# Alex Caygill

Gordon Alexander Caygill (born 24 April 1940) is an English professional golfer. He had considerable early success as a young professional from 1960 to 1963 but then had a lean period, partly due to a stomach ulcer. He made a comeback in the late 1960s, winning two tournaments in early 1969, and gained a place in the 1969 Ryder Cup team.

## Professional career

Caygill turned professional at an early age, becoming an assistant professional at West Bowling Golf Club near Bradford. He was briefly an assistant at Sunningdale, during which time he won the 1960 British Youths Open Championship at Pannal Golf Club by 7 strokes. He became an assistant at Pannal in 1961 and was chosen that year by Henry Cotton as his Rookie of the Year. In 1962 he won the British Youths Open Championship, which was again played at Pannal, for a second time, winning this time by 12 strokes. He had more success in 1963, winning the Coombe Hill Assistants' Tournament and the Rediffusion Tournament in the same week. In the 1964 Swallow-Penfold Tournament Caygill led Peter Alliss by 3 strokes with 5 holes to play but finished badly to drop into a tie for second place.
After his early successes he did not win again on the circuit until 1969 having suffered with stomach ulcers. That year he won twice, first at the Penfold Tournament, and then again at the Martini International, where he tied with South African Graham Henning. Caygill finished 8th in the points list for the Great Britain and Ireland 1969 Ryder Cup team. The leading six were chosen automatically and Caygill was one of the remaining six selected by a committee a few days later. He only played one match, partnering Brian Huggett in Friday's foursomes. They halved their match against the American pair of Raymond Floyd and Miller Barber. He finished the season 9th in the Order of Merit.
In 1970 Caygill had his only foreign win, the Lusaka Dunlop Open on the Safari Circuit, finishing two strokes of Craig Defoy. He played a limited number of events during the early years of the European Tour, from 1972 to 1977. His best finish was to reach the semi-final of the 1975 Piccadilly Medal. Caygill finished third in the 1974 PGA Club Professionals' Championship to qualify for the Diamondhead Cup, the forerunner of the PGA Cup. Caygill made 14 appearances in the Open Championship between 1962 and 1977, making the cut six times.
Caygill became the professional at Cleckheaton Golf Club in the mid-1960s, leaving in 1973 to join the Pleasington club in Lancashire. He later moved to the Crimple Valley club, near Harrogate and later to Branshaw. In 1981 Caygill was fined £500 and suspended by the PGA following an incident the previous October at the Wansbeck Classic, a pro-am event.

## Professional wins (20)
### Great Britain and Ireland wins (6)

| Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
| 5 Aug 1960 | British Youths Open Championship | 66-71-71-71=279 | 7 strokes | Campbell Brownlee (a) |
| 10 Aug 1962 | British Youths Open Championship | 74-73-72-68=287 | 12 strokes | Cliff Bowman (a) |
| 26 Sep 1963 | Coombe Hill Assistants' Tournament | 71-76-69=216 | 2 strokes | Malcolm Gregson, Tony Jacklin |
| 29 Sep 1963 | Rediffusion Tournament | 70-68-66-67=271 | Playoff | David Snell, Flory Van Donck |
| 3 May 1969 | Penfold Tournament | 67-70-70-71=278 | 2 strokes | Christy O'Connor Snr |
| 14 Jun 1969 | Martini International | 70-66-77-69=282 | Tie | Graham Henning |

### Safari circuit wins (1)

| Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up | Ref |
| 22 Mar 1970 | Lusaka Dunlop Open | −7 (70-68-73-74=285) | 2 strokes | Craig Defoy | |

### Other wins (13)

* 1961 Yorkshire Professional Championship
* 1963 Northern Professional Championship (incorporating the Leeds Cup)
* 1964 Yorkshire Professional Championship, Ryder Cup Reunion Foursomes Tournament (with Ken Bousfield)
* 1966 Yorkshire Professional Championship, Gleneagles Hotel Foursomes Tournament (with Bernard Cawthray)
* 1967 Leeds Cup
* 1971 Yorkshire Open
* 1973 Leeds Cup, Lancashire Open
* 1974 Northern Professional Championship
* 1978 Sunningdale Foursomes (with Julia Greenhalgh), Yorkshire Professional Championship

## Results in major championships

| Tournament | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 |
| The Open Championship | CUT | CUT | T17 | CUT | T16 | CUT | T24 | T25 |
| Tournament | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 |
| The Open Championship | T41 | CUT | | CUT | CUT | | T63 | CUT |
Note: Caygill only played in The Open Championship.
CUT = missed the half-way cut "T" indicates a tie for a place
Source:

## Team appearances

* Ryder Cup (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1969 (tie)
* Diamondhead Cup (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1974