golf Archives - Silver Club Golfing Society

#36 – H.J. Whigham

Steve Scott — Fri, 21 Sep 2018 11:00:53 +0000

Henry James Whigham (24 December 1869 – 17 March 1954) was born in Tarbolton, Scotland, and was a Scottish writer and amateur golfer. He won the U.S. Amateur in 1896 and 1897. Following his first win in the U.S. Amateur, he wrote a golf instruction book. In 1896 he finished fifth in the U.S. Open held at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, Southampton, New York.

Whigham was one of six brothers and four sisters. His sisters Molly and Sybil Whigham also played golf, and did so very well. In 1893, Whigham traveled to America and demonstrated golf at the Chicago World’s Fair. The demonstration was organized by famed golf course architect Charles B. (C.B.) Macdonald, who was acquainted with Whigham’s father, David Dundas, while they were students at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. Whigham would go on to become Macdonald’s son-in-law, marrying his daughter Frances. They had a daughter, Sybil. Whigham learned the game under his instructors Willie Campbell and Joe Lloyd.

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#37 – Ivo Whitton

Steve Scott — Thu, 20 Sep 2018 11:00:25 +0000

Ivo Whitton was an Australian amateur golfer, who , besides Greg Norman, is the only Australian to have won the Australian Open five times (1912, 1913, 1926, 1929 and 1931).

Whitton took up golfing at the age of 14, joining his father in the Caulfield Golf Club (later the Metropolitan Golf Club) the next year, and winning the club championships three times. In 1911, he began working at a wool broking firm which allowed him time off to play golf during the off-season. In 1912, he competed at The Amateur Championship in the United Kingdom, returning to England during World War I to serve with the Royal Garrison Artillery after being rejected by the Australian Imperial Force.

In 1912, Whitton won his first Australian Open championship, and went on to win four more in 1913, 1926, 1929 and 1931. He also won the Australian Amateur twice, the Victorian Amateur five times, the New South Wales Amateur and the Queensland Amateur and Open.

In 1920, Whitton won the Helms Award as the most outstanding Australasian athlete. He returned to the wool industry as a wool appraiser for the Australian government, but ended up as a general manager for the Spalding sporting goods company.

The Victorian Golf Association created the Ivo Whitton Trophy in 1960 for the lowest stroke average in certain tournaments held each year. Whitton himself presented the award to the first champion, Kevin Hartley, who went on to win it a eleven more times. In addition, the Royal Melbourne Golf Club established the Ivo Whitton Cup in Whitton’s memory. One of the streets in Kambah, a suburb of Canberra, is named Ivo Whitton Circuit.

A group of local Melbourne golfers regularly play-off in a 9-hole stroke play event for the Ivo Whitton Trophy to honour his memory.

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#38 – Nathan Smith

Steve Scott — Wed, 19 Sep 2018 11:00:50 +0000

Pittsburgh native Nathan Smith has had one of the best amateur careers of modern times. Smith has won the U.S. Mid-Amateur four times in a span from 2003 to 2012, the 2011 Sunnehanna Amateur, the 2002 and 2009 Pennsylvania Amateur, the West Penn Amateur four times (2007–10), and the R. Jay Sigel Match Play three times (2011, 2013, 2015). With his partner Todd White, he also won the inaugural U.S. Amateur Four-Ball at the famed Olympic Club in 2015. To cap it off, Smith played in three consecutive Walker Cup matches representing the Unites States in 2009, 2011 and 2013.

Smith, who balances his golf game and his day job of a financial adviser, has played in five major championships, including four Masters Tournaments and one U.S. Open, but unfortunately missed the cut in each of them. He did come within one shot of making the cut at the 2004 Masters Tournament, but if it was any consolation, had the great fortune of being paired for the first two rounds with the legend Arnold Palmer.

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#41 – Steve Melnyk

Steve Scott — Sun, 16 Sep 2018 12:00:47 +0000

Melnyk attended the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Buster Bishop’s Florida Gators men’s golf team in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) competition from 1967 to 1969. He was a two-time All-American at Florida, and was the number one golfer on the 1968 team that won their first NCAA Division I Golf Championship. Melnyk graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor’s degree in industrial management in 1969. Melnyk won the 1969 U.S. Amateur at Oakmont Country Club, shooting a 2-over-par 286 to beat Vinny Giles by five shots at stroke play. He claimed the British Amateur with a 3 & 2 victory over fellow American Jim Simons at Carnoustie Golf Links in 1970. Melnyk also had wins at the Western Amateur and Eastern Amateur and played on the 1969 and 1971 Walker Cup teams. He won the 1965 Georgia Open as an amateur. He was low amateur in the 1970 British Open (tie for 41st) and at the 1971 Masters Tournament (tie for 24th). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Melnyk

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The Top 50 Amateur Golfers of All Time

Christopher Hunt — Fri, 07 Sep 2018 22:00:34 +0000

Silver Club Golfing Society’s list of the top 50 Amateur Golfers of All Time (#50AMGOAT) is here in all its glory. While we had to make many tough choices and many great players didn’t make the cut, It was fun to dive into the history books to arrive at a comprehensive list. A couple of ground rules: while there is a special place for those like Bobby Jones who stayed career amateurs, this constraint would leave too many incredible golfers who either mastered or dabbled in professional golf like Phil Mickelson or Jay Sigel. Second, we had to weigh different eras and accomplishments. So we erred on the side of inclusivity. We didn’t bother with a point system or purely objective way of ordering these players. Instead, we sat around over a couple drinks and talked it out – we had a blast coming up with the list and we hope that you enjoy it as well. Without further ado…

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