Peter Thomson (golfer)

Peter William Thomson (23 August 1929 – 20 June 2018) was an Australian professional golfer. In the late 1940s, Thomson turned pro and had much success on the Australasian circuits, culminating with a win at the 1951 Australian Open. He then moved onto the PGA Tour, playing on the circuit in 1953 and 1954, but did not have much success, failing to win. He decided to focus on Europe thereafter with extraordinary success, winning dozens of tournaments on the British PGA, including Open Championship five times. As a senior, Thomson continued with success, winning 11 times on the Senior PGA Tour. He is generally regarded as one of the greatest golfers of all-time.

Early life
Thomson was born in Brunswick, a northern suburb of Melbourne, Australia.

Professional career
Thomson's Open Championship wins came in 1954, 1955, 1956, 1958, and 1965. He was the only man to win the tournament for three consecutive years in the 20th century.

Thomson was a prolific tournament champion around the world, winning the national championships of ten countries, including the New Zealand Open nine times. He competed on the PGA Tour in 1953 and 1954 with relatively little success (finishing 44th and 25th on the money list), and after that was an infrequent competitor. However, in 1956, playing in just eight events, he won the rich Texas International Open, and achieved his best finish in one of the three majors staged in the United States (fourth at the U.S. Open), to finish ninth on the money list.

In the era, that Thomson won his first four Open Championships, few of the leading professionals from the United States travelled to Britain to play in that event. At that time, the prize money in the Open was insufficient for an American to cover their expenses. However, Thomson demonstrated with his win in 1965 that he could beat a field of the world's best players, as that victory came against a field that included Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tony Lema, three of the top four American golfers from the 1964 money list.

Thomson enjoyed a successful senior career. In 1985 he won nine times on the Senior PGA Tour in the United States, and finished top of the money list. His last tournament victory came at the 1988 British PGA Seniors Championship. He was president of the Australian PGA from 1962 to 1994 and a victorious non-playing captain of the international team in the 1998 Presidents Cup.

Thomson was active as a golf writer, contributing to The Age of Melbourne for some 50 years from the early 1950s. His local club was Victoria Golf Club. He was an honorary member of Royal Melbourne Golf Club. Thomson designed over a hundred golf courses in Australia and around the world.

Death
Thomson died in Melbourne on 20 June 2018 after a four-year battle with Parkinson's disease, at the age of 88.

Awards and honors

 * In 1955, he was selected as ABC Sportsman of the Year.
 * In 1957, he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in recognition of his services to Australia in the sporting and international sphere.
 * In 1979, appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for service to the sport of golf.
 * Thomson was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985.
 * Thomson was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1988.
 * In 1997, The Peter Thomson Trophy, an annual contested between the eight Melbourne Sandbelt golf clubs, was inaugurated.
 * In 2001, he was awarded the Centenary Medal.
 * In 2001, he was elected an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO)
 * In 2011, he was inducted into the Victorian Golf Industry Hall of Fame.
 * In 2016, he was inducted as inaugural Immortal of the PGA of Australia.

Amateur wins

 * 1947 Australasian Foursomes Shield (with Dick Payne)
 * 1948 Victorian Amateur Championship

PGA Tour wins (6)
PGA Tour playoff record (2–0)

PGA of Japan Tour wins (1)
 * Note: The 1976 Pepsi-Wilson Tournament was shortened to 54 holes due to rain.

PGA of Japan Tour playoff record (1–0)

Other Japan wins (5)

 * 1969 Chunichi Crowns
 * 1971 Dunlop Tournament, Wizard Tournament
 * 1972 Chunichi Crowns, Pepsi Tournament

Asia Golf Circuit wins (5)
Asia Golf Circuit playoff record (2–0)

Other Asian wins (3)

 * 1960 Hong Kong Open
 * 1964 Indian Open
 * 1966 Indian Open

Other Australian wins (24)

 * 1949 Victorian Close Championship
 * 1951 Australian Open, Victorian Close Championship
 * 1952 Victorian PGA Championship, Mobilco Tournament
 * 1953 Victorian PGA Championship
 * 1954 Ampol Tournament (Nov)
 * 1955 Wiseman's Tournament, Pelaco Tournament, Speedo Tournament
 * 1956 Pelaco Tournament
 * 1958 Victorian Open, Pelaco Tournament
 * 1959 Pelaco Tournament, Coles Tournament
 * 1960 Wills Classic
 * 1961 Adelaide Advertiser Tournament, New South Wales Open
 * 1963 Lakes Open
 * 1967 Australian PGA Championship, Australian Open
 * 1968 South Australian Open, Victorian Open
 * 1972 Australian Open

Other New Zealand wins (10)

 * 1950 New Zealand Open
 * 1951 New Zealand Open
 * 1953 New Zealand Open, New Zealand PGA Championship
 * 1955 New Zealand Open, Caltex Tournament
 * 1959 New Zealand Open, Caltex Tournament
 * 1960 New Zealand Open
 * 1961 New Zealand Open

Other wins (1)

 * 1952 Mills Round Robin (South Africa)

Senior PGA Tour wins (11)
Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

Wins (5)
1Defeated Dave Thomas in 36-hole playoff; Thomson (139), Thomas (143)

Results timeline
Note: Thomson never played in the PGA Championship. {{legend|lime|Win}} {{legend|yellow|Top 10}} {{legend|#eeeeee|Did not play}} CUT = missed the halfway cut (3rd round cut in 1975 and 1984 Open Championships) DQ = disqualified "T" indicates a tie for a place.

Summary

 * Most consecutive cuts made – 10 (1954 Open Championship – 1958 Open Championship)
 * Longest streak of top-10s – 4 (1955 Open Championship – 1957 Masters)

Wins (1)
a This was the December edition of the tournament.

Team appearances
Amateur
 * Australian Men's Interstate Teams Matches (representing Victoria): 1948 (winners)

Professional
 * World Cup (representing Australia): 1953, 1954 (winners), 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959 (winners), 1960, 1961, 1962, 1965, 1969
 * Lakes International Cup (representing Australia): 1952
 * Slazenger Trophy (representing British Commonwealth and Empire): 1956
 * Presidents Cup (representing International): 1996 (non-playing captain), 1998 (non-playing captain, winners), 2000 (non-playing captain)
 * Hopkins Trophy (representing Canada): 1952
 * Vicars Shield (representing Victoria): 1951 (winners), 1952 (winners), 1953 (winners)