Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 1977
- Class:
- 1930
Hometown:Â Concord, MA
Sport:Â Ice Hockey
Year Inducted:Â 1977
Philip Marston Lingham '30 is credited by his peers with turning the Brown hockey program around an establishing a winning tradition that has lasted to the present. The 6-0, 170-pounder from Concord (Mass.) High and Lawrence Academy was one of the smartest defensemen of his era and occasionally took a brief turn at center ice. Lingham was captain of the Bruins in both his junior and senior seasons, guiding the team to 8-5 and 8-3-1 records. He scored nine goals in his senior year, a remarkable accomplishment for a defenseman in an era when there was no passing allowed in the opponent's third of the ice, no hanging around the net, no tipping in shots, and no screening. Phil Lingham was the complete hockey player. He could skate, dish it out on defense, and play 60 minutes if necessary. Fortunately, it wasn't often necessary. He also had a low, hard shot, one that he kept ankle high and sizzling. Alden Walls '31, captain in 1931, has vivid memories of the tall, graceful defenseman. "Phil was not only a leader," Walls says, "but he was also a coach on the ice. When I first came up to the varsity in 1928 it was Phil who showed me the fundamentals of playing defense, especially the art of skating backwards with the play." Eddie Crane '31, another former teammate, recently summed up Lingham's career at Brown. "If there had been an All-East team in those days, Phil would have been on it," Crane said. "He was that good." Since graduation, Phil Lingham has been the president of the Brown Club of Western Pennsylvania and a class agent. He is the retired assistant director of purchasing for Pittsburgh Plate Glass.
