Brian Barnes

Brian Barnes was a hard-drinking, harder-smoking (he was 1977’s Pipe Smoker of the Year) golfer of the type you don’t get in these days of interchangeable Americans who all look like they’re called Brock or Jayden dominating the greens. His finest hour came during the 1975 Ryder Cup, where he became the only man to ever defeat Jack Nicklaus twice in the same day. Barnes would later reveal that he was drunk during the second of those victories, and his imbibing habits (he carried a bottle of vodka and orange around with him on the course) eventually saw him checked into The Priory in 1992.

Brian Barnes
3 June 1945 – 9 September 2019
Died aged 74 (unique hit)