Tom Bendelow
Encyclopedia
Tom Bendelow nicknamed "The Johnny Appleseed
of American Golf", was a prolific Scottish American
golf
course architect during the first half of the twentieth century. He is credited with having designed some 600 courses in a 35-year span.
, Bendelow was one of nine children. His parents owned a popular pie shop in the city, and were known for their religious piety. His father taught him the game of golf; however he was trained as a typesetter. There were no careers in golf course design in that era. He courted Mary Ann Nicol, daughter of a prominent farmer. They were married in 1892 at Belhelvie. Bendelow immigrated to the United States
in 1892. His family followed in 1893; the couple had a daughter, born in December 1892. His first job was at the New York Herald
.
, the sporting goods
manufacturer, Bendelow's career began to take off in earnest. Prior to this, he had been teaching golf in his spare time -- most notably to the Pratt family of Standard Oil
fame, who also commissioned him to build them a private six-hole course at their Long Island
estate, but Spalding hired him to exclusively promote the game in the New York
and New Jersey
areas. "They were not seeking to design and build championship courses or courses to test the honed skills of the best players, but rather courses that new players could enjoy, courses that would improve player proficiency, courses that would promote participation, and courses that could be maintained at a reasonable expense," according to the American Society of Golf Course Architects
.
In 1898, the New York City
Park District hired him to redesign and manage the Van Cortlandt Park
Golf Course, the country's first 18-hole municipal golf course. Bendelow introduced various innovations to American golfers. These included the use of reserve play (tee) times, course marshals, public player associations, public golf instruction
, and training for caddies. He also believed golf should be a sport that the public could play at little to no cost.
, laying out courses, providing construction advice, encouraging players' associations, and promoting the growth of the game. In 1917, Bendelow accepted the position of Golf Department Manager with the Thos. E Wilson sporting goods company. In 1920, Bendelow joined Myron West's "American Park Builders Company" in Chicago, as Chief Golf Course Designer, and focused on designing comprehensive city plans, subdivisions, country clubs, golf courses, and golf course communities. These included Temple Terrace Golf and Country Club, Florida (1921), and the Dallas Country Club
(1908)., Mission Hills Country Club (Kansas)
(1915)
Bendelow also designed park systems -- and even cemeteries -- throughout the United States and Canada.
Bendelow is recognized as the most prolific of course designers worldwide, a pioneer in the establishment and growth of the game in America. Bendelow personally designed some 700 courses, taught course design at the college
level, played the game with luminaries such as Harry Vardon
, and wrote abundantly and beautifully. He even had his own line of Thos. E. Wilson golf club
s. He exerted a profound impact on the introduction and spread of the game of golf in North America
.
design was greatly influenced by the work of prominent landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted
Sr. and Jr. "If a site had an especially unique feature –- rock outcrop, stream, grove of trees, scenic view -– he would work his hole placements in such a way as to take full advantage of the features even if that meant working his layout from the middle out," according to the American Society of Golf Course Architects
. "Bendelow’s designs changed as the game of golf changed. When given good sites and adequate resources with which to work, he could produce a very challenging lay out, equal to the best work of the day. His personal goal however, was to build good, solid, enjoyable golf courses." Bendelow would often describe his courses as "sporty", meaning that his courses "should present a enjoyable play for both beginner and advanced player; not too hard to discourage the new player and not without challenge to the more accomplished golfer."
Most of Bendelow's early work was focused on spreading the game and "bringing golf to the majority of the populous." As a result, most of his designs prior to World War I were fairly basic, focusing more on playability and ease of construction and maintenance. After World War I, Bendelow's designs started to become more strategically intricate, particularly in his work for private clubs. Bendelow left A.G. Spalding and joined American Park Builders during this time. In addition, construction technology and client budgets greatly advanced after World War I. These factors would give him the time required to focus on developing more challenging layouts. The added resources also allowed Bendelow to use more refined techniques in design and construction, including the use of topographic maps, soil surveys, irrigation plans, and plaster of paris green models.
’s 18-hole course at East Lake Golf Club
, the place where the great Bobby Jones
learned the game," wrote Colin Farquharson in a 2006 profile of Bendelow. “'It was extraordinary in that it gave a golfer the opportunity to use every wood and iron in his bag,'said Jones.'" Bendelow also designed Algonquin Golf Club
in 1904, one of the St. Louis, Missouri
area’s oldest private country clubs.
Bendelow is perhaps best known for his three layouts at the Medinah Country Club, with his work on Medinah Country Club
's Course #3 being famous world-wide. Medinah #3 has served as the host site to several major championships
, including the U.S. Open
in 1949, 1975, and 1990, as well as the PGA Championship
in 1999 and 2006. The 2012 Ryder Cup
is scheduled to be played on the course, which is widely considered not merely the best course in Illinois
, but one of the finest golf courses in the United States. However, the #3 course has been very extensively redesigned since Bendelow's time, a common occurrence for courses from that era which are still used for modern championship play.
He died at his home in River Forest, Illinois, March 24, 1936 at the age of 67.
and Ronald Whitten, was the first to systematically examine the role of golf course architects in the sport's development. The book included a biographical section on prominent golf course architects, and lists of courses which they had designed. Bendelow's work was researched quite thoroughly by Cornish and Whitten, and the book has since been updated with further editions.
Prior to 1981, Bendelow's contribution had been all but forgotten by the golfing community. Much of his work was sarcastically described as "18 Stakes on a Sunday Afternoon". While this was not an uncommon design approach in Bendelow's day (essentially, the architect would simply drive stakes into the ground to designate tee, fairway, and green locations, usually completing the work in a single day), the term would end up attached to Bendelow as a snide reference. This began to change when Bendelow was inducted into the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame in 2005, reportedly the result of years of efforts by his grandson to restore Bendelow's name to the annals of American golfing history. Today, Bendelow is recognized as one of the most prolific golf course designers and promoters of the game in the U.S. Because of his work in bringing the game of golf to the general public, it is believed that "more people have learned to play golf on a Tom Bendelow designed course than that of any other golf course architect."
ISBN 1-878853-80-5
Johnny Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed , born John Chapman, was an American pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to large parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois...
of American Golf", was a prolific Scottish American
Scottish American
Scottish Americans or Scots Americans are citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Scotland. Scottish Americans are closely related to Scots-Irish Americans, descendants of Ulster Scots, and communities emphasize and celebrate a common heritage...
golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
course architect during the first half of the twentieth century. He is credited with having designed some 600 courses in a 35-year span.
Early years
Born September 2, 1868, in Aberdeen, ScotlandAberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, Bendelow was one of nine children. His parents owned a popular pie shop in the city, and were known for their religious piety. His father taught him the game of golf; however he was trained as a typesetter. There were no careers in golf course design in that era. He courted Mary Ann Nicol, daughter of a prominent farmer. They were married in 1892 at Belhelvie. Bendelow immigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1892. His family followed in 1893; the couple had a daughter, born in December 1892. His first job was at the New York Herald
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
.
American golf promoter, architect
Once introduced to A.G. SpaldingAlbert Spalding
Albert Goodwill Spalding was a professional baseball player, manager and co-founder of A.G. Spalding sporting goods company.-Biography:...
, the sporting goods
Sports equipment
Sports equipment is a general term for any object used for sport or exercise. Examples of sports equipment include:-Exercise equipment:Examples for exercise include swiss balls, weights, equipment for the gym...
manufacturer, Bendelow's career began to take off in earnest. Prior to this, he had been teaching golf in his spare time -- most notably to the Pratt family of Standard Oil
Standard Oil
Standard Oil was a predominant American integrated oil producing, transporting, refining, and marketing company. Established in 1870 as a corporation in Ohio, it was the largest oil refiner in the world and operated as a major company trust and was one of the world's first and largest multinational...
fame, who also commissioned him to build them a private six-hole course at their Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
estate, but Spalding hired him to exclusively promote the game in the New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
areas. "They were not seeking to design and build championship courses or courses to test the honed skills of the best players, but rather courses that new players could enjoy, courses that would improve player proficiency, courses that would promote participation, and courses that could be maintained at a reasonable expense," according to the American Society of Golf Course Architects
American Society of Golf Course Architects
The American Society of Golf Course Architects is a professional organization of golf course designers in America. Founded in 1946, its members are actively involved in the design of new courses and the renovation of existing courses in the United States and Canada. One of its founders was noted...
.
In 1898, the New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
Park District hired him to redesign and manage the Van Cortlandt Park
Van Cortlandt Park
Van Cortlandt Park is a park located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the fourth largest park in New York City, behind Pelham Bay Park, Flushing Meadows Park and Staten Island Greenbelt....
Golf Course, the country's first 18-hole municipal golf course. Bendelow introduced various innovations to American golfers. These included the use of reserve play (tee) times, course marshals, public player associations, public golf instruction
Golf instruction
Golf instruction involves the teaching and learning of the game of golf.Proficiency in teaching golf instruction requires not only technical and physical ability, but also knowledge of the rules and etiquette of the game...
