George C. Thomas Jr. Explained

George C. Thomas Jr.
Birth Date:3 October 1873
Birth Place:Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Death Place:Beverly Hills, California
Occupation:Golf course architect, botanist, writer
Children:2
Education:University of Pennsylvania
Signature:Signature of George Clifford Thomas Jr. (1873–1932).png

George Clifford Thomas Jr. (October 3, 1873 – February 23, 1932) was an American golf course architect, botanist, and writer. He designed the original course at Whitemarsh Valley Country Club, outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and more than twenty courses in California, including Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades and Red Hill Country Club in Rancho Cucamonga.

Thomas, along with A.W. Tillinghast, William Flynn, Hugh Wilson, George Crump, and William Fownes together made up the "Philadelphia School" of golf course architecture. Together, the group designed over 300 courses, 27 of which are on in the top 100 golf courses in the world.[1]

Biography

Thomas was born in Philadelphia on October 3, 1873.[2] He attended Episcopal Academy, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1894. His father was a partner in the investment bank Drexel & Company, where the son worked until 1907. As a teenager, he began designing a golf course on his family's suburban estate, Bloomfield Farm.[3] He sold the course in 1908 to a group of golfers who converted it into Whitemarsh Valley Country Club. He designed a 9-hole course in Marion, Massachusetts, and a course in Spring Lake Heights, New Jersey.

In the 1910s, he was able to observe some of the pioneers of golf course design working near Philadelphia. He was a founding member of Sunnybrook Golf Club, and witnessed Donald Ross's 1914-15 construction of its original course in Flourtown, Pennsylvania.[4] He was friends with Hugh Wilson, who designed Merion Golf Club's original East Course in 1912, and its original West Course in 1914; with George Crump, who designed Pine Valley Golf Club's original course in 1915; and with A. W. Tillinghast, who later designed the Philadelphia Cricket Club's original course in Flourtown. Crump, Tillinghast, Wilson, William Flynn (who constructed Wilson's courses at Merion), and Thomas were masters of the "Philadelphia School" of golf course design, which encouraged high-risk/high-reward play.[5]

He served in the Army Air Service during World War I, attaining the rank of captain. "The Captain" remained his nickname for the rest of his life.

He moved to California in 1919, where he designed the course at La Cumbre Country Club in Santa Barbara. William P. Bell collaborated and supervised its construction. He and Bell later collaborated on courses for Los Angeles Country Club, Ojai Country Club, Bel-Air Country Club, Fox Hills Golf Course, Red Hill Country Club, and others.

In 1926, he published a seminal book, Golf Course Architecture in America, in which he stated the goal behind his work: "When you play a course and remember each hole, it has individuality and change. If your mind cannot recall the exact sequence of the holes, that course lacks the great assets of originality and diversity."[6]

He considered the course at Red Hill Country Club to be his masterpiece. It is the only one of his courses that has never been extensively altered.

Dogs and roses

He raised English setters, and was one of the founders of the English Setter Club of America.[7]

In 1912, he began breeding roses on Bloomfield Farm, trying to create a variety that would thrive in Philadelphia's Mid-Atlantic climate. His botanical work continued in California, where he cultivated some 1,200 varieties, including his own "Bloomfield" hybrids.[8] He wrote two books on roses.

Family

He married Edna H. Ridge in Philadelphia on July 6, 1901. They had two children: George Clifford III, born April 13, 1905; and Josephine Moorehead, born April 14, 1907.[2] Thomas died of a heart attack at their home in Beverly Hills on February 23, 1932.[9]

Legacy

Geoff Shackelford, a golf course architect and author, wrote a 1995 history of Riviera Country Club and a 1996 biography of Thomas.[10]

In 2008, Thomas was posthumously inducted into the Southern California Golf Association's Hall of Fame.[11]

In 2010, Gil Hanse restored the North Course at Los Angeles Country Club to Thomas's 1921 design.[12] On Golf Digest 2023 list of the 100 greatest golf courses in America, Riviera Country Club was ranked 19th, and the restored North Course at Los Angeles Country Club was ranked 16th.[13]

In June 2012, the first George C. Thomas Jr. Invitational Tournament was held on the North Course at Los Angeles Country Club.[14]

Golf courses

References

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://thefriedegg.com/philadelphia-school-of-golf-architecture/ Philadelphia School
  2. Book: Encyclopedia of Pennsylvania Biography, Illustrated . XIII . John W. . Jordan . . New York . 63 . 1921 . 2023-06-22 . Google Books.
  3. Web site: National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania . CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System . Searchable database . 2013-08-25 . 2007-07-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070721014609/https://www.dot7.state.pa.us/ce/SelectWelcome.asp . dead . Note: This includes Web site: National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Compton and Bloomfield . 2012-05-24 . George E. Thomas . August 1978 .
  4. http://www.gapgolf.org/clubs.asp?cmd=&cid=116 Sunnybrook Golf Club History
  5. http://www.out-and-back.net/?p=2603 William Flynn biographical sketch
  6. Golf Course Architecture in America (1926), p. 136.
  7. Web site: English Setter Club of America history . 2012-10-16 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110203044254/http://www.englishsetterclub.com/BriefHistory.html . 2011-02-03 . dead .
  8. Dan McMasters, Two Centuries of the Rose in California (American Rose Society, 1977), p. 27.
  9. News: Geo. C. Thomas, Jr., Dies in California . . 3 . 1932-02-24 . 2023-06-22 . Newspapers.com.
  10. http://www.geoffshackelford.com/biography/ Geoff Shackelford blog
  11. http://www.scga.org/news/halloffame.aspx SCGA Hall of Fame
  12. https://www.thelacc.org/files/NorthCourse_Commemorative_Edition.pdf North Course, Los Angeles Country Club restoration
  13. https://www.golfdigest.com/story/americas-100-greatest-golf-courses-ranking
  14. http://www.amateurgolf.com/8027-GolfNews-Shaw-takes-George-C-Thomas-Invite George C. Thomas Jr. Invitational
  15. Web site: Spring Lake Golf Club history . 2012-10-15 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120915025000/http://springlakegolfclub.net/About-Us/History.aspx . 2012-09-15 . dead .
  16. http://www.redhillcc.com/our-story Red Hill Country Club Our Story
  17. http://www.saticoycountryclub.com/About-the-Club/History-213.html Saticoy Country Club history
  18. http://www.golfhistoricalsociety.org/griffith_park/index.html Harding Memorial Golf Course
  19. http://www.ojairesort.com/golf-course-history.php Ojai Country Club history
  20. http://www.golfclubatlas.com/courses-by-country/usa/riviera-country-club/ Riviera Country Club -- A hole-by-hole tour
  21. http://www.gostanford.com/facilities/stan-golfcourse.html Stanford Golf Course

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