Willie Park Jr
Name:
Willie Park Jr.Country:
ScotlandLived:
[1864-1925]. Born on Feb 4, 1864 in Musselburgh, East Lothian. Died on May 22, 1925 in Craighouse, nr Edinburgh, Scotland (age 61).Original/Home Club:
Musselburgh Links (Old course)Occupation:
Professional golfer, course designer, golf writer, instructor, golf equipment maker and businessman.Turned Pro:
1880 (aged 16)MAJORS (2): Open Championship (1887, '89). Winner of numerous professional tournaments and challenge matches from 1880 into the early 1900s. World Golf Hall of Fame (inducted in 2013).
By his middle-20s Park was already established in golf course design, with a reputation that quickly grew. During his lifetime he designed an impressive portfolio of courses in Britain, Europe, the USA and Canada. His best known designs include, but are not limited to:
BRITAIN & EUROPE:
Aldeburgh (1907, modifications) / Bruntsfield (1898) / Burhill (1907, Old Course) / Formby (1912) / Gullane No.2 (1898) / Huntercombe (1901) / Kilspindie (1898) / Monte Carlo, Mont Agel (1911) / Montrose (1903) / Notts Hollinwell (1900) / Portstewart (1920s, Strand course redesign) / Royal Antwerp (1910) / Silloth on Solway (1890s, redesign) / Southerndown (1913, modifications) / Stoneham (1909) / Sunningdale (1901, Old Course) / Temple (1910).
NORTH AMERICA:
Atlantic City CC, NJ (1915, remodelling) / Maidstone Club, Long Island NY (1922) / Mount Bruno, Quebec (1918) / Olympia Fields, nr Chicago (1916, North Course) / Weston G&CC, Toronto (1909.
Willie Park Jr was born into a golfing family that was based in and around Musselburgh in East Lothian, a few miles downstream along the Firth of Forth from Edinburgh. His father, Willie Park Sr won the Open Championship four times, including the inaugural Open in 1860, and then again in 1863, 1866 and 1875. Willie Jr's uncle, Mungo Park (younger brother of Willie Park Sr), won The Open in 1874. Willie Park Jr would weigh-in with two Open Championship wins himself, in 1887 and 1889.
Among Willie Park Jr's many contributions to golf were his books, starting with the title "The Game of Golf", first published in 1896. It was one of the first golf instruction books written by a golf professional. He was also a much sought after course designer, and has an excellent portfolio of layouts to his name, which are located in Britain, Europe and the United States.
Although he spent much of his later life in the USA, Park returned home to his native Scotland when he knew he was terminally ill. Park's daughter Dorothy carried on the family's competitive tradition, reaching the final of the 1937 British Ladies Amateur Championship, where she lost out to Jessie Valentine.
Majors
R&A
The Open Championship (29th) (Nov 8). Park (Scot) beat Andrew Kirkaldy (Scot) in a 36-hole playoff: Park 158, Kirkcaldy 163. [The Old Course, Musselburgh Links, nr Edinburgh].
Majors
R&A
The Open Championship (27th) (Sept 16). Second-placed Bob Martin (Scot) finished 11 shots behind Willie Park Jr (Scot). [Prestwick GC, Ayrshire, Scotland].
124th US Open: the No.2 Course at Pinehurst once again plays host to this most illustrious championship (June 13-16). Wyndham Clark defends his title, having won at Los Angeles CC in 2023.
79th Women’s US Open: the second women’s major championship of the season gets underway at Lancaster CC in Pennsylvania. It’s the second time the championship has been held here.
(May 30-June 2).
Nelly Korda: won the Mizuho Americas Open (May 16-19) at Liberty National GC, continuing her extraordinary form in LPGA events. This was her sixth win in seven starts in 2024.
Xander Schauffele: recorded his first major championship win, and second record-equalling low score of 62 in a major. Only he, Branden Grace, Rickie Fowler and Shane Lowry have achieved this feat in a men’s major championship.
Marco Simone Golf & Country Club: With a clubhouse that might befit a Roman Emperor, and a golf course to match, you can be sure of a memorable outing at Rome's most talked about golf facility.
Jim Fazio's original layout was much changed to create a modern Ryder Cup course ... now one of the Eternal City's (and Italy's) most revered.
Here at Prince’s Golf Club you'll find 27 excellent holes of links golf. Just over the fence and sharing similar terrain is Royal St George’s; but Prince’s is far from overshadowed by its venerable neighbour. The three nine-hole loops at Prince's, laid out over gently undulating terrain, are sure to bring a smile of satisfaction to all lovers of links golf.
Stay&Play at Prince's: excellent onsite Lodge accommodation available
You can subscribe to the Where2Golf channel on YT if you like to see more video content. You'll find a "Subscribe" button on any of our YouTube videos. Or if you want a quick and direct access subscribe here. Once done, any new published videos will show up in your Subscriptions feed.