We take it for granted that current Walker Cup Matches are evenly contested. (The United States of America holds a 7-6 advantage since 1995.) That wasn’t the case 50 years ago, which is why the 1971 Walker Cup still stands out as one of Great Britain and Ireland’s crowning moments in the biennial match.
The outcome of the Walker Cup had become something of a foregone conclusion by the time the respective teams of GB&I and the USA arrived in the auld grey toon of St. Andrews, Scotland, for the 23rd playing for the cup George Herbert Walker bequeathed to golf. USA teams had held that trophy since 1947, winning 11 and halving the 1965 match. One win for GB&I in 22 matches, a 7-4 victory over the Old Course in 1938, did not signal a great deal of hope for the home side on the 50th anniversary of the first unofficial match at Royal Liverpool.
Indeed, Financial Times golf writer and future CBS announcer Ben Wright called the home team “one of the weakest in living memory.” He was so confident GB&I would lose, he promised to jump in the Swilcan Burn if proved wrong.
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Wright was a worried man when a Sir Michael Bonallack-led team swept the opening foursomes, 4-0. Wright’s confidence soared when the visitors romped to a 6½–1½ afternoon singles victory to take a one-point lead, 6½-5½, into the final day.
The USA’s chance of holding onto the trophy for another two years, and Wright keeping his clothes dry, seemed almost assured with a 2½–1½ morning foursomes advantage to take a two-point lead (9-7) into the final session.
Bonallack lost the opening match to future PGA Championship winner (1977) Lanny Wadkins as the USA went three points ahead, needing just two points to retain the trophy and two and a half to win. However, the next six GB&I players – Hugh Stuart, Warren Humphreys, Charlie Green, Roddy Carr, George Macgregor and Dr. David Marsh – all won their matches. Future U.S. Open champion (1992) Tom Kite bookended the session by beating Geoffrey Marks.
GB&I had broken the USA’s stranglehold.
Charlie Green achieved much as a career amateur. The 1971 Walker Cup at St. Andrews was Green’s greatest moment in the game. Speaking before his death in 2013, the Scotsman said:
“Winning the Walker Cup was a great thrill, and to do it at St. Andrews was brilliant. The last nine holes coming in sounded more like a football match than a golf tournament. We hadn’t won in so long, and everyone was desperate for us to win. The cheers ringing around the place were unreal. That was the highlight of my career.”
And Wright’s promise? The Englishman reneged. The victorious team went looking for him only to find he’d escaped out the back of the press tent. It was the only disappointment the GB&I team experienced that historic week.
Alistair Tait is an English-based writer who has been covering the game across Europe for more than 30 years. Email him at alistair.tait@btinterent.com
