Blackwell Passes On

John Blackwell, a leading amateur golfer from the 1940s, '50s and '60s and a former captain of the Royal & Ancient Golf Club, has died, aged 86.

The son of Geoffrey Blackwell who was chairman of the family food business, Crosse & Blackwell, he was a talented golfer and became a member of Royal St. George's in 1937 and equalled the Kent course's amateur record in 1949.

In the next decade he went on to win the Calcutta Cup, the Prince of Wales Cup and the King William IV medal at St Andrews. In 1960, Blackwell won the Grand Challenge Cup at Royal St George's, succeeding Jack Nicklaus to the title, and in 1963 the Oxford graduate won the President's Putter at Littlestone and finished runner-up to Michael Lunt in the Amateur Championship at St Andrews.