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William Davis (golfer)

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William "Willie" Davis
Personal information
Full nameWilliam Frederick Davis
Born1861
Scotland
Died8 January 1902(1902-01-08) (aged 40–41)
Rye, New York, US
SpouseMary McKinnon
Children3
Career
Turned professional1885
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipDNP
U.S. Open5th: 1895
The Open ChampionshipDNP

William Frederick Davis (1861–1902)[1] was a Scottish professional golfer who designed two of the five charter clubs of the United States Golf Association (USGA)[2] including Shinnecock Hills Golf Club and Newport Country Club. At the time of his death in 1902, Davis was credited as being the first individual to have come to America to make a professional living as a golfer.[3][4] He was also remembered as leading the movement to establish a championship tournament for professionals.[5][6]

Career

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According to a 1900 U.S. census,[1] Davis was born in Scotland in February 1861. He honed his golf skills under Jack Morris at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England.[7] Once his application for employment at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada was accepted,[3] Davis booked passage to North America arriving in April 1881. His position as greenskeeper there did not suit him, so from Canada, Davis emigrated to the United States in 1885.[1]

By July 1891, Davis was in Southampton, New York where he planned the original 12-hole short course at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in just about a month.[8][3][9][10][11]

The success of Shinnecock established Davis' reputation as a golf course designer. It opened the door for him to make his way to Rhode Island where he laid out the course at Newport Country Club in 1894.[7][12] One writer applauded Davis' work at Newport and proclaimed "what was last year but an unexplored swamp is now one of the finest golf links in this country."[13] That same year, Davis laid out a golf course for the Point Judith Country Club in Narragansett.[14] Davis spent several years at Newport and had a brief stint as the winter professional for the Washington Golf Club where he was hired for the winter season in December 1898.[15] After a disagreement at Newport, Davis was wooed away by The Apawamis Club, becoming one of its earliest resident pros.

Following an offer in the fall of 1899 to join the newly constructed Rye country club, Davis began almost immediately.[16] One of his first projects was working with golf committee member Maturin Ballou to improve drainage for the links in November 1899.[17][18] By July 1900, Davis had made some changes to the Apawamis course that Tom Bendelow had originally laid out. Davis shortened several of Bendelow's holes but also increased the ninth hole in length to 600 yards. The resulting total yardage was 6205.[12][19] Names of the holes included Fairview, Waterloo and Consolation. At that time, Davis held a record score of 78 that even famed British golfer Harry Vardon could not best.[12]

Among other firsts, William Davis is also cited as North America's first golf clubmaker.[20]

Tournaments

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As a resident professional, Davis participated in many tournaments including those that took place on courses he had a hand in designing. He was regularly considered a top contender in any field along the likes of Willie Dunn, Willie Campbell and others.[21] The first U.S. Open, held on Friday, October 4, 1895, was played on the Newport course Davis had designed and Davis placed fifth.[22] Davis' assistant Horace Rawlins[23] won the inaugural U.S. Open title, two strokes ahead of Dunn, the runner-up.[24][25][26]

Davis' proudest accomplishment was defeating two-time Open Champion Willie Park, Jr. in 1895.[3][21]

Led movement for professional tournament

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While at Apawamis, Davis worked with other club professionals like George Low to secure terms to hold an annual championship tournament whose field was to be solely composed of resident players associated with Eastern clubs. In 1901, a petition men at 44 clubs in the Metropolitan Golf Association (MGA) was signed and presented by Davis and fellow pro Willie Norton of Lakewood Golf Club and Deal Beach Club both in New Jersey.[5] Davis and the pros had the support of Maturin Ballou representing Apawamis but they were turned down by the MGA in April of the same year.[27] Their combined efforts would not bear fruit until 1906 after Davis' death. The result was the Eastern Professional Golfers Association.[28] Low would be the organization's first president.