, and training for caddies. He also believed golf should be a sport that the public could play at little to no cost.
Enhances golf boom
In 1901, Bendelow moved to Chicago to be Spalding's Director of Golf Course Development. This era was notable for the extraordinary expansion of golf facilities in North America, with millions of new players, and Bendelow was well placed to encourage and assist this. For the next 16 years, he criss-crossed the U.S. and CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, laying out courses, providing construction advice, encouraging players' associations, and promoting the growth of the game. In 1917, Bendelow accepted the position of Golf Department Manager with the Thos. E Wilson sporting goods company. In 1920, Bendelow joined Myron West's "American Park Builders Company" in Chicago, as Chief Golf Course Designer, and focused on designing comprehensive city plans, subdivisions, country clubs, golf courses, and golf course communities. These included Temple Terrace Golf and Country Club, Florida (1921), and the Dallas Country Club
Dallas Country Club
Dallas Country Club is a country club located in the town of Highland Park in Dallas County, Texas.It was established in 1896, purportedly by "by several men golfing on a cow patch in Oak Lawn."...
(1908)., Mission Hills Country Club (Kansas)
Mission Hills Country Club (Kansas)
The Mission Hills Country Club is a private club and golf course in Mission Hills, Kansas.The Club, on the banks and hills of Brush Creek, was founded on June 30, 1914, largely through the efforts of J.C. Nichols, who was also developing the upscale planned community of Mission Hills...
(1915)
Bendelow also designed park systems -- and even cemeteries -- throughout the United States and Canada.
Bendelow is recognized as the most prolific of course designers worldwide, a pioneer in the establishment and growth of the game in America. Bendelow personally designed some 700 courses, taught course design at the college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
level, played the game with luminaries such as Harry Vardon
Harry Vardon
Harry Vardon was a Jersey professional golfer and member of the fabled Great Triumvirate of the sport in his day, along with John Henry Taylor and James Braid. He won The Open Championship a record six times and also won the U.S. Open.-Biography:Vardon was born in Grouville, Jersey, Channel Islands...
, and wrote abundantly and beautifully. He even had his own line of Thos. E. Wilson golf club
Golf club (equipment)
A golf club is used to hit a golf ball in a game of golf. Each club is composed of a shaft with a grip and a clubhead. Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; irons, the most versatile class, are used for a variety of shots; Hybrids that combine design elements of woods and...
s. He exerted a profound impact on the introduction and spread of the game of golf in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Design philosophy
Bendelow's approach to course design is a "naturalist's approach," in that he strove to utilize the natural features of the chosen site to maximum advantage. His courses have often been called "Olmstedian", in that his method of naturalistNaturalist
Naturalist may refer to:* Practitioner of natural history* Conservationist* Advocate of naturalism * Naturalist , autobiography-See also:* The American Naturalist, periodical* Naturalism...
design was greatly influenced by the work of prominent landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted was an American journalist, social critic, public administrator, and landscape designer. He is popularly considered to be the father of American landscape architecture, although many scholars have bestowed that title upon Andrew Jackson Downing...
Sr. and Jr. "If a site had an especially unique feature –- rock outcrop, stream, grove of trees, scenic view -– he would work his hole placements in such a way as to take full advantage of the features even if that meant working his layout from the middle out," according to the American Society of Golf Course Architects
American Society of Golf Course Architects
The American Society of Golf Course Architects is a professional organization of golf course designers in America. Founded in 1946, its members are actively involved in the design of new courses and the renovation of existing courses in the United States and Canada. One of its founders was noted...
. "Bendelow’s designs changed as the game of golf changed. When given good sites and adequate resources with which to work, he could produce a very challenging lay out, equal to the best work of the day. His personal goal however, was to build good, solid, enjoyable golf courses." Bendelow would often describe his courses as "sporty", meaning that his courses "should present a enjoyable play for both beginner and advanced player; not too hard to discourage the new player and not without challenge to the more accomplished golfer."
Most of Bendelow's early work was focused on spreading the game and "bringing golf to the majority of the populous." As a result, most of his designs prior to World War I were fairly basic, focusing more on playability and ease of construction and maintenance. After World War I, Bendelow's designs started to become more strategically intricate, particularly in his work for private clubs. Bendelow left A.G. Spalding and joined American Park Builders during this time. In addition, construction technology and client budgets greatly advanced after World War I. These factors would give him the time required to focus on developing more challenging layouts. The added resources also allowed Bendelow to use more refined techniques in design and construction, including the use of topographic maps, soil surveys, irrigation plans, and plaster of paris green models.
