Peter Mills
Personal information
Full nameRalph Peter Mills
Born (1931-05-14) 14 May 1931
Windsor, Berkshire, England
Sporting nationality England
Career
StatusProfessional
Professional wins4
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipDNP
U.S. OpenDNP
The Open Championship20th: 1960

Ralph Peter Mills (born 14 May 1931) was an English professional golfer. He played in the Ryder Cup in 1957 and 1959.

Golf career

Mills was assistant at Fulwell Golf Club from 1948 and was tied for third place at his home course in the southern section qualifying for the 1949 Daily Mail Tournament, after a first round of 67.[1] He was in the RAF doing his National Service from 1949 and 1951 which limited his playing opportunities. He did, however, reach the semi-finals of the Gor-Ray Assistants' match-play tournament in 1950 and in 1951 won the Coombe Hill Assistants' Tournament by 11 strokes.[2][3] In late 1951, he moved to Wentworth as an assistant and was second to Bernard Hunt in the 1952 Coombe Hill Assistants' Tournament.[4] He lost in the final of the same tournament in 1954 at the 19th hole, but in 1955 he continued his success at Coombe Hill winning the tournament for a second time.[5][6] Mills never won the Gor-Ray Cup, the assistant professionals' championship, but was runner-up to Geoffrey Hunt in 1954.[7]

Mills had moved to West Hill Golf Club in late 1954.[8] The following year he won the Professional Short Course Championship in Torquay. He scored 202 for the 72 holes to win by two strokes and take the first prize of £100.[9] In 1956 he was joint-second, a distant 9 shots behind the winner, in the Daks Tournament at Wentworth, and he reached the semi-finals of the News of the World Match Play, losing 6&4 to Harry Weetman.[10][11] Mills was joint winner of the 36-hole Bowmaker Tournament at Sunningdale in June 1958. He completed the front-9 of his second round in 28 (3-3-3-2-4-4-4-3-2) to equal the British tournament record.[12] From October 1958 Mills became the professional at Pinner Hill Golf Club.[13] In 1959 he was second on his own in the Daks Tournament, three strokes behind Christy O'Connor Snr.[14]

Mills twice qualified for the British Ryder Cup team, in 1957 and 1959. In 1957 selection for the team of 10 was based on a points system over a two-year period ending after the 1957 Open Championship. Winners of the 1957 Open Championship and the 1957 News of the World Match Play were guaranteed places with the remaining places selected from the points list.[15] Following the 1957 Open, Mills was 10th in the points list and did not qualify at that stage.[16] Only when Christy O'Connor Snr, who had already qualified for the team, beat Tom Haliburton in the final of the News of the World Match Play, did Mills became the last member of the team. In the 1957 match, Mills was not selected for the foursomes but played Jack Burke Jr., the American captain, in the singles. Mills won 5 holes in a row from the 6th to the 10th to be 5 up, finished the morning round 5 ahead and eventually won the match 5&3.[17] Selection for the 1959 team had changed, with seven members of the team chosen using a points system based on performances during the 1959 season, starting with the PGA Close Championship on 8 April and finishing with the Irish Hospitals Tournament on 12 July.[18] Mills had a number of top-10 finishes and was fourth in the final list.[19] Mills had a back injury while the team was in Washington and it was reported that he was to be replaced by John Panton.[20] However, he recovered enough to remain in the team, although he was not chosen to play any matches.[21]

In early 1961, Mills left his position as the professional at Pinner Hill to become a full-time tournament player.[22] However the season was disappointing.[23] After a loss of form caused by his back problems he attempted a return to tournament golf in 1964, but this also proved unsuccessful.[24] He played a number of events in 1967 and 1968 with more success. He qualified for and made the cut in the Open Championship in both years.[25] In October 1968, playing with Dave Thomas, he reached the quarter-finals of the Piccadilly Fourball Match Play.[26]

Mills played in the Open Championship nine times between 1952 and 1968, making the cut five times with a best finish of 20th place in 1960.[25]

Personal life

Despite his efforts in the 1960s, Mills' back problems from 1959 led to the end of his competitive career. Later he became a wine merchant in Jersey.[27]

Professional wins (4)

Results in major championships

Tournament 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968
The Open Championship CUT T38 T32 CUT CUT T23 20 T22 T42

Note: Mills only played in The Open Championship.

