The Birkmyre Bowl is the trophy played for annually at the Lundin Open - an individual open golf tournament held at Lundin Golf Club. The tournament was inaugurated in 1950, so this year marks its 75th anniversary. The trophy was presented by Ian Tyson Birkmyre in honour of his late father, William George Birkmyre, who had been an enthusiastic member of the club. The piece below from the 21 June 1950 Leven Mail reported that the winner of the first annual Open Tournament, from an entry of 130, was local golfer Robert Oswald.
William Birkmyre was born on 12 December 1877 in Kells, Kirkcudbrightshire. He was the son of John Birkmyre (who was a miller at the time) and his wife Margaret McGill. The family soon moved to Tongland where John became a fisherman and William and his siblings went to school. Later the family moved to Glasgow, where William found work as an upholsterer, while his father worked as an undertaker's clerk. William married Jane Gunn Taylor in 1911 and by the time of the census later that year, William and Jane were living in the Hillhead area of Glasgow, with William recorded as an upholsterer for a house furnisher.
By 1921, the couple had moved to Great George Street and had two children, daughter Georgie Murray Taylor Birkmyre and son Ian Tyson Birkmyre. William was now an Upholstery Works Manager for Wylie and Lochhead Limited, a successful furniture manufacturer. Founded in 1829 by Robert Wylie and William Lochhead, the company grew from an upholstering and cabinetmaking business into a leader in interior design, yacht-fitting, and fine furniture. At the 1901 Glasgow International Exhibition, the company's Glasgow Style pieces were showcased (such as the example shown below). A distinctive take on the Art Nouveau movement, the popularity of these pieces endures to this day when they come up for sale at auctions and antique dealers.
Like many Glasgow (or Edinburgh) businessmen, William took a holiday home by the sea. For much of the 1930s he rented part of Rollo Villa at the Temple, Lower Largo. It also appears that his son, Ian Tyson Birkmyre, had settled in Lundin Links. Both William and Ian joined Lundin Golf Club. In 1936, William became a non-resident member of the club's council (see 28 July 1936 extract from the Leven Mail below) while still being primarily Glasgow-based.
William George Birkmyre died on 12 June 1946, aged 68, while staying at Westcliffe on Crescent Road, Lundin Links. His main residence was Westbourne House, Glasgow (pictured above). The 19 June 1946 Leven Mail noted the death of this "well known residenter" who was "held in much esteem". His son, Ian Birkmyre continued to be active at Lundin Golf Club, presenting the Birkmyre Bowl in his father's memory in 1950, and becoming Club Captain 1955-57.
The annual tournament in memory of William Birkmyre grew in popularity over the years. In 1968 the bowl was lifted by local coal merchant and Lundin member Jack Thomson, when he outplayed a field of 180, which included entries from as far afield as Canada and Kenya. The following year Ian Ness of Earlsferry Thistle took the bowl. In the photo above, Ian Birkmyre is pictured on the far left (11 June 1969 Leven Mail). For many years, Ian Birkmyre was on hand to make the presentation of the bowl, appearing in many photographs in the local newspaper. In 1971 the youngest ever winner was 17-year-old David Smith, pictured below from the 9 June Leven Mail. The George Watson's pupil and son of Dr A.N.W. Smith of Lundin Links won the title with a "best of a lifetime" around of 70.
In 1972, Alan Campbell of Glenrothes was victorious and he is seen in the image above receiving the bowl from Ian Birkmyre (7 June Leven Mail). Ian Tyson Birkmyre died in 1988 at the age of 75. All four of the Birkmyre family - William, Jane, Ian and Georgie - are buried at Largo Cemetery. On the headstone, pictured below, are the words "All laid to rest in this place. Sleep well."
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