By Martin Dempster - The Scotsman
Scottish legend succeeds the late Sir Michael Bonallack in prestigious post
Sandy
Lyle has been handed the honour of succeeding the late Sir Michael
Bonallack as honorary president of a leading organisation in St Andrews.
The
two-time major winner, who has a strong connection with the Fife town,
has been appointed to the important post by the St Andrews Pilgrim
Foundation.
Set up in 1999, the foundation’s purpose is to “conserve, improve, and
develop the historic character of the town of St Andrews for the benefit
of the public”.
Sandy Lyle pictured at St Andrews in 2022 playing in The R&A
Celebration of Champions event in the build up to The 150th Open | Andy Buchanan/AFP via Getty Images
Funding
comes from an annual auction of golf packages for four people and from
the Alfred Dunhill Links Foundation, the charitable wing of the Alfred
Dunhill Links Championship.
Each
year an amateur place in the DP World Tour event is auctioned, the
proceeds from which are awarded to the St Andrews Pilgrim Foundation.
Announcing
Lyle’s appointment, a post read: “Sandy is one of the greatest golfers
Scotland has ever produced, with a career full of historic achievements,
including The Open and The Masters in 1988, when he became the first
British golfer to win at Augusta, sealed with one of the most iconic
bunker shots in golfing history.
Lyle hailed as ‘trailblazer and proud ambassador for Scottish golf’
“Sandy
is a trailblazer and a proud ambassador for Scottish golf. We are
delighted to welcome him to the foundation as our honorary president.”
Lyle
is an honorary member of The Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St
Andrews, having been granted that honour alongside Nick Faldo in 2015.
More
recently, the World Golf Hall of Fame member attended the unveiling of a
statue of his fellow Open champion, Old Tom Morris, in St Andrews in
2024.
“The
main reason I’m here is for Tom Morris, who was a remarkable man, and
this statue is going to be here for hundreds of years’ time, so it was
nice to be part of it,” said Lyle.
“Even
if I wasn’t an Open champion, knowing what he did in the game of golf -
like a Jack Nicklaus - I’d like to have been here and it is probably
long overdue.”
