Former Prime Minister A J Balfour at golf
The former Prime Minister Arthur James Balfour competing in the annual summer golf meeting of the North Berwick Old Club, Scotland. He did not play as well on the second day and ended up tearing up his card. Balfour was British Prime Minister from 1902 to 1905, then leader of the Opposition until November 1911. He succeeded his uncle Lord Salisbury as Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader in July 1902 (he had been Conservative leader in the House of Commons since 1891). As Prime Minister, Balfour oversaw such events as the Entente Cordiale, but his party was split over tariff reform and in December 1905 he relinquished power to the Liberals. The general election the following January was a disaster for the Conservatives and their Liberal Unionist allies, left with a mere 157 seats in Parliament. Balfour himself lost his Manchester East seat and was rushed back to parliament in a by-election for the City of London constituency. He continued as Leader of the Opposition throughout the crisis over the Lloyd George People's Budget and the Parliament Act, but after failing to win either of the two General Elections in 1910 he resigned as leader in November 1911
