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Maurice Bembridge

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Maurice Bembridge
Bembridge in 2010
Personal information
Full nameMaurice Bembridge
Born(1945-02-21)21 February 1945
Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England
Died2 March 2024(2024-03-02) (aged 79)
Uzwil, Switzerland
Height5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Sporting nationality England
Career
Turned professional1960
Former tour(s)European Tour
New Zealand Golf Circuit
Safari Circuit
European Seniors Tour
Professional wins20
Number of wins by tour
European Tour6
European Senior Tour2
Other12
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT9: 1974
PGA ChampionshipDNP
U.S. OpenDNP
The Open Championship5th: 1968

Maurice Bembridge (21 February 1945 – 2 March 2024) was an English professional golfer. Early in his career he had some success on the British PGA, winning the 1969 News of the World Match Play and the 1971 Dunlop Masters. He would go on to win six times on the British PGA's successor circuit, the European Tour. He also had some success overseas, winning the New Zealand Golf Circuit's Caltex Tournament in 1970 and the Kenya Open three times. In addition, Bembridge broke Augusta National Golf Club's course record at the 1974 Masters Tournament with a 64. Late in his career, Bembridge had some success on the European Senior Tour, winning twice.

Professional career

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Bembridge turned professional at an early age in 1960 and was an assistant at Worksop Golf Club. In 1966 he won the Llandudno Assistant Professionals' Tournament and was a runner-up in the Gor-Ray Cup, the PGA Assistants’ Championship, behind Vince Hood.[1][2] In 1967 Bembridge moved to Little Aston Golf Club and had more success, winning the Gor-Ray Cup and the Hesketh Assistant Professionals' Tournament.[3][4] Bembridge qualified for the Open Championship in both 1966 and 1967, although he missed the cut on both occasions. In 1967 he led the qualifiers at Delamere Forest Golf Club.

In April 1968, Bembridge had his first overseas success, winning the Kenya Open, two strokes ahead of Terry Westbrook.[5] Later in the year he finished 5th in the Open Championship, four shots behind winner Gary Player and was the leading British golfer. In April 1969 Bembridge retained his Kenya Open title.[6] In June he won the Sumrie Better-Ball, which he and Ángel Gallardo won by a shot from Hedley Muscroft and Lionel Platts. In July he was selected for the Ryder Cup at Royal Birkdale, to be played in late September. In early September, Bembridge had his first big solo tournament win, the News of the World Match Play, where he beat 56-year-old Dai Rees 6&5 in the 18-hole final.[7] Bembridge performed well in the tied Ryder Cup match with two wins and a half in his five matches. His victory in the News of the World Match Play earned Bembridge an invitation to play in the 1969 Piccadilly World Match Play Championship, where he lost 6&5 to Bob Charles.[8]

In 1971 Bembridge had his first important British stroke-play victory, taking the Dunlop Masters, two strokes ahead of Peter Oosterhuis.[9]

Bembridge played on the European Tour from its foundation in 1972. In March 1972 he won the Lusaka Open in Zambia, by a stroke from Doug McClelland, having started with a 63, but he only finished 19th in the European Tour Order of Merit that season.[10][11] He finished second in the European Tour Order of Merit was second in 1973. He won the Martini International, was third three times and had a number of other top-10 finishes.[12] Bembridge won three times on the 1974 European Tour, the Piccadilly Medal, the Double Diamond Strokeplay and the Viyella PGA Championship but was less consistent, finishing 12th in the Order of Merit. He won again in 1975, the German Open where he won by 7 strokes. He was also runner-up in the Benson & Hedges Festival of Golf and finished 11th in the Order of Merit.[13]

After 1975 his best year was 1979 when he won his third Kenya Open and had his final European Tour win in the Benson & Hedges International Open, a result that lifted him to 18th in the Order of Merit.[14] He also came close to winning the 1982 Irish Open where he was runner-up, a stroke behind John O'Leary.[15] Bembridge continued playing on the European Tour but with less success, his final season being 1987.

After turning fifty Bembridge played on the European Senior Tour, winning twice at that level, the 1996 Hippo Jersey Seniors and the 1998 Swedish Seniors. He was also runner-up in the 2001 De Vere PGA Seniors Championship and was twice in the top 10 of the Order of Merit, 7th in 1996 and 9th in 1997. He was a member of the European Senior Tour committee for nine years and was its chairman from 2007 to 2011.[16]

Death

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Bembridge died from cancer on 2 March 2024, at the age of 79.[17][18][19][20]

Professional wins (20)

