Kel Nagle

Born: December 21, 1920;

Died: January 29, 2015.

Kelvin (Kel) Nagle, who has died aged 94, was one of golf's greatest and most celebrated players. He enjoyed an extraordinary run in the 1950s, 60s and 70s in which he won a tournament every year for 26 years, but he will be probably be best remembered for his spectacular victory at the Open at St Andrews in 1960, its centenary year.

Arnold Palmer had been expected to win that year after triumphing in the Masters and the US Open, but Nagle won by one stroke. After Palmer birdied the 18th, Nagle watched from the 17th green and the roar from the crowd told him he needed to hole his eight footer for par to stay one stroke ahead - which he did. In the end, his four footer for a birdie lipped out to a foot. He recalled: "I could hear Henry Longhurst in the commentary box saying 'Be careful, be careful.' "

It was a great result for Nagle but it was an even better result for the Open because it revived interest in the tournament among American players, who had only intermittently taken part until then. Palmer himself came back the following year to win the Claret Jug and did so again in 1962, when Nagle was the runner-up. Three years later, Nagle was also a runner-up in the US Open after losing an 18-hole play-off with Gary Player. The South African said that Nagle was one of the best short-game players he had seen.

Born in North Sydney, Nagle did not turn professional until 1946 when he was already in his later 30s. His first big win was the 1949 Australian PGA Championship and he went on to dominate the region for many years. In all, he won 61 times in Australasia, including multiple victories in the region's biggest events. He won the Australian PGA Championship a record six times, the Australian Open once, the New Zealand PGA Championship eight times and the New Zealand Open six times.

With his close friend and fellow player Peter Thomson, a five-time Open champion, he also helped capture the World Cup of Golf twice for Australia in 1954 and 59 and it was Thomson who encouraged him to try his luck again at the Open after some unsuccessful appearances in the 1950s. Thomson, who was already a four-time Open Champion, said to Nagle: ''You're playing well. You're driving well, your irons are good and you're putting good. You can win The Open.''

Thomson also helped Nagle prepare when they arrived in Scotland. ''I was 100-1 and you must realise Pete was won the favourites,'' Nagle recalled. ''He told me he'd take me around the course in practice, show me the places to go and not to go. It was like sign posting the course for me.''

Once play got going, Nagle compiled rounds of 69, 67 and 71 on the Old Course to take a two-shot lead going into the final round, which had been delayed by a day because of torrential rain. Nagle and Palmer both went out in 34 leaving the American four shots behind with nine holes to play but he pulled shots back at the 13th and 15th and then closed with a birdie to reduce the deficit to one. Nagle then holed a par putt on the 17th to retain his lead and calmly parred the last.

Peter Dawson, the chief executive of the R&A, confirmed the importance of Nagle's win in the centenary year and described the victory over Palmer was one of the most dramatic and memorable in the championship's history. "He was a tremendously engaging person," said Dawson, "and very modest about his remarkable career."

In the years that followed his Open win, Nagle recorded another six top 10 finishes from 1961 to 1969. His other achievements included wins at the 1954 World Cup in Montreal and 1959 World Cup in Melbourne with Thomson

He played on the PGA Senior Tour (now The Champions Tour) in the United States in 102 events from 1981-1989 and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2007. In 1980, he was also awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for service to the sport of golf and was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1986.

He was unable to make the trip to Scotland for the 150th anniversary of the Open in 2010, but the R&A sent a film crew to Sydney to record an interview with him, which was played at the event.

Stephen Pitt, the chief executive of Golf Australia, called Nagle a giant of the game. ''But much more than that," he said, "Kel was an ambassador for his sport and his country, universally liked and admired by his peers.'' Peter Thomson said of his friend: "I can honestly say I never met anybody in my life that didn't really like "

His wife, Jean, died in 1980 and he is survived by four children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren