| Dates | 8–9 June 1956 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Prince's Golf Club | ||||
| Location | Sandwich, Kent, England | ||||
| Captains |
| ||||
| |||||
| British Isles wins the Curtis Cup | |||||
The 9th Curtis Cup Match was played on 8 and 9 June 1956 at Prince's Golf Club in Sandwich, Kent, England. The British Isles won by 5 matches to 4, to win the Curtis Cup for the second time. [1]
The United States won two of the three foursomes matches but the British Isles won four of the six singles to win by five matches to four. [2] [1] [3]
The contest was played over two days, with three foursomes on the first day and six singles matches on the second day, a total of 9 points. Matches were over 36 holes.
Each of the 9 matches was worth one point in the larger team competition. If a match was all square after the 18th hole extra holes were not played. Rather, each side earned 1⁄2 a point toward their team total. The team that accumulated at least 5 points won the competition.
 &  British Isles | ||||
| Name | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Zara Bolton | non-playing captain | |||
| Veronica Anstey | ||||
 Philomena Garvey | played in 1948, 1950, 1952 and 1954 | |||
| Ann Howard | ||||
| Elizabeth Price | played in 1950, 1952 and 1954 | |||
 Janette Robertson | played in 1954 | |||
| Frances Smith | played in 1950, 1952 and 1954 | |||
| Jessie Valentine | played in 1936, 1938, 1950, 1952 and 1954 | |||
| Angela Ward | ||||
Howard did not play in any matches
 United States | |||||
| Name | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edith Flippin | non-playing captain | ||||
| Carolyn Cudone | |||||
| Mary Ann Downey | |||||
| Patricia Lesser | played in 1954 | ||||
| Jane Nelson | |||||
| Polly Riley | played in 1948, 1950, 1952 and 1954 | ||||
| Barbara Romack | played in 1954 | ||||
| Wiffi Smith | |||||
 &  | Results |  |
|---|---|---|
| Valentine/Garvey |  2 & 1 | Lesser/Smith |
| Smith/Price |  5 & 3 | Riley/Romack |
| Robertson/Anstey | 6 & 4 | Downey/Cudone |
| 1 | Session | 2 |
| 1 | Overall | 2 |
18-hole scores: Valentine/Garvey & Lesser/Smith all square, Smith/Price 2 up, Robertson/Anstey 2 up
| & | Results | |
|---|---|---|
| Jessie Valentine | 6 & 4 | Patricia Lesser |
| Philomena Garvey | 9 & 8 | Wiffi Smith |
| Frances Smith | 1 up | Polly Riley |
| Janette Robertson | 6 & 4 | Barbara Romack |
| Angela Ward | 4 & 3 | Mary Ann Downey |
| Elizabeth Price | 7 & 6 | Jane Nelson |
| 4 | Session | 2 |
| 5 | Overall | 4 |
18-hole scores: Lesser 2 up, W. Smith 2 up, F. Smith/Riley all square, Romack 2 up, Ward 5 up, Price 9 up
The Curtis Cup is the best known team trophy for women amateur golfers, awarded in the biennial Curtis Cup Match. It is co-organised by the United States Golf Association and The R&A and is contested by teams representing the United States and "Great Britain and Ireland". The same two teams originally contested the Ryder Cup, but unlike that competition, the Curtis Cup has not widened the Great Britain and Ireland team to include all Europeans. Many women who have gone on to become stars of women's professional golf have played in the Curtis Cup.
Barbara Amy Bridget Jackson is an English amateur golfer. She won the 1954 Girls Amateur Championship, the 1956 English Women's Amateur Championship and the 1967 Canadian Women's Amateur. She played in three Curtis Cup matches, 1958, 1964 and 1968.
The 1961 Walker Cup, the 18th Walker Cup Match, was played on September 1 and 2, 1961, at Seattle Golf Club, Seattle, Washington. The United States won by 11 matches to 1. This was the last Walker Cup in which 36-hole matches were played.
The 1959 Walker Cup, the 17th Walker Cup Match, was played on 15 and 16 May 1959, at Muirfield, Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland. The United States won by 9 matches to 3. The United States won all four of the foursomes matches on the first day. Although Great Britain and Ireland won three of the singles matches on the second day, it was a comfortable win for the United States.
The 1955 Walker Cup, the 15th Walker Cup Match, was played on 20 and 21 May 1955, on the Old Course at St Andrews, Scotland. The United States won by 10 matches to 2.
The 1951 Walker Cup, the 13th Walker Cup Match, was played on 11 and 12 May 1951, at Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, Lancashire, England. The United States won by 6 matches to 3 with 3 matches halved.
The 1949 Walker Cup, the 12th Walker Cup Match, was played on August 19 and 20, 1949, on the West course at Winged Foot Golf Club, Mamaroneck, New York. The United States won by 10 matches to 2.
Alec Edward Shepperson is an English amateur golfer. He played in the 1957 and 1959 Walker Cup matches.
Joseph William Conrad was an American professional golfer. He had a successful amateur career, playing in the 1955 Walker Cup and winning the 1955 Amateur Championship. He turned professional at the end of 1956 but had limited success as a tournament professional.
Marley Joan Spearman She won the British Ladies Amateur in 1961 and 1962 and the English Women's Amateur Championship in 1964. She was in four Curtis Cup teams, in 1958, 1960, 1962 and 1964.
Janette Sneddon Wright is a Scottish amateur golfer. She won the Scottish Women's Amateur Championship in 1959, 1960, 1961 and 1973. She was in four Curtis Cup teams, in 1954, 1956, 1958 and 1960.
Angela, Lady Bonallack was an English amateur golfer. She was twice a finalist in the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship and won the English Women's Amateur Championship in 1958 and 1963. She played in six successive Curtis Cup matches from 1956 to 1966. She was married to Michael Bonallack.
Pamela Mary Benka was an English amateur golfer. She won the 1964 Girls Amateur Championship and the 1967 Astor Prince's Trophy. She reached the semi-finals of the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship in 1965. She played in the Curtis Cup in 1966 and 1968 and was the non-playing captain in 2002.
Elizabeth Price was an English amateur golfer. She won the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship in 1959 and twice a losing finalist. She was three times runner-up in the English Women's Amateur Championship and won the Spalding Women's Open Stroke Play twice. She played in six successive Curtis Cup matches from 1950 to 1960.
Ruth Porter was an English amateur golfer. She had a successful junior career which included winning the 1956 Girls Amateur Championship and the 1958 British Girls' Stroke-play Championship. She won the English Women's Amateur Championship three times between 1959 and 1965, and played in the Curtis Cup in 1960, 1962 and 1964.
Sally Barber is an English amateur golfer. She won the English Women's Amateur Championship in 1978 and was twice a runner-up. She won the German women's championship in 1958 and played in the 1962 Curtis Cup. She is the sister of Michael Bonallack
The 5rd Curtis Cup Match was played on 21 and 22 May 1948 at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England. The United States won 61⁄2 to 21⁄2.
The 6th Curtis Cup Match was played on September 4 and 5, 1950 at the Country Club of Buffalo in Williamsville, New York. The United States won 71⁄2 to 11⁄2.
The 7th Curtis Cup Match was played on 6 and 7 June 1952 at Muirfield in Scotland. The British Isles won by 5 matches to 4, to win the Curtis Cup for the first time.
The 8th Curtis Cup Match was played on September 2 and 3, 1954 at the Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. The United States won by 6 matches to 3.
