‘Golf’s Golden Era – The Story of Rodney Foster’ tells the story of the Shipley-born amateur who represented Great Britain and Ireland in five Walker Cups, captained the side twice, and competed alongside some of the game’s biggest stars in the 1960s and 1970s in events including The Open and The Masters.
Rodney won the Yorkshire Amateur Championship five times and the Bradford Open a record 10 times.
He also played 125 times for his county and earned junior and senior caps for England between 1960 and 1973.
Rodney also won the European Amateur Team Championship three times; and lifted The Berkshire Trophy (1964) and the Lytham Trophy (1967 and 1968).
In 1964, Rodney lost by just one hole to David Marsh in the English Amateur Championship.
One of his most outstanding individual performances was a tie in the English Amateur Stroke Play Championship (Brabazon Trophy) in 1969.
Not satisfied with that, Rodney made amends the following year by winning the title at Little Aston.
A regular member of the GB & lreland team in the Eisenhower Trophy (World Team Championship), Rodney played in five Walker Cup matches during his career.
Sadly, he had a serious accident in 1973, which put an end to his elite golf career when he was at his peak.
Held in the highest regard in amateur golf circles, Rodney was invited to be non-playing captain of the Walker Cup team in 1979 at Muirfield and in 1981 at Cypress Point.
He also became the chairman of The Walker Cup selection panel.
While authors Robin Snook and Trevor Wilson tell the story of Rodney’s career through detailed individual statistics, they also share insights into the matches he played against some of the best golfers in the world, with personal anecdotes and material which has never been published before.
A promotional flyer for the new Rodney Foster biography. (Image: UGC)
One such story covers the time Rodney played in an exhibition match with Lee Trevino, Michael Bonallack and Lionel Platts at Pannal.
On the first tee, Rodney was stopped in the middle of his practice swing by Lee, who had won The Open for a second year in a row the day before and was carrying Rodney’s pyjamas, which he’d brought with him from Scotland.
Rodney also shares the story of him competing in the 1966 Masters at Augusta National. Despite the initial excitement, it was huge financial undertaking for a 25-year-old insurance salesman.
Having made the trip, the Shipley star was delighted to find out he would be staying in the Crow’s Nest above the Augusta National clubhouse for just $1 per night.
In addition, all his meals were $1, truly manna from heaven for a Yorkshireman.
Rounding off a memorable couple of days, Rodney attended the traditional ‘Foreigners Dinner’.
In 1966, there were only 14 non-American players invited to compete and in the small group, Rodney found himself sat beside the legendary Bobby Jones for dinner.
Now 84, Rodney remembers every shot he ever hit, every golfer he ever played with or against, and every two-foot putt he missed, proving he is just like every other amateur golfer, at least in some respects.
The book is available from today (December 17) and to order your copy, please visit rodneyfostergolfsgoldenera.square.site
Proceeds from the book will go to Ovarian Cancer Action, as Rodney’s wife, Angela, sadly died from the disease aged 49.