Harry Vardon

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Harry Vardon

Harry Vardon (9 May 1870 – 20 March 1937) was an English golfer and member of the fabled Great Triumvirate of the sport in his day, along with John Henry Taylor and James Braid.

Harry Vardon was born in Grouville, Jersey, Channel Islands. As a child growing up on the island of Jersey, Harry Vardon did not play much golf. Inspired by his older brother, Tom, he eventually took up the game in his teens and by age 20 he was so good that he turned professional. Vardon was the first professional golfer to play in knickers -- the "proper" Englishman dressed in an uncomfortable shirt and tie with a buttoned jacket. Nonetheless, within a few years he became golf's first superstar.

In 1896, Harry Vardon won the first of his record six Open Championships (a record that still stands today). In 1900, he became golf's first international celebrity when he toured the United States playing in more than 80 matches and capping it off with a victory in the U.S. Open. He was the runner-up of the 1913 U.S. Open, an event portrayed in the film The Greatest Game Ever Played. At the age of 50, Vardon was the runner-up at the 1920 U.S. Open.

During his career, Harry Vardon won 62 golf tournaments including the German Open in 1911 and the British PGA Matchplay Championship in 1912. He popularized the grip that bears his name, one still used by over 90 percent of golfers. In his later years, Vardon became a golf course architect [1], designing several courses in Britain. Following a bout with tuberculosis, he struggled with health problems for years but turned to coaching and writing golf instruction and inspirational books. Harry Vardon died in 1937 in Totteridge, Hertfordshire, England. After his death, the PGA of America created the Vardon Trophy. It is awarded annually to the player on the PGA Tour with the year's lowest adjusted scoring average.

During his peak years, Vardon was known for his exceptional accuracy and control with all clubs, the greatest ever seen to that stage.

In 1974 Harry Vardon was chosen as one of the initial group of inductees into the World Golf Hall of Fame. His most prestigious medals, including those from his six British Open Championships, are on display in a tribute to him at the Jersey Museum. In the annals of golf, Harry Vardon is considered one of the greats of the game. In 2000, Vardon was ranked as the 13th best golfer of all time by Golf Digest magazine.^[1]

1 Vardon Grip
2 Tournament wins
3 Major Championships
- 3.1 Wins (7)
- 3.2 Performance in the U.S. Open
4 Media depictions
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Vardon Grip

Harry Vardon was also famous for the Vardon Grip, or overlapping grip, the grip most popular among professional golfers. In the Vardon grip, one places the little finger of the trailing hand (the one placed lower on the club - right hand for a right-handed player) in between the index and middle finger on the lead hand (the hand that is higher on the club). The lead-hand thumb should fit in the lifeline of the trailing hand. Vardon actually took up this grip some time after Johnny Laidlay, a champion Scottish amateur player, invented it.

[edit] Tournament wins

this list may be incomplete

1896 The Open Championship
1898 The Open Championship
1899 The Open Championship
1900 U.S. Open
1903 The Open Championship
1911 The Open Championship, German Open
1912 News of the World Match Play
1914 The Open Championship

Major championships are shown in bold.

[edit] Major Championships

[edit] Wins (7)

Year	Championship	54 Holes	Winning Score	Margin	Runner Up
1896	The Open Championship		(316)	Playoff ¹	J.H. Taylor
1898	The Open Championship (2)	2 shot deficit	(307)	1 stroke	Willie Park, Jnr.
1899	The Open Championship (3)	11 shot lead	(76-76-81-77=310)	5 strokes	Jack White
1900	U.S. Open	4 shot lead	(79-78-76-80=313)	2 strokes	J.H. Taylor
1903	The Open Championship (4)	7 shot lead	(73-77-72-78=300)	6 strokes	Tom Vardon
1911	The Open Championship (5)		(303)	Playoff ²	Arnaud Massy
1914	The Open Championship (6)	2 shot deficit	(73-77-78-78=306)	3 strokes	J.H. Taylor

¹ Defeated J.H. Taylor in 36-hole playoff by 4 strokes
² Defeated Arnaud Massy in 36-hole playoff: Massy conceded after 35 holes

[edit] Performance in the U.S. Open

Vardon played in the U.S. Open three times. He first played in the event in 1900 and he won by shooting 79-78-76-80=313. The event was played at the Chicago Golf Club that year.

Vardon did not play in the U.S. Open again until 1913. He finished in second place, losing to amateur Francis Ouimet in a playoff. Edward Ray was also in the playoff. Vardon shot eight-over-par (75-72-78-79=304). In the playoff he shot a 77 while Ouimet shot a 72 and Ray shot a 78. The event was played at The Country Club. The golf world was shocked when Vardon and Ray lost to 20-year old amateur Francis Ouimet.

Vardon played in the U.S. Open for the last time in 1920. He finished tied in second place, one stroke behind fellow Englishmen Edward Ray. Vardon shot eight-over-par (74-73-71-78=296). The event was played at Inverness Club that year.

[edit] Media depictions

A biography of Harry Vardon, published in 1991 and authored by his daughter-in-law, Audrey Howell, provides much intimate detail about the life of this champion.
English actor Stephen Dillane portrayed Vardon in director Bill Paxton's 2005 film The Greatest Game Ever Played.
Irish-American actor Aidan Quinn portrayed Vardon in the 2004 film Bobby Jones: A Stroke of Genius.