Golf: Sandy Dawson is named R&A captain

HOT on the heels of Adam Scott winning the Masters and Brett Rumford landing back-to-back wins on the European Tour, Australian golf has been handed another boost with Sandy Dawson being selected as the next captain of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.

Dawson who, after Viscount Bruce of Melbourne in 1954, will become only the second Australian to hold the post, has been nominated by the past captains of the club and will begin his year in office with the traditional driving-in ceremony on the first tee of the Old Course on 20 September.

A Sydneysider, Dawson, who will succeed Frenchman Pierre Bechmann is a former Australian Universities champion and served as the captain of Royal Sydney between 1988 and 1993 before becoming the club’s president in 2010.

A former managing director and chief executive officer of Arnott’s, one of the largest food companies in the Asia Pacific region, he has held senior positions at a number of other companies. He was chairman of United Distillers (Australasia) and a director of Allied Mills, Goodman Fielder and the Darling Harbour Authority. A member of the R&A since 1974, Dawson plays off four and and is also a keen skier. His appointment will make it a Dawson double in St Andrews, joining namesake Peter [no relation], the R&A’s current chief executive.