Leonard Robert Nettlefold CBE

Golf made his name familiar throughout Australia. While still at school he showed outstanding promise as a golfer and this quickly developed into brilliance. He became a scratch player and in 1926, at the age of 20, won the Australian amateur championship. The following year he made his mark internationally as runner-up in the Swiss amateur championship and was a quarter-finalist in the British amateur.

In 1928 he was again Australian amateur champion and teamed with Ivo Whitton to win the Australian Men's Foursomes championship. In 1929 he won the Mixed Foursomes championship of Australia with Miss Lily Barclay. Len won the Tasmanian Open championship eight times from 1930 to 1937 and in 1947. He also won the Tasmanian amateur eight times between 1924 and 1939, together with many other titles in men's and mixed foursomes.

A prodigious hitter of the ball off the tee, Len at his peak was recognised as one of the best left-handed golfers in the world as well as one of the leading amateur players on the international scene. He was captain of the Australian team which went to Britain in 1938, and Tasmanian captain on numerous occasions.

He held course records of 67 at Kingston Beach, 66 at Royal Hobart, 69 at Royal Sydney, and created a new amateur course record at St Andrews in Scotland in 1927 with 71.

Besides being an outstanding player, he was a leading golf administrator. In 1960 he was awarded the CBE for his services to sport and the business community