Of the four greatest figures in the annals of American golf—Bob
Jones, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods—Jones and Hogan each enjoyed his
single most important and satisfying victory at Merion Golf Club.
