George Lyon (golfer)
Encyclopedia
George Seymour Lyon was a Canadian
golf
er, an Olympic gold medallist, an eight-time Canadian Amateur Championship
winner, and a member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame
.
Lyon was born in Richmond, Ontario
, near Ottawa
. His early sporting career was in cricket
. Although he began playing golf at the age of 38, he won the gold medal in golf
in the 1904 Summer Olympics
in St. Louis, Missouri
. He won the Canadian Amateur Championship
a record eight times between 1898 and 1914, and won the Canadian Seniors' Golf Association Championship ten times between 1918 and 1930. Lyon lost in the finals of the 1906 U.S. Amateur Championship, and in the semi-finals of the 1908 British Amateur Championship, when in his 50th year. He traveled to London
in 1908 to defend his Olympic title, but plans to stage a golf tournament there were cancelled at the last minute, since representatives from England
and Scotland
were unable to agree on the format, and golf has not been held in the Olympics since.
In 1955, Lyon was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame
. In 1971, he was inducted into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame
.
Lyon died in Toronto, Ontario and was buried in Toronto's Mount Pleasant Cemetery
.
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
DNQ = Did not qualify for match play portion
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10
Source for U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur: USGA Championship Database
Source for 1905 British Open: www.opengolf.com
Source for 1905 British Amateur: Golf, June, 1905, pg. 341.
Source for 1908 British Amateur: The Glasgow Herald, May 28, 1908, pg. 13.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
er, an Olympic gold medallist, an eight-time Canadian Amateur Championship
Canadian Amateur Championship
The Canadian Amateur Championship, begun in 1895, is the men's amateur golf championship of Canada. It is staged annually by the Royal Canadian Golf Association. It was played at match play until 1968, went to stroke play beginning in 1969, and reverted to match play in 1995...
winner, and a member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame
Canada's Sports Hall of Fame
Canada's Sports Hall of Fame is a hall of fame established in 1955 to "preserve the record of Canadian sports achievements and to promote a greater awareness of Canada's heritage of sport." It is located at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta...
.
Lyon was born in Richmond, Ontario
Richmond, Ontario
Richmond is a Canadian village. Founded in 1818, it spans the Jock River, a tributary of the Rideau River. Like many communities in eastern Ontario, Richmond houses several unique populations. Some residents have historic and economic roots in the immediate area. Richmond operates as a small core...
, near Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
. His early sporting career was in cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
. Although he began playing golf at the age of 38, he won the gold medal in golf
Golf at the 1904 Summer Olympics
At the 1904 Summer Olympics, two golf events were contested – men's individual and team tournaments. The competitions were held from September 17, 1904 to September 24, 1904....
in the 1904 Summer Olympics
1904 Summer Olympics
The 1904 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the III Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in St. Louis, Missouri, in the United States from 1 July 1904, to November 23, 1904, at what is now known as Francis Field on the campus of Washington University...
in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. He won the Canadian Amateur Championship
Canadian Amateur Championship
The Canadian Amateur Championship, begun in 1895, is the men's amateur golf championship of Canada. It is staged annually by the Royal Canadian Golf Association. It was played at match play until 1968, went to stroke play beginning in 1969, and reverted to match play in 1995...
a record eight times between 1898 and 1914, and won the Canadian Seniors' Golf Association Championship ten times between 1918 and 1930. Lyon lost in the finals of the 1906 U.S. Amateur Championship, and in the semi-finals of the 1908 British Amateur Championship, when in his 50th year. He traveled to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1908 to defend his Olympic title, but plans to stage a golf tournament there were cancelled at the last minute, since representatives from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
were unable to agree on the format, and golf has not been held in the Olympics since.
In 1955, Lyon was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame
Canada's Sports Hall of Fame
Canada's Sports Hall of Fame is a hall of fame established in 1955 to "preserve the record of Canadian sports achievements and to promote a greater awareness of Canada's heritage of sport." It is located at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta...
. In 1971, he was inducted into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame
Canadian Golf Hall of Fame
The Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum and hall of fame covering the history of the game of golf in Canada, and celebrating the careers and accomplishments of the most significant contributors to the game in that country...
.
Lyon died in Toronto, Ontario and was buried in Toronto's Mount Pleasant Cemetery
Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto
Mount Pleasant Cemetery is a cemetery located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.In the early 19th century, the only authorized cemeteries within the city of Toronto were limited to the members of either the Roman Catholic Church or the Church of England...
.
Tournament wins
- 1898 Canadian Amateur
- 1900 Canadian Amateur
- 1903 Canadian Amateur
- 1905 Canadian Amateur
- 1906 Canadian Amateur
- 1907 Canadian Amateur
- 1912 Canadian Amateur
- 1914 Canadian Amateur
Results timeline
Note: Lyon played in only the British. Open, U.S. Amateur, and the British Amateur.| Tournament | 1900 | 1901 | 1902 | 1903 | 1904 | 1905 | 1906 | 1907 | 1908 | 1909 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Open Championship The Open Championship The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico... |
DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T80 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| The Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which is held annually in the United Kingdom. It is one of the two leading individual tournaments for amateur golfers, alongside the U.S. Amateur... |
DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | R64 | DNP | DNP | R32 | DNP |
| U.S. Amateur | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | R32 | 2 | R16 | DNP | DNP |
| Tournament | 1910 | 1911 | 1912 | 1913 | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Open Championship The Open Championship The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico... |
DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | NT | NT | NT | NT | NT |
| The Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which is held annually in the United Kingdom. It is one of the two leading individual tournaments for amateur golfers, alongside the U.S. Amateur... |
DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | NT | NT | NT | NT | NT |
| U.S. Amateur | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | R32 | DNP | NT | NT | DNP |
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
DNQ = Did not qualify for match play portion
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10
Source for U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur: USGA Championship Database
Source for 1905 British Open: www.opengolf.com
Source for 1905 British Amateur: Golf, June, 1905, pg. 341.
Source for 1908 British Amateur: The Glasgow Herald, May 28, 1908, pg. 13.
External links
- George Seymour Lyon at The Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...
- Profile at Canadian Golf Hall of Fame
- George Seymour Lyon