Personal life and death

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Davis and his wife Mary[1] were married in Canada in 1883. They had three sons and were residents of Rye, New York when Davis died at age 40 on 8 January 1902, from pneumonia.[3][4]

Legacy

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For some time, Davis was not given correct attribution for his design of the course at Shinnecock and credit was given to professional golfer Willie Dunn instead. Historians, the USGA and Shinnecock Club itself have corrected that error in recent years.[29]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Twelfth Census of the United States", United States census, 1900; Rye Township, New York; page 53, line 33. Retrieved on March 5, 2022.
  2. ^ David Shefter (November 30, 2014). "Celebrating 120 Years of the USGA (Part 1): 1894-1924". USGA. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e "A Pioneer Golfer's Death". The Sun. New York, New York. January 10, 1902.
  4. ^ a b "Golf, Willie Weir and His Early Contemporaries". The Sun. New York, New York. November 14, 1910.
  5. ^ a b "An MGA Open Tourney? Committeemen and Apawamis Willing but Funds are Short". The Sun. New York. March 25, 1901.
  6. ^ "Golf, Metropolitan Association to Hold Annual Meeting Tonight - Professionals Petition Abandoned". New-York Daily Tribune. January 31, 1902.
  7. ^ a b Frederick Waterman (2013). The History of Newport Country Club. Newport, Rhode Island: Newport Country Club Preservation Foundation.
  8. ^ "Amateur Golf, Further Gossip About the Contest at Shinnecock Hills". The New York Sun. July 12, 1896.
  9. ^ "Shinnecock Hills Golf Club - Our History". Shinnecock Hills. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  10. ^ Bob Crosby and Wayne Morrison. "The Evolution of the Shinnecock Hills Golf Course". USGA. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  11. ^ "Professional Golfers, Who They Are and What They Have Done in America". The Evening Post. July 3, 1908.
  12. ^ a b c "Golf at Apawamis, The Picturesque Course at Rye and Some of Its Attractive Features-Women An Important Factor in Club Life". New-York Daily Tribune. New York, New York. September 15, 1901. p. 4.
  13. ^ "The Links". The Spirit of the Times. October 5, 1895. p. 406.
  14. ^ Jeff Silverman (April 28, 2009). "Summer in Rhode Island". Travel and Leisure. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  15. ^ "On the Golf Links". The Evening Post. New York, New York. December 15, 1898. p. 5.
  16. ^ "Newport Loses Davis". The Buffalo Courier. November 10, 1899. p. 9.
  17. ^ "Golf". New York Daily Tribune. New York, New York. November 10, 1899.
  18. ^ "Golf - Midwinter Doings Among the Local Clubs". New York Tribune. New York, New York. January 29, 1900.
  19. ^ "Davis Makes New Record at Apawamis". The New-York Daily Tribune. July 22, 1900. p. 6.
  20. ^ "Lot # 485: W.F. Davis Smooth Face Putter". Golden Age. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  21. ^ a b T.W. Stevens (1895). "The Golf Year". The American Gentleman's Newspaper. p. 789.
  22. ^ Brenner, Morgan G. (2009). The Majors of Golf: Complete Results of the Open, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and the Masters, 1860-2008. Vol. 1. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3360-5.
  23. ^ "Has Grown with Amazing Rapidity". Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. December 11, 1899. p. 15.
  24. ^ "Rawlins is Champion". The Evening Star. Washington, D.C. October 25, 1895. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  25. ^ Gola, Hank (June 15, 1995). "U.S. Open challenges golf's best". Wilmington Morning Star. (New York Daily News). p. 4C.
  26. ^ "10 pros, 1 amateur in first Open". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 13, 1983. p. 58.
  27. ^ "Golf Sanction Refused". The Daily Times. Troy, New York. April 24, 1901.
  28. ^ "Golf - Professionals Annual Meeting - Championship Notes". The Sun. June 5, 1906. p. 9.
  29. ^ Vera Chinese (April 18, 2022). "Portrait sets record straight on designer of Shinnecock course". Newsday. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
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