1929 Amateur Championship: Cyril Tolley wins at Royal St George's Golf Club
Cyril Tolley won the 1929 Amateur Championship at Royal St George's Golf Club in Sandwich, Kent, beating John Nelson Smith 4 & 3 in the final.
Updated 23 October 2026
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- Edition
- 40th
- Dates
- 10 June 1929 to 15 June 1929
- Course
- Royal St George's Golf Club, Sandwich, Kent
- Format
- match play
- Champion
- Cyril Tolley · age 33 · England · Rye
- Champion's title
- 2nd Amateur Championship title
- Runner-up
- John Nelson Smith · Scotland
- Final
- 4 & 3 (36-hole final)
- Losing semifinalists
- John Dawson and Rex Hartley
- Defending champion
- Philip Perkins · lost in fourth round
What happened at the 1929 Amateur Championship
Semi-final: John Nelson Smith, a 36-year-old joiner from Earlsferry (James Braid's village), was dormie three down to the American John Dawson, squared with a five-yard putt on the 18th and won at the 19th
Final: all square after a windy morning round in which neither led by more than one hole and neither broke 80; Tolley went 5 up at the 8th in the afternoon and won 4 & 3, sealing it with a 4 at the long 14th
Semifinal, John Nelson Smith v John Dawson, won on 19th hole. Dawson was dormie three; Smith squared with a five-yard putt on the 18th and won the 19th
The draw
Every match is recorded through the semifinal; earlier rounds are partial (quarterfinal (1 of 4)).
The final, 1929 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cyril Tolley | def. | John Nelson Smith | 4 & 3 |
Semifinals, 1929 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Nelson Smith | def. | John Dawson | won on 19th hole |
| Cyril Tolley | def. | Rex Hartley | 1 up |
Quarterfinals, 1929 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Dawson | def. | A. J. Evans | 6 & 5 |
First round, 1929 Amateur Championship
Listed as the record names this round; it cannot be placed in the bracket (no match-play field size is on record).
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| L. H. Campbell | def. | W. Richards | 4 & 3 |
| Douglas Grant | def. | H. D. Gillies | won on 19th hole |
| Peech | def. | L. M. MacPherson | 6 & 5 |
How this was built
Every value is shown as recorded in GNN's Amateur Championship data set (research collected through 20 October 2026). "unknown" means no source confirmed it; nothing is estimated. Where sources disagree, the R&A's own record is used.
Data: the-amateur.json.