Max Faulkner

For the actor and stuntman, see Max Faulkner (actor).
Max Faulkner
 Golfer 
Personal information
Full name Herbert Gustavus Max Faulkner
Born (1916-07-29)29 July 1916
Bexhill-on-Sea, England
Died 26 February 2005(2005-02-26) (aged 88)
Nationality  England
Career
Status Professional
Professional wins 20
Best results in major championships
(wins: 1)
Masters Tournament DNP
U.S. Open DNP
The Open Championship Won: 1951
PGA Championship DNP
Achievements and awards
Officer of the Order
of the British Empire
2001

Herbert Gustavus Max Faulkner, OBE (29 July 1916 – 26 February 2005) was an English professional golfer who won The Open Championship in 1951[1] and was renowned for his colourful dress sense.[2]

Faulkner was born in Bexhill-on-Sea, the son of a club professional who had once been assistant to James Braid. During World War II he served in the RAF as a Physical Training (PT) instructor.[3] He hardly played any golf during this time, but took up boxing instead, becoming services champion.[4]

Faulkner's tournament career began in 1946, shortly after the war. He won 16 regular tournaments in Europe, including three Spanish Opens, 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 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".[5] Helped by what he called a "mystery guiding light",[6] he went on to finish with a score of 3 under par, two ahead of Antonio Cerdá, and said later "It was all I ever wanted. The Open meant everything to me."[2][7]

Faulkner played in the Ryder Cup Matches on five occasions, including the historic 1957 contest at Lindrick when the Great Britain team won for the only time between 1933 and 1985 (Europe).[2]

Faulkner was believed to have over 300 putters, always searching for the perfect one. He very rarely used a conventional set of clubs, 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.[6]

In 2001, on the 50th anniversary of the Open triumph, Faulkner was honoured with an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to golf.[5] He died in 2005 at the age of 88.

Tournament wins

this list is incomplete

Regular career

Senior

Major championships

Wins (1)

YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up
1951 The Open Championship 6 shot lead −3 (71-70-70-74=285) 2 strokes Argentina Antonio Cerdá

Results timeline

Of the four majors, Faulkner only played The Open Championship.

1947 1948 1949
T32 T15 T6
1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
T5 1 T17 12 T20 T35 DNP T9 T16 CUT
1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
DNP DNP CUT T20 T38 T10 CUT CUT CUT T30
1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975
CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT

DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

Team appearances

References

  1. "1951 Max Faulkner". The Open. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 Farrell, Andy (2 March 2005). "Max Faulkner; Flamboyant golfer who won the Open in 1951". The Independent. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
  3. "Max Faulkner". Daily Telegraph. 2 March 2005. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
  4. Rees, Michael (February 2009). "Legends of the game ... Max Faulkner" (PDF). Tee Times. p. 50. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
  5. 1 2 "Faulkner's reward for Open triumph". BBC Sport. 31 December 2001. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
  6. 1 2 Alliss, Peter (1983). The Who's Who of Golf. Orbis Publishing. p. 240. ISBN 0-85613-520-8.
  7. "Max Faulkner, former Open winner, dies aged 88". Golf Today. 2005. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
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