1937 Amateur Championship: Robert Sweeny Jr. wins at Royal St George's Golf Club
Robert Sweeny Jr. won the 1937 Amateur Championship at Royal St George's Golf Club in Sandwich, Kent, beating Lionel Munn 3 & 2 in the final.
Updated 23 October 2026
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- Edition
- 48th
- Dates
- 24 May 1937 to 29 May 1937
- Course
- Royal St George's Golf Club, Sandwich, Kent
- Format
- match play
- Champion
- Robert Sweeny Jr. · age 25 · United States · Royal & Ancient
- Champion's title
- 1st Amateur Championship title
- Runner-up
- Lionel Munn · Northern Ireland
- Final
- 3 & 2 (36-hole final)
- Losing semifinalists
- Alaric de Bendern and Charlie Stowe
- Defending champion
- Hector Thomson · did not play (ill health)
What happened at the 1937 Amateur Championship
Final: Sweeny won the 1st hole and led all the way until Munn drew level at the 23rd; Sweeny then won the next three holes and closed out 3 & 2. Munn, a seven-time Irish champion in his fifties, had played first-class golf for 30 years
Second round: Michael Scott, thinking Cyril Tolley was 2 up, picked up on the 17th green and shook hands; Tolley (only 1 up) insisted the hole be played out - a sporting but irregular gesture
Round of 128, Cyril Tolley v Michael Scott. Scott, thinking he was 2 down, picked up on the 17th green and shook hands; Tolley (only 1 up) insisted the hole be played out
The draw
Every match is recorded through the semifinal; earlier rounds are partial (quarterfinal (3 of 4); round of 16 (4 of 8)).
The final, 1937 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Sweeny Jr. | def. | Lionel Munn | 3 & 2 |
Semifinals, 1937 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Sweeny Jr. | def. | Charlie Stowe | 6 & 5 |
| Lionel Munn | def. | Alaric de Bendern | 4 & 3 |
Quarterfinals, 1937 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Sweeny Jr. | def. | Wilford Wehrle | 3 & 2 |
| Lionel Munn | def. | Frank Pennink | 2 up |
| Alaric de Bendern | def. | Dick Chapman | won on 19th hole |
Round of 16, 1937 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Sweeny Jr. | def. | H. Gardiner-Hill | 2 up |
| Wilford Wehrle | def. | J. H. Neal | 3 & 2 |
| Frank Pennink | def. | John Levinson | 5 & 4 |
| Dick Chapman | def. | H. G. Harrison | 2 & 1 |
Round of 32, 1937 Amateur Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilford Wehrle | def. | A. J. Evans | 1 up |
| Robert Sweeny Jr. | def. | Bromley-Davenport | won on 19th hole |
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.
Values found only on Wikipedia, kept and flagged: runner_up_nationality.
Data: the-amateur.json.
Sources
- R&A The Amateur Championship past winners (randa.org)
- The Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 1937-05-31 p.8 (cable)
- Kalgoorlie Miner 1937-05-31 p.5 (cable, London 29 May)
- Evening Star (Washington) 1937-05-28 (AP, Sandwich 28 May)
- The Daily Telegraph (Sydney) 1937-05-29 p.20 (cable, London Friday 28 May)
- Cairns Post 1937-05-26 p.5 (AAP cable, London 24 May)