Chandler Egan

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Olympic medalist
Center
Chandler Egan
Medal record
Men's Golf
Competitor for Flag of the United States United States
Gold 1904 St. Louis Team
Silver 1904 St. Louis Individual

Henry Chandler Egan (August 21, 1884 – April 5, 1936) was an American amateur golfer and golf course architect of the early 20th century.

Contents

[edit] Early life and college

Egan was born in 1884 in Chicago, Illinois, which at the end of the 19th century was the epicenter of golf in the United States—the first 18-hole golf course in the United States, the Chicago Golf Club, was built there in 1893. Egan played his first game of golf in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin at the age of 12.[1] He was accepted to Harvard University, where he soon became the captain of the college golf team. The team won three team NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships from 1902 to 1904, and Egan won the individual title in 1902.[1][2]

[edit] Championships and Olympics

Egan won his first non-collegiate tournament in the 1902 Western Amateur, which was played at the Chicago Golf Club. Not only was the tournament played in his hometown, but the runner-up was his cousin Walter Egan.[1] A year later, the Egan cousins switched places with Walter winning and Chandler coming in second, and Chandler Egan would win the tournament again in 1904, 1905 (with Walter again the runner-up), and 1907.[3]

In 1904, Egan achieved the pinnacle of U.S. amateur golf success by winning the U.S. Amateur Championship, played at Baltusrol Golf Club in New Jersey. He defended his title a year later at his home turf of the Chicago Golf Club.[4]

Egan appeared to be peaking at the right time to also win an individual gold medal at the 1904 Summer Olympics, which featured golf for the last time in 1904. While Egan's U.S. team (which also included cousin Walter) won team gold, Egan had to settle for individual silver, as he was defeated by Canadian George Lyon, who at 46, was more than twice Egan's age.[1][5] Egan later admitted he had been outclassed by the wily Lyon, whose massive drives forced Egan out of his usual game.[2]

[edit] Move to Oregon

Following his runner-up finish in the 1909 U.S. Amateur, Egan abruptly disappeared from competition.[1] He reappeared in the news in May 1911 with his purchase of 115 acres of apple and pear orchard in Medford, Oregon.[1][2] He reemerged on the competitive golf circuit in 1914, with a runner-up finish in the Pacific Northwest Amateur championship to Jack Neville. A year later, Egan and Neville would meet again, and this time, Egan was the winner.[6] He would win the Pacific Northwest Amateur four more times, in 1920, 1923, 1925, and 1932.[6] Egan traveled south to win the California Amateur in 1926.[7] He played on two U.S. championship Walker Cup teams in 1930 and 1934.[1][2]

[edit] Golf architecture

In the 1920s, Egan moved into golf course design, designing such notable Oregon courses as the Eugene Country Club, Eastmoreland Golf Course, Oswego Lake Country Club, Riverside Golf & Country Club, and Tualatin Country Club.[2][8] In 1929, Egan partnered with legendary golf architect Alister MacKenzie to renovate Pebble Beach Golf Links for the 1929 U.S. Amateur, in which Egan played and reached the semifinals.[2]

[edit] Death and legacy

In 1936, Egan had completed plans for West Seattle Golf Course in Seattle, and was working on plans for the Legion Memorial Golf Course in Everett, Washington when he came down with pneumonia and died shortly thereafter.[2][9] His funeral was held in Seattle and he was buried in Medford.[9]

Egan was named to the Pacific Northwest Golf Association Hall of Fame in 1985,[2] and the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1990.[10]

[edit] Golf courses designed

Egan designed the following golf courses:[8]

[edit] Tournament wins

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Schwartz, Todd. Breaking 100. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Henry Chandler Egan. Pacific Northwest Golf Association. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  3. ^ Western Amateur Championship History. Western Amateur. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  4. ^ History. U.S. Amateur. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  5. ^ Chandler Egan. databaseOlympics.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  6. ^ a b Men's Amateur Championship. Pacific Northwest Golf Association. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  7. ^ SCGA Tournament History. Southern California Golf Association. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  8. ^ a b H. Chandler Egan - Courses Built. WorldGolf.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  9. ^ a b "West Seattle designer left lasting mark on Northwest golf", Seattle Post-Intelligencer, April 28, 2004. Retrieved on 2007-08-01. 
  10. ^ Inductees: Golf. Oregon Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  11. ^ Riverside Golf & Country Club History. Riverside Golf & Country Club. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
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