Gordon J. Brand
Encyclopedia
Gordon John Brand is an English
professional golf
er.
Brand turned professional in 1976 and enjoyed full playing privileges on the European Tour for 20 years. During his time on tour, he finished inside the top 30 on the Order of Merit seven times and inside the top-100 16 times. His highest ranking came in 1986, fifth place, in which year he finished as runner-up to Greg Norman
in The Open Championship
at Turnberry. Brand is also remembered for recording a hole in one at the 16th hole during the 1981 Open Championship
at Royal St George's Golf Club
. In that year he won the Tooting Bec Cup
after posting a round of 65. Gordon repeated this feat again in 1986 on his way to finishing runner-up.
In 1989, Brand won his sole European Tour event winning by four shots at the Volvo Belgian Open at Royal Waterloo G.C., Brussels. He was also very successful in Africa, winning on the continent seven times notably winning the Open de Côte d'Ivoire no fewer than three times.
Brand played in the 1983 Ryder Cup
, represented England at the 1983 World Cup and was part of the 1986 and winning 1987 Alfred Dunhill Cup
teams. Brands win against Sam Torrance
helped, alongside Nick Faldo
and Howard Clark beat Scotland on the final day to secure the title.
After a successful golfing career, Brand went on to work for the European Tour as a tournament referee before quitting in 2005 to play on the European Seniors Tour
.
Since turning 50 and joining the European Seniors Tour in 2005 Brand has five victory's to his name, the most memorable coming at the 2008 The De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship. After a 72-hole score of 4-over par, Brand and Gordon Brand, Jnr
of Scotland played a record equaling six hole playoff, with Gordon J. Brand winning the sixth extra hole with a par putt on the par 3 17th after playing the 18th hole five times. After his win, Brand credited his wife Lyn, a former Ladies European Tour
player for a putting tip suggested to him before the final round. A week later, Brand also won the Travis Perkins Senior Masters at Woburn Golf Club. With that win, Brand finished a senior career best second on the Order of Merit behind former Masters champion Ian Woosnam
. Since finishing second on the Order of Merit in 2008, Gordon has struggled for form finishing 21st and 15th in 2009 and 2010 Order of Merits respectively, posting only five top-10 finishes.
Gordon J. Brand should not be confused with his Scottish contemporary Gordon Brand, Jnr
.
European Seniors Tour playoff record (2-0)
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for a wins. Yellow background for top-10
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...
professional 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.
Brand turned professional in 1976 and enjoyed full playing privileges on the European Tour for 20 years. During his time on tour, he finished inside the top 30 on the Order of Merit seven times and inside the top-100 16 times. His highest ranking came in 1986, fifth place, in which year he finished as runner-up to Greg Norman
Greg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO is an Australian professional golfer and entrepreneur who spent 331 weeks as the world's Number 1 ranked golfer in the 1980s and 1990s...
in 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...
at Turnberry. Brand is also remembered for recording a hole in one at the 16th hole during the 1981 Open Championship
1981 Open Championship
The 1981 Open Championship was the 110th Open Championship held from 16-19 July at Royal St George's Golf Club in Sandwich, England. Bill Rogers won his first major championship by four strokes over Bernhard Langer.-First round:-Second round:...
at Royal St George's Golf Club
Royal St George's Golf Club
The Royal St George's Golf Club is one of the premier golf clubs in the United Kingdom, and one of the courses on The Open Championship rotation. It has hosted 13 Open championships since 1894, when it became the first club outside Scotland to host the championship...
. In that year he won the Tooting Bec Cup
Tooting Bec Cup
The Tooting Bec Cup is a trophy awarded each year by the Professional Golfers' Association of Great Britain and Ireland to the association member born in, or with a parent or parents born in, the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland who returns the lowest single-round score in The Open...
after posting a round of 65. Gordon repeated this feat again in 1986 on his way to finishing runner-up.
In 1989, Brand won his sole European Tour event winning by four shots at the Volvo Belgian Open at Royal Waterloo G.C., Brussels. He was also very successful in Africa, winning on the continent seven times notably winning the Open de Côte d'Ivoire no fewer than three times.
Brand played in the 1983 Ryder Cup
1983 Ryder Cup
The 25th Ryder Cup Matches were held at the PGA National Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.The United States team won the competition by a score of 14½ to 13½ points but for the first time the Europeans showed that they had the ability to compete at their level and that it would only be a...
