John Panton


John Panton, MBE was a Scottish professional golfer, who represented Great Britain three times in the Ryder Cup.

Career

Panton was born in Pitlochry. He turned professional in 1935 and took up a job in the local golf club shop. After serving in the army during World War II, Panton went on to win many prestigious tournaments including the 1950 Silver King Tournament, the 1951 Daks Tournament, and the 1952 North British-Harrogate Tournament, and 1956 PGA Match Play Championship. He also won the Woodlawn Invitation Open in Germany for three consecutive years from 1958.
In Scotland, he dominated, with eight victories in the Scottish Professionals Championship and seven in the Northern Open between 1948 and 1966.
In addition to tournament golf, Panton also served as a club professional at Glenbervie Golf Club until 1984. Later in his career, he won the PGA Seniors Championship twice, in 1967 and 1969, and the World Senior Championship in 1967, defeating Sam Snead 3 and 2 in the final.
Panton was appointed honorary professional to The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews in 1988, a position he held until his retirement in 2006. In 2005, he was made an honorary life member of the European Tour.
As well as his Ryder Cup appearances in 1951, 1953 and 1961, Panton also represented Scotland 13 times in the World Cup between 1955 and 1968.

Personal life

Panton's daughter, Catherine Panton-Lewis, is a professional golfer and was a founding member of the Ladies European Tour.
In common with Arnold Palmer, Panton had a beverage named after him in his home country. A John Panton is a drink consisting of angostura bitters, ginger beer mixed with a dash of lime cordial.

Professional wins

This list is incomplete
Tournament1940194119421943194419451946194719481949
The Open ChampionshipNTNTNTNTNTNTCUTCUT

Tournament1950195119521953195419551956195719581959
The Open ChampionshipT2011T15T27CUTCUT5T15CUTT5

Tournament1960196119621963196419651966196719681969
The Open ChampionshipT32T16CUTT34T10T50T47CUT45

Tournament19701971197219731974
The Open ChampionshipT9CUTCUTCUTT56

Note: Panton only played in The Open Championship.
NT = No tournament

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

  • Ryder Cup : 1951, 1953, 1961
  • World Cup : 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968
  • Joy Cup : 1954, 1956
  • Amateurs–Professionals Match : 1956
  • R.T.V. International Trophy : 1967