Prominent designs
"One of Tom Bendelow’s early designs was the Atlanta Athletic ClubAtlanta Athletic Club
The Atlanta Athletic Club , founded in 1898, is a world-renowned private athletic club in Johns Creek, Georgia, a suburb 23 miles north of Atlanta. The original home of the club was a 10-story building located on Carnegie Way, and in 1904 a golf course was built on Atlanta's East Lake property...
’s 18-hole course at East Lake Golf Club
East Lake Golf Club
The East Lake Golf Club is located in the neighborhood of East Lake which is in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. East Lake Golf Club was the home club of the legendary golfer Bobby Jones. It is also the permanent home of The Tour Championship.-History:...
, the place where the great Bobby Jones
Bobby Jones (golfer)
Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones Jr. was an American amateur golfer, and a lawyer by profession. Jones was the most successful amateur golfer ever to compete on a national and international level...
learned the game," wrote Colin Farquharson in a 2006 profile of Bendelow. “'It was extraordinary in that it gave a golfer the opportunity to use every wood and iron in his bag,'said Jones.'" Bendelow also designed Algonquin Golf Club
Algonquin Golf Club
Algonquin Golf Club was founded in the Webster Park neighborhood of Webster Groves, Missouri in 1899, and is one of the St. Louis area’s oldest private country clubs. Along with St. Louis Country Club, Bellerive Country Club, Westwood Country Club and Old Warson Country Club, Algonquin is generally...
in 1904, one of the St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
area’s oldest private country clubs.
Bendelow is perhaps best known for his three layouts at the Medinah Country Club, with his work on Medinah Country Club
Medinah Country Club
Medinah Country Club is a private country club in Medinah, Illinois with nearly 600 members and containing three golf courses, Lake Kadijah, swimming facilities and a Byzantine-style, mosque-evoking clubhouse with Oriental, Louis XIV and Italian architectural aspects. Medinah is widely known for...
's Course #3 being famous world-wide. Medinah #3 has served as the host site to several major championships
Men's major golf championships
The men's major golf championships, commonly known as the Major Championships, and often referred to simply as the majors, are the four most prestigious annual tournaments in professional golf...
, including the U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...
in 1949, 1975, and 1990, as well as the PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...
in 1999 and 2006. The 2012 Ryder Cup
Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is jointly administered by the PGA of America and the PGA European Tour, and is contested every two years, the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe...
is scheduled to be played on the course, which is widely considered not merely the best course in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, but one of the finest golf courses in the United States. However, the #3 course has been very extensively redesigned since Bendelow's time, a common occurrence for courses from that era which are still used for modern championship play.
He died at his home in River Forest, Illinois, March 24, 1936 at the age of 67.
Legacy
The groundbreaking 1981 book The Golf Course, by Geoffrey CornishGeoffrey Cornish
Geoffrey Cornish is a golf course architect, author, and a fellow of the American Society of Golf Course Architects. He has designed over 200 courses, including 9-hole additions, around the world.-Early life:...
and Ronald Whitten, was the first to systematically examine the role of golf course architects in the sport's development. The book included a biographical section on prominent golf course architects, and lists of courses which they had designed. Bendelow's work was researched quite thoroughly by Cornish and Whitten, and the book has since been updated with further editions.
Prior to 1981, Bendelow's contribution had been all but forgotten by the golfing community. Much of his work was sarcastically described as "18 Stakes on a Sunday Afternoon". While this was not an uncommon design approach in Bendelow's day (essentially, the architect would simply drive stakes into the ground to designate tee, fairway, and green locations, usually completing the work in a single day), the term would end up attached to Bendelow as a snide reference. This began to change when Bendelow was inducted into the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame in 2005, reportedly the result of years of efforts by his grandson to restore Bendelow's name to the annals of American golfing history. Today, Bendelow is recognized as one of the most prolific golf course designers and promoters of the game in the U.S. Because of his work in bringing the game of golf to the general public, it is believed that "more people have learned to play golf on a Tom Bendelow designed course than that of any other golf course architect."
External links
- Architects of Distinction Prior to ASGCA - Thomas Bendelow entry
- Bibilographic resources in the Turfgrass Information Center, Michigan State University Library.
- Interview with Stuart W. Bendelow
- Wilson Golf Clubs
Further reading
Thomas “Tom” Bendelow, The Johnny Appleseed of American Golf, by Stuart W. Bendelow, Williams & Company: Savannah, Georgia, 2006.ISBN 1-878853-80-5