, represented England at the 1983 World Cup and was part of the 1986 and winning 1987 Alfred Dunhill Cup
Alfred Dunhill Cup
The Alfred Dunhill Cup was a team golf tournament which ran from 1985 to 2000. It was for three man teams of professional golfers, one team representing each country, and was promoted as the "World Team Championship". It was a "special approved event" on the European Tour, which means that it was...
teams. Brands win against Sam Torrance
Sam Torrance
Sam Torrance OBE is a Scottish professional golfer and sports commentator. He was one of the leading players on the European Tour from the mid 1970s to the late 1990s, with 21 Tour wins. Torrance was a member of European Ryder Cup teams on eight occasions, from 1981 to 1995 consecutively; he was...
helped, alongside Nick Faldo
Nick Faldo
Sir Nicholas Alexander "Nick" Faldo, MBE is an English professional golfer on the European Tour who now mainly works as an on air golf analyst. Over his career, he has won six majors: three Open Championships and three Masters. He was ranked the World No...
and Howard Clark beat Scotland on the final day to secure the title.
After a successful golfing career, Brand went on to work for the European Tour as a tournament referee before quitting in 2005 to play on the European Seniors Tour
European Seniors Tour
The European Seniors Tour is a professional tour for male golfers aged 50 and over run by the PGA European Tour.The Tour was founded in 1992. In 2008 it had a total prize fund of €7,729,284, so it is much further behind the U.S.-based Champions Tour in relative prize money than the main European...
.
Since turning 50 and joining the European Seniors Tour in 2005 Brand has five victory's to his name, the most memorable coming at the 2008 The De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship. After a 72-hole score of 4-over par, Brand and Gordon Brand, Jnr
Gordon Brand, Jnr
Gordon Brand, Jnr is a Scottish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour.Brand was born in Kirkcaldy. He turned professional in 1981 and quickly achieved success. He won that year's European Tour Qualifying School, and went on to win two European Tour events in his rookie season...
of Scotland played a record equaling six hole playoff, with Gordon J. Brand winning the sixth extra hole with a par putt on the par 3 17th after playing the 18th hole five times. After his win, Brand credited his wife Lyn, a former Ladies European Tour
Ladies European Tour
The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1979. It is based in England. Like many UK-based sports organisations it is a company limited by guarantee, a legal structure which enables it to focus on maximising returns to its members through prize money,...
player for a putting tip suggested to him before the final round. A week later, Brand also won the Travis Perkins Senior Masters at Woburn Golf Club. With that win, Brand finished a senior career best second on the Order of Merit behind former Masters champion Ian Woosnam
Ian Woosnam
Ian Harold Woosnam OBE is a Welsh professional golfer.Nicknamed 'Woosie', 'Woosers', or the 'Wee Welshman', Woosnam was one of the "Big Five" generation of European golfers, all born within 12 months of one another, all of whom have won majors, and made Europe competitive in the Ryder Cup...
. Since finishing second on the Order of Merit in 2008, Gordon has struggled for form finishing 21st and 15th in 2009 and 2010 Order of Merits respectively, posting only five top-10 finishes.
Gordon J. Brand should not be confused with his Scottish contemporary Gordon Brand, Jnr
Gordon Brand, Jnr
Gordon Brand, Jnr is a Scottish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour.Brand was born in Kirkcaldy. He turned professional in 1981 and quickly achieved success. He won that year's European Tour Qualifying School, and went on to win two European Tour events in his rookie season...
.
European Tour wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning Score | Margin of Victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 May 1989 | Volvo Belgian Open | 6 strokes |  Mark DavisMark Davis (golfer) Mark Davis is an English professional golfer.Davis was born in Brentwood, Essex. He won the Brabazon Trophy in 1984 and turned professional two years later.... |
Other wins (7)
- 1981 (1) Open de Côte d'Ivoire
- 1983 (1) Nigerian Open
- 1986 (2) Open de Côte d'Ivoire, Nigerian Open
- 1987 (1) Zimbabwe OpenZimbabwe OpenThe Zimbabwe Open is a golf tournament on the Sunshine Tour. It was first played in 1984 and was part of what was known as the Safari Tour, a collection of events in Africa that were played by professionals based on the European Tour during their winter...
- 1988 (2) Open de Côte d'Ivoire, The Leeds Cup
- 1990 (1) Zambia OpenZambia OpenThe Zambia Open is a men's professional golf tournament played in Zambia, that has been part of the Sunshine Tour since 1996, and was co-sanctioned by the European based Challenge Tour from 2001 to 2004...
