https://golfclubatlas.com/williamwatsonbydeanknuth/My wife and I like to read mystery books, the only difference being she likes to read the last 20 pages first. As a golfer, I find such tactics abhorrent because if I knew what I was going to shoot beforehand, I would have given up the sport a couple of decades ago!
Having said that, if you want to skip to the back of Dean Knuth’s piece on William Watson, I understand, for that is where he lists the over 100 courses for which Watson was the driving design force. That’s right – over a 100, which frames the conversation about how William Watson has never received his just due.
Dean, who is a member of Watson’s San Diego CC, has done Watson proud by assembling this meticulously researched piece. Laced with newspaper quotes throughout, Dean’s work conveys Watson's prominent stature in the game during the Golden Age. In Watson, we have a genuine minimalist. Dean highlights this quote from Watson: '
A good rule is to stress the importance of fitting in all grading work to harmonize with the surrounding territory, mounds, slopes, grassy hollows, sand pits, all have their values in beautifying the setting of our greens and in giving them distinctive definition — if artificially arranged without appearance of artificiality.'Dean states,
‘From my point of view, besides being a minimalist just as he said, Watson was a master at routing golf holes on the land that he was provided. While he preferred land with significant rolls, dips and terrain, he did very well in laying-out courses on all types of land where he could envision a unique feature for each hole—and all without moving much land. He could envision sidewalls to bound the ball right or left, he could use horses to create contours on flat areas, and he used other skills to keep his courses from ever producing monotony.’
Three of the best roly-poly sites he ever received are White Bear Yacht Club, Orinda and Belvedere. All three are presented wonderfully today and stand as shining examples of Watson’s talent. Of course, for years WBYC was classed as a Ross but several brave members have established that it is Watson that deserves the primary credit. That’s in part why what Dean has done is so important – Watson was a first class Golden Age architect and if more people understood how talented the Scot was and how proud they should be to have a Watson course, then the direction that his courses evolve might well be different.
Dean highlights some of Watson’s best courses that are RIP like those at Olympic and Olympia Fields. If his work with Sam Whiting on the Ocean Links course for Olympic still existed, his profile today would be much higher as that ocean front course would still have everyone swooning. Also, Dean points out that Watson’s contributions to the California municipal golf scene seem to go completely unrecognized, including Garvanza Links in 1900 which apparently was the first municipal course built on the Pacific Coast. Watson moved to Los Angeles in 1899 when LA had a population of ~ 100,000. A club maker, teacher and architect, Watson played an outsized role in helping to establish golf in California.
Dean sums up Watson thusly,
'Watson embraced a minimalist design philosophy, where golf holes were found and not built. He disliked artificiality. Every bunker and mound he constructed had a purpose. Some shapes were simple, others more complex, but always he insisted on naturalness.' What’s not to admire?! Here is a Scot who immigrated to America and built great courses here at a key time in the sport’s development. It is indeed high time that William Watson’s accomplishments finally receive their due.
Dean has done what he set out to do: create a starting point to discuss what William Watson (and indeed the whole Watson family) meant to golf. He can be reached at dknuth@cox.net and would be most appreciative by whoever would be so kind as to share additional information on the Watson family. For instance, the fate of William’s wife Ada (who was integral to his design business) remains a mystery. Please help Dean gather information and he, in turn, will reward this readership with his further findings.
Best,