The golfing world has paid glowing tributes to Australian legend Peter Thomson, who passed away yesterday at his Melbourne home aged 88 after a four-year battle with Parkinson’s disease.
Thomson became the first Australian to win the Open Championship in 1954 and would count five Claret Jugs among his trophy collection with the last coming in 1965. He won a total of 84 professional titles worldwide and in 1985 won a record nine times of the PGA Senior Tour.
“Peter was a true gentleman and will be forever remembered throughout the world of golf as one of the great champions of our wonderful sport. Peter gave me a number of very interesting and valuable thoughts on the game, how it has developed and where it is going which demonstrated his genuine interest and love of golf,” said Martin Slumbers, chief executive of The R&A.
Off the course, Thomson was an outstanding contributor to the game, serving as president of the Australian PGA for 32 years. He also designed many golf courses in Australia and beyond, including Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Golf & Country Club in Malaysia. Thomson had extremely close ties with Malaysia, playing here on numerous occasions and also also lent his expertise to the creation of the Malaysian-made Thommo ball in the 1990s.
18-time Major winner Jack Nicklaus lauded the career and character of Thomson, who was captain of the only Presidents Cup International team to beat the Americans in 1998 with Nicklaus as opposing captain.
“Peter Thomson was a great golfer and a wonderful ambassador for the game. Peter and I were competitors over the years, and then became good friends when we had the opportunity to captain against each other in the 1998 Presidents Cup in 1998 — the same year we honored him at the Memorial Tournament. The more I got to know Peter, the more I realized he had a very good sense of humor and an unwavering love for the game,” Nicklaus posted on social media.
“Peter and I then had the opportunity to play together a fair number of times throughout the years. He always played the game as it should be played—with great competitiveness, respect, integrity and sportsmanship. Any golfer who won five Open titles had to be a very special player, and Peter was. But while that record certainly cemented Peter’s place in history, it might have been Peter’s ability to give back to the game after his years of competition that will underline his global legacy,” he added.
Australia’s current top golfer Jason Day tweeted: “Peter gave all Australian golfers something to aspire to both on the golf course and off it. His stamp on our game won’t be forgotten.”
In 1979, Thomson was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his service to golf and in 2001 became an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO). He is survived by his wife Mary, son Andrew, daughters Deirdre Baker, Pan Prendergast and Fiona Stanway, 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