European Seniors Tour (5)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning Score | Margin of Victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 Oct 2006 2006 European Seniors Tour The 2006 European Seniors Tour was the 15th season of the European Seniors Tour, the professional golf tour for men aged fifty and above operated by the PGA European Tour... |
OKI Castellón Open de España Senior | 2 strokes | Carl Mason Carl Mason Stuart Carl Mason is an English professional golfer.Mason was born in Buxton, Derbyshire. He won several amateur tournaments, before turning professional and becoming something of a journeyman on the European Tour. After twenty years of trying he finally won on tour for the first time in 1994. His... |
|
| 2 | 11 Nov 2006 2006 European Seniors Tour The 2006 European Seniors Tour was the 15th season of the European Seniors Tour, the professional golf tour for men aged fifty and above operated by the PGA European Tour... |
Arcapita Seniors Tour Championship | Playoff |  Adan SowaAdan Sowa Adan Domingo Sowa is an Argentine professional golfer.Sowa was born in Buenos Aires, and turned professional in 1973. He won the Argentine Open twice, in 1978 and 1983, and led the Argentine Professional Rankings on two occasions, in 1978 and 1982. He was second in the 1985 Argentine Open and the... |
|
| 3 | 2 Mar 2007 2007 European Seniors Tour The 2007 European Seniors Tour was the 16th season of the European Seniors Tour, the professional golf tour for men aged fifty and above operated by the PGA European Tour... |
DGM Barbados Open | 1 stroke |  Doug Johnson |
|
| 4 | 24 Aug 2008 2008 European Seniors Tour The 2008 European Seniors Tour was the 17th season of the European Seniors Tour, the professional golf tour for men aged fifty and above operated by the PGA European Tour... |
The De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship | Playoff |  Gordon Brand, JnrGordon Brand, Jnr Gordon Brand, Jnr is a Scottish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour.Brand was born in Kirkcaldy. He turned professional in 1981 and quickly achieved success. He won that year's European Tour Qualifying School, and went on to win two European Tour events in his rookie season... |
|
| 5 | 31 Aug 2008 2008 European Seniors Tour The 2008 European Seniors Tour was the 17th season of the European Seniors Tour, the professional golf tour for men aged fifty and above operated by the PGA European Tour... |
Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters The Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters is a golf tournament for men over fifty on the European Seniors Tour. It was founded in 2001 and has always been played at Woburn Golf and Country Club in England... |
2 strokes |  Juan QuirósJuan Quiros Juan Quirós Segura is a Spanish professional golfer.Quirós was born in La Linea, Andalusia. He played on the European Tour most seasons from 1983 to 2000, making the top one hundred on the Order of Merit three times... |
European Seniors Tour playoff record (2-0)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2006 | Arcapita Seniors Tour Championship | Adan Sowa Adan Sowa Adan Domingo Sowa is an Argentine professional golfer.Sowa was born in Buenos Aires, and turned professional in 1973. He won the Argentine Open twice, in 1978 and 1983, and led the Argentine Professional Rankings on two occasions, in 1978 and 1982. He was second in the 1985 Argentine Open and the... |
Won with par on third hole |
| 2 | 2008 | The De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship | Gordon Brand, Jnr Gordon Brand, Jnr Gordon Brand, Jnr is a Scottish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour.Brand was born in Kirkcaldy. He turned professional in 1981 and quickly achieved success. He won that year's European Tour Qualifying School, and went on to win two European Tour events in his rookie season... |
Won with par on seventh hole |
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| U.S. Open U.S. Open (golf) The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour... |
DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT |
| 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... |
CUT | DNP | T19 | CUT | CUT | CUT | T25 | 2 | T40 | T36 | CUT |
| PGA Championship PGA Championship The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship... |
DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10
Senior majors results
| Tournament | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senior PGA Championship Senior PGA Championship The Senior PGA Championship is one of the five major championships in men's senior golf. It is administered by the Professional Golfers' Association of America and is recognized as a major championship by both the Champions Tour and the European Seniors Tour. It was formerly an unofficial money... |
DNP | CUT | T77 | CUT | DNP | CUT |
| Senior British Open Championship Senior British Open Championship The Senior Open Championship, or simply The Senior Open is a professional golf tournament for men aged 50 and over. It is run by The R&A, the same body that organises The Open Championship. Prize money won in the event is official money on both the Champions Tour and the European Seniors Tour... |
T10 | T10 | CUT | T26 | T50 | 69 |
| U.S. Senior Open | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT | DNP | DNP |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for a wins. Yellow background for top-10
Team appearances
- Ryder CupRyder CupThe Ryder Cup is a biennial golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is jointly administered by the PGA of America and the PGA European Tour, and is contested every two years, the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe...
(representing Europe): 19831983 Ryder CupThe 25th Ryder Cup Matches were held at the PGA National Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.The United States team won the competition by a score of 14½ to 13½ points but for the first time the Europeans showed that they had the ability to compete at their level and that it would only be a... - Alfred Dunhill CupAlfred Dunhill CupThe Alfred Dunhill Cup was a team golf tournament which ran from 1985 to 2000. It was for three man teams of professional golfers, one team representing each country, and was promoted as the "World Team Championship". It was a "special approved event" on the European Tour, which means that it was...
(representing England): 1986, 1987 (winners) - World Cup (representing England): 1983
- Four Tours World Championship: 1986