Australian · Brunswick, Victoria, Australia · Born 23 August 1929Peter Thomson was an Australian golfer who won The Open Championship five times, including three consecutive titles in the 1950s, becoming the first Australian to win the tournament.
Peter Thomson won five Open Championships, including three consecutive titles from 1954 to 1956, and held off Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player when adding a fifth at Royal Birkdale in 1965 — a record that makes him the finest Australian golfer in the sport's history and among the most strategically intelligent players ever to compete. He learned the game on a nine-hole course near Melbourne Zoo during World War II, scrounging hickory clubs and balls found between hedgerows, and turned professional at 20 in 1949 after winning several amateur titles. Thomson made his Open Championship debut in 1951, finishing sixth, and then produced one of the greatest sustained runs in the tournament's history: from 1952 to 1958 he finished either first or second every year, winning four times, including three consecutive titles from 1954 to 1956 — a feat matched by only three other players in the tournament's long history. He added a fifth Open title in 1965, holding off Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player at Royal Birkdale to join Harry Vardon, James Braid, and J.H. Taylor among the game's most decorated major champions. Described by Peter Alliss as 'the first person to play golf as if it were chess,' Thomson built his success on strategic course management rather than power, thriving on the firm, fast-running seaside courses he grew up playing in Melbourne. He also won the New Zealand Open a record nine times and the Australian Open three times, and captained the International team to its only Presidents Cup victory over the United States in 1998, played in his native Melbourne. He later enjoyed a hugely successful career on the U.S. Senior Tour, winning a record nine times in 1985 alone. Thomson served as president of the Australian PGA for over 30 years and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Winning The Open Championship five times, including three consecutive titles
How They Played
Strategic, low-ball links specialist renowned for course management over raw power
Lasting Impact
The first great Australian golfer on the world stage and one of only a handful of players to win The Open three years running
Career Honours
- 5x Open Champion (1954, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1965)
- First Australian to win The Open
- 3x consecutive Open Championship winner (1954-1956)
- 9x New Zealand Open champion
- 3x Australian Open champion
- World Golf Hall of Fame
Australian Athletes