Charles Thorn (golfer)

Charles Thorn
— Golfer —
Personal information
Full name Charles Thorn
Born November 1877
Scotland
Nationality  Scotland
 United States
Career
Status Professional
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament DNP
U.S. Open 7th: 1902
The Open Championship DNP
PGA Championship DNP

Charles Thorn (born November 1877) was a Scottish-American professional golfer. Thorn placed seventh in the 1902 U.S. Open.[1]

Early life

In 1879 at age 2, he emigrated with his family to the United States and became a naturalized American citizen. In 1900 he was boarding with the George Eke family at Shelter Island, New York.[2]

Golf career

Head professional jobs

By 1901 he was serving as the professional at Bedford Springs Hotel resort course in Bedford Springs, Pennsylvania, one of the oldest golf courses in the country.[3] While there, he worked to improve the course by rebuilding greens and tee boxes and installing an irrigation system using the natural springs found in the area as a water source.[4] In January 1919 Thorn was the head professional at Miami Beach Golf Club in the winter months and spent his summers working at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on Long Island, New York.[5]

Major championship tournaments

Thorn was in the field for the playing of the eighth U.S. Open in 1902. The golf tournament was held October 10–11, 1902, at Garden City Golf Club in Garden City, New York. Fellow Scotsman Laurie Auchterlonie established a new 72-hole U.S. Open scoring record to win his first U.S. Open title by six strokes ahead of Stewart Gardner and Walter Travis.[1] Thorn's steady play resulted in a seventh-place finish.[1][6]

Auchterlonie turned in a record-breaking performance on his way to the championship. He posted rounds of 78-78-74-77, becoming the first golfer in U.S. Open history to card four sub-80 rounds. His 307 total was six shots better than the previous tournament record, set by Harry Vardon in 1900. Stewart Gardner and amateur Walter Travis, the designer of Garden City Golf Club, both posted a 313 total to share second place.

The low scores were in large part due to the introduction of the Haskell golf ball, which soon replaced the gutta-percha ball as the prominent golf ball in use.

References

  1. 1 2 3 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. 1. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3360-5.
  2. ↑ "1900 U.S. Census – Shelter Island, New York". United States Federal Census. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Bedford Springs – Pennsylvania's Famous Resort Under New Management". The Pittsburg Press. May 19, 1901. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  4. ↑ "The Bedford Springs Hotel". New York Daily Tribune. June 9, 1901. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Golf Gossip". New York Tribune. January 4, 1919. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Open Golf Champion". The Saint Paul Globe. Minnesota. October 12, 1902. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
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