Willie Park, Jnr.

Willie Park, Jnr. (4 February 1864 – May 1925) was one of the leading professional golfers of his era.

Park was born in Musselburgh, Scotland. His home town was one of the main centres of golf at the time, and was on rota for The Open Championship for much of his early life. His father Willie Park, Snr. and his uncle Mungo Park both won the Open while he was young. Park himself won it in 1887 and 1889. In the latter year he was taken to a playoff by Andrew Kirkaldy. He was notable for his excellent short game, which compensated for an unreliable long game.

At the time, it was not possible for a golfer to make a living from prize money alone. Park took over the family ball and club making business and adapted to the introduction of the guttie golf ball, which replaced the traditional featherie ball, establishing an export business just when golf was beginning to spread internationally. He patented several golf club designs. His "The Game of Golf" (1896) was the first book about golf written by a professional. He also worked as a golf course designer with 170 designs to his credit in Europe, the U.S. and Canada, including the well known Sunningdale course near London.

Park's daughter Dorothy was runner-up in the 1937 British Ladies Amateur Championship. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/sportscotland/asportingnation/article/0050 BBC - A Sporting Nation - Jessie Valentine: queen of golf 1958 ] ]

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