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European Tour wins (6)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 9 Jun 1973 Martini International −9 (70-68-67-74=279) 1 stroke Wales Dai Rees, England Peter Wilcock
2 25 May 1974 Piccadilly Medal −8 (65) 5 strokes England Peter Oosterhuis
3 21 Aug 1974 Double Diamond Strokeplay −4 (70-66=136) 1 stroke New Zealand Bob Charles
4 31 Aug 1974 Viyella PGA Championship −10 (76-69-69-64=278) 1 stroke England Peter Oosterhuis
5 3 Aug 1975 German Open +5 (75-72-69-69=285) 7 strokes United States Lon Hinkle, Australia Bob Shearer
6 12 Aug 1979 Benson & Hedges International Open −8 (67-67-69-69=272) 2 strokes Scotland Ken Brown

New Zealand Golf Circuit wins (1)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 21 Nov 1970 Caltex Tournament +2 (69-76-70-71=286) Shared title with New Zealand Terry Kendall

Safari Circuit wins (1)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 17 Mar 1979 Benson & Hedges Kenya Open −13 (67-65-69-70=271) Playoff Scotland Bernard Gallacher

Other European wins (3)

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Other African wins (3)

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Other wins (4)

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  • 1966 Llandudno Assistant Professionals' Tournament
  • 1967 Gor-Ray Cup, Hesketh Assistant Professionals' Tournament, Second City Tournament[21]

European Seniors Tour wins (2)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner(s)-up
1 9 Jun 1996 Hippo Jersey Seniors −14 (68-67-67=202) 7 strokes Italy Roberto Bernardini, Italy Alberto Croce,
Scotland David Huish, South Africa Vincent Tshabalala
2 27 Jun 1998 Swedish Seniors −4 (70-67-72=209) Playoff England Jim Rhodes

European Seniors Tour playoff record (1–0)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1998 Swedish Seniors England Jim Rhodes Won with birdie on first extra hole

Results in major championships

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Tournament 1966 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament
The Open Championship CUT CUT 5 CUT
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Masters Tournament T38 T9 T26 CUT
The Open Championship T13 T60 T19 CUT T44 T16 CUT T56 CUT
Tournament 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986
Masters Tournament
The Open Championship CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT

Note: Bembridge only played in the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship.

  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1969, 1980 and 1981 Open Championships)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Source:[22]

Team appearances

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References

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  1. ^ "Bembridge Winning Assistant". The Glasgow Herald. 23 April 1966. p. 5.
  2. ^ "Assistants' Title for Hood". The Glasgow Herald. 19 August 1966. p. 6.
  3. ^ "Bembridge takes Assistants' Title by Four Strokes". The Glasgow Herald. 18 August 1967. p. 6.
  4. ^ "Six-stroke victory for Bembridge". The Glasgow Herald. 29 September 1967. p. 6.
  5. ^ "Kenya Open". The Age. 23 April 1968. p. 24.
  6. ^ "Gallacher second to Bembridge". The Glasgow Herald. 14 April 1968. p. 5.
  7. ^ "Bembridge overwhelms Rees in final". The Glasgow Herald. 8 September 1969. p. 4.
  8. ^ "Aaron's run of birdies swamps Jacklin". The Times. 10 October 1969. p. 13.
  9. ^ Jacobs, Raymond (4 October 1971). "Bembridge outlasts Peter Oosterhuis with birdie finish". Glasgow Herald.
  10. ^ "Bembridge wins Lusaka Open". The Glasgow Herald. 27 March 1972. p. 5.
  11. ^ "Lusaka Open". The Guardian. 27 March 1972. p. 21.
  12. ^ "Sweet Martini for Maurice Bembridge". The Glasgow Herald. 11 June 1973. p. 4.
  13. ^ "Bembridge's seven-stroke victory". The Glasgow Herald. 4 August 1975. p. 15.
  14. ^ "Miss from 3 feet cost Bernie title". The Glasgow Herald. 19 March 1979. p. 20.
  15. ^ "Ireland's prodigal son holds on for victory". The Glasgow Herald. 16 August 1982. p. 14.
  16. ^ "Maurice Bembridge". European Tour. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  17. ^ "Maurice Bembridge (1945-2024)". Professional Golfers' Association. 4 March 2024. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  18. ^ "Todesanzeigen" [Obituaries] (in German). Uzwil municipality. Archived from the original on 9 March 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  19. ^ "Maurice Bembridge, golfer who played in four Ryder Cups and won six European Tour events – obituary". The Telegraph. 10 March 2024. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  20. ^ "Maurice Bembridge obituary". The Times. 25 March 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  21. ^ "Bembridge doubles up". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 23 August 1967. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ Brenner, Morgan G. (2009). The Majors of Golf: Complete Results of the Open, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and the Masters, 1860-2008. Vol. 1. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3360-5.
  23. ^ "British golfers beaten handily". The Glasgow Herald. 5 January 1976. p. 16.
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