  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Source:[25]

Team appearances

References

  1. ↑ "Assistant heads the qualifiers". The Daily Telegraph. 28 April 1949. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "Perry beats Weetman". The Guardian. 16 June 1950. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 "Assistants' Tournament". The Times. 11 May 1951. p. 2.
  4. ↑ "Assistant's 64 at Coombe Hill". The Glasgow Herald. 9 May 1952. p. 7.
  5. ↑ "Assistants' fine golf". The Glasgow Herald. 15 May 1954. p. 4.
  6. 1 2 "Mills leading assistants". The Glasgow Herald. 13 May 1955. p. 4.
  7. ↑ "Hunt champion Assistant". The Glasgow Herald. 18 June 1954. p. 4.
  8. ↑ "Shouts give golfers line in fog". Evening Standard. 18 November 1954. p. 21 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. 1 2 "Assistant's Victory". The Glasgow Herald. 14 October 1955. p. 4.
  10. ↑ "Young South African's "Daks" victory". The Glasgow Herald. 18 June 1956. p. 11.
  11. ↑ "Panton and Weetman to-day contest match-play title final". The Glasgow Herald. 15 September 1956. p. 2.
  12. 1 2 "Best nine-hole score – Mills's outward 28". The Glasgow Herald. 24 June 1958. p. 4.
  13. ↑ "Pinner's new golf pro". Harrow Observer. 13 September 1956. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Daks victory for O'Connor". The Glasgow Herald. 15 June 1959. p. 6.
  15. ↑ "Helping the golf spectator - Innovations by the P.G.A.". The Times. 21 December 1955. p. 3.
  16. ↑ "Ryder Cup team - Nine places now filled". The Glasgow Herald. 6 July 1957. p. 5.
  17. ↑ "Ryder Cup regained after 24 years". The Times. 7 October 1957. p. 12.
  18. ↑ "Professional golf gets underway – Playing for Ryder Cup places". The Times. 8 April 1959. p. 16.
  19. ↑ "Faulkner four up at finish – Alliss and Thomas in second place". The Times. 13 July 1959. p. 3.
  20. ↑ "Mills out of Ryder Cup team". The Times. 29 October 1959. p. 16.
  21. ↑ "Lake guards four greens on Ryder Cup course". The Times. 6 November 1959. p. 18.
  22. ↑ "Mills decides to go it alone". The Daily Telegraph. 13 April 1961. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ "Mills bomb". Evening Standard. 8 December 1961. p. 30 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ↑ Wilson, Mark (23 January 1964). "It's a come back for Peter Mills". Evening Standard. p. 27 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. 1 2 3 Brenner, Morgan G. (2009). The Majors of Golf: Complete Results of the Open, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and the Masters, 1860-2008. Vol. 1. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3360-5.
  26. ↑ Jacobs, Raymond (10 October 1968). "Palm/er shows his power". The Glasgow Herald. p. 6.
  27. ↑ Harrison, Paul (15 July 1990). "Where are they now?". The Observer. p. 20 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ↑ "2012 Ryder Cup Media Guide" (PDF). Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  29. ↑ "British Isles team retain Joy Cup – Overwhelming win in singles". The Glasgow Herald. 8 October 1956. p. 4.
  30. ↑ "Fourth successive Joy Cup win for Britain – Surprise rout of Weetman". The Glasgow Herald. 24 October 1958. p. 4.
  31. ↑ "Brown ten under fours for thirty-two holes – Amateur-Professional match". The Glasgow Herald. 5 August 1957. p. 8.
  32. ↑ "Welcome success of Amateurs – Splendid recovery in singles". The Glasgow Herald. 11 August 1958. p. 12.
  33. ↑ "Professionals win at Southport – Only one Scottish success". The Glasgow Herald. 10 August 1959. p. 6.
  34. ↑ "Professionals' big win at Prestwick – Seven singles victories". The Glasgow Herald. 8 August 1960. p. 3.
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