56-year-old Lester won the 1974 PGA Seniors Championship at Lundin Links. His 282 was 4 shots better than Ken Bousfield and gave him the £750 first prize.[8] Two days later he played Roberto De Vicenzo for the World Senior Championship but lost 5&4.[9]

Tournament wins

this list may be incomplete

Results in major championships
Tournament 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
The Open Championship T17 T20 CUT T22 T15 T8 T35
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
The Open Championship T25 CUT CUT T47 CUT
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974
The Open Championship CUT

Note: Lester only played in The Open Championship.

  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances
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References
  1. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVZD-VHH4
  2. https://probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Wills?Surname=lester&SurnameGrants=lester&FirstName=eric&FirstNameGrants=eric&YearOfDeath=1996&YearOfDeathGrants=1996&AdvancedSearch=True&IsGrantSearch=True&IsCalendarSearch=False#willsM
  3. "Harrogate win for Locke". The Glasgow Herald. 23 July 1954. p. 4.
  4. "Glasgow professional in last four". The Glasgow Herald. 25 July 1954. p. 2.
  5. "Lester wins at Oakdale". The Glasgow Herald. 26 July 1954. p. 9.
  6. "First major tournament win for E G Lester – Strain imposed on Barnton leaders". The Glasgow Herald. 21 May 1956. p. 8.
  7. "Lester and Henning tie for Spalding". The Glasgow Herald. 25 April 1959. p. 9.
  8. "Lester wins despite two bad lapses". The Glasgow Herald. 4 July 1974. p. 5.
  9. "Vicenzo takes World Senior Championship". The Glasgow Herald. 6 July 1974. p. 5.
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