Perhaps the most famous Professional golfer associated with the Club was David (Dai) Rees who was assistant to Jim Coleman over the period 1934 – 1938 and a Ryder Cup winning Captain in 1957.
Dai showed his talent while at Surbiton by winning two consecutive PGA Assistants’ Championships. He went on to have a prolific career which includes the following achievements:
The Open: he recorded 14 top 15 finishes including: 2nd 1961, 2nd= 1953, 1954, 3rd= 1950, 4th= 1946, 9th= 1959 & 1960, 11th 1936, 12th 1939, 12th= 1951, 13th= 1938 & 1956, 14th= 1958, 15th= 1948.
Ryder Cups: Nine appearances – four as Captain 1937, 1939 (Team was picked but did not play due to WWII), 1947, 1949, 1951, 1953. Playing Captain 1955, 1957, 1959 & 1961. Non-Playing Captain 1967. He led the team to a famous win in 1957.
Matchplay Championship: he had four wins in 1936, 1938, 1949 and 1950 and was runner up three times in 1953, 1967 and 1969.
European Tour wins including: The Irish Open, The British Masters twice, Belgian Open, Swiss Open three times, South African PGA Championship, British PGA Championship, Swiss Open and the PGA Seniors Championship.
In 1957 he became the BBC Sports Personality of the Year and a year later was awarded a CBE.