The Commonwealth Tournament was a men's team golf tournament between teams of amateurs golfers from Great Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa. It was played roughly every four years, in 1954, 1959, 1963, 1967, 1971 and 1975. In 1971 and 1975 there were only four teams, South Africa did not compete in 1971 while Australia missed the 1975 event.
Each team played the others. Each match was contested over one day with foursomes in the morning and singles matches in the afternoon. There were 3 foursomes and 6 singles in each match.
| Year | Dates | Venue | Winners | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | 1–5 June | Old Course at St Andrews |  Australia |
7 | [1] |
| 1959 | 3–7 November | Royal Johannesburg Golf Club |  South Africa |
6 | [2] |
| 1963 | 15–19 October | Royal Sydney Golf Club | Australia Great Britain |
6 | [3] |
| 1967 | 9–13 August | Victoria Golf Club | Great Britain New Zealand |
5 | [4] |
| 1971 | 20–24 October | Auckland Golf Club |  Canada |
6 | [5] |
| 1975 | 20–22 November | Royal Durban Golf Club | Canada |
4 | [6] |
The first tournament was organised to celebrate the bicentenary of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.[7] It was played on the Old Course at St Andrews from 1 to 5 June.
The teams were:
| Team | Matches | Points | Games | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Tie | |||
| Australia |
3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 21 |
| Canada |
2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 18 |
| Great Britain |
1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 17½ |
 South Africa |
1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| New Zealand |
1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 18½ |
Source: [1]
The second tournament was held at the Royal Johannesburg Golf Club from 3 to 7 November.
The teams were:
| Team | Matches | Points | Games | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Tie | |||
| South Africa |
3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 22 |
| Australia |
2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 20 |
| New Zealand |
2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 19 |
| Great Britain |
2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 15½ |
| Canada |
1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13½ |
Source: [2]
The third tournament was held at the Royal Sydney Golf Club from 15 to 19 October.
The teams were:
| Team | Matches | Points | Games | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Tie | |||
| Australia |
2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 20½ |
| Great Britain |
3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 20½ |
| Canada |
1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 17½ |
| South Africa |
1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 16½ |
| New Zealand |
1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 15 |
Source: [3]
The fourth tournament was held at the Victoria Golf Club, British Columbia, Canada from 9 to 13 August.
The teams were:
| Team | Matches | Points | Games | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Tie | |||
| Great Britain |
2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 18 |
| New Zealand |
2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 18 |
| South Africa |
2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 21 |
| Canada |
2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 18½ |
| Australia |
1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 14½ |
Source: [4]
The fifth tournament was held at the Auckland Golf Club from 20 to 24 October. There were only four teams, South Africa withdrawing because of threats of anti-apartheid demonstrations.[8] With only three rounds of matches, the tournament was originally planned to be played on 20, 21 and 23 October. Rain on the first day meant that the first round of matches was not completed until 21 October, the second round being moved to the following day. Further bad weather caused the final round of matches to be delayed by a day. The event was called the New Zealand Golf Centennial Tournament, celebrating the centenary of golf in New Zealand.
The teams were:
| Team | Matches | Points | Games | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Tie | |||
| Canada |
3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 17½ |
| Australia |
2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 14½ |
| Great Britain |
1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 13½ |
| New Zealand |
0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8½ |
Source: [5]
The sixth tournament was held at the Royal Durban Golf Club from 20 to 22 November. There were only four teams, Australia did not compete.
The teams were:
| Team | Matches | Points | Games | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Tie | |||
| Canada |
2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 16 |
| Great Britain |
2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 13 |
| South Africa |
1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14½ |
| New Zealand |
1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 10½ |
Source: [6]
