Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1911-07-11
Golf INHERITED
FROM The SCOTCH
SCOTTISH GAME IN PROFESSION.
Al SENSE 70 NOT LEARNED.
BUT BORN IN,
WHAT WISE ONES SAY
The Case Of the MeWatt Family
America VIII Some Day Pro.
duce It's Own Profess lonaIs
Instead Of Importing.

The day Will come no doubt, when
the United States will produce its own
golf professionals, instead OF being
forced to import them from Scotland
or other sections Of the British Isles.
But it does not appear to be near at
hand, although already few Of the
homegrown ones are In charge. Some
years must elapse, however. before
even . majority Of the professionals
will be Of American birth. The game
Is yet too young here, It's traditions
too little known.
Golfing, in the professional sense, is
not learned. One 10 born to the game.
One learned his business with the faith.
er OF the other, George Sargent having
been employed by the elder McWatt
in Scotland before Bobby McWatt, re-
Gently professional at the Columbia
Golf clubs links In Washington, had
branched out as . full-tedged profes.
sionai player and club maker.
MeWatt From Old School.
Bobby McWatt. who Is to take
charge at the Baltimore Country club,
instances what was said above. He
is from the old golf town Of Mussel
burgh, In Scotland, just across the
Firth of Forth from st. Andrews.
Professional golfers are az common
on the streets OF the little Scotch
town as policemen are on the streets
whose family the worlds open title
has been held seven times. and there
was resident Bob Ferguson, who won
the same honor in three successive
years. All the McWatts for genera
lions have been golfers and club
makers. and they and their cousins
are scattered all over the golf world
in charge OF links and making clubs
for amateur players.
McWatt goes to club that has q
membership OF: nearly 5000 and one OF
the best links in the country, after
having been in charge OF the new
course, 40 he was of the old ono, at
Brightwood, and believes that the
clubs Chevy Chase links will prove to
be what he calls real national
course
They Made Clubs.
An old Scotch golfing family are the
McWatts, as already said. Bobbys
father, Tom McWatt, Is one OF the
best known OF the Old time experts,
and for the past twenty-one years
has been with the Surrey Epson Coli
club, Surrey, England. During that
time he has trained few leading
professionals, including George Sar-
gent, one time open champion of the
United States, who is located in Chi
cago, and who made the wonderful
low score Of 290 for the seventy-two
holes over the long course at Engle.
wood, N. J. Sargent spent over five
years in Tom McWatt's workshop,
learning the club-making end of his
business, and 1t was rather odd that
Bobby, when he came out to act o. as
sistant professional at the Ottawa,
Ont, golf club. should find his fathers
former apprentice his senior officer in
this new work.
After 4 year in Ottawa, McWatt de-
cided to try the states, and In the
spring Of 1907 went to the Lake
Geneva Country club, in Wisconsin,
known from coast to coast for It's fne
course. It was the late William An
derson's belief that none approached
1t. He had good reason for believing
this, as over these links Anderson did
the $500 yards In SO. believed to be
the lowest score ever made for 50 long
a course. McWatt played with him,
and helped to better the score, making
the best ball score of 81, which is still
the course record.