Irish golf great and Ryder Cup stalwart Christy O'Connor Snr has died at the age of 91, it was announced Saturday. O'Connor, whose nephew and fellow professional golfer Christy O'Connor Jnr died in January, played in 10 consecutive Ryder Cups from 1955-1973. He won 23 titles on the British and Irish tour, the forerunner of today's European Tour.
O'Connor Snr also recorded 10 top-10 placings in the British Open and was runner-up to Australia's Peter Thomson at Royal Birkdale in 1965. In 2009 O'Connor Snr became only the second Irishman to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, following Joe Carr two years earlier. Ryder Cup director Richard Hills said Saturday: "Today we have lost not only one of the greatest Ryder Cup players the game has even seen, but an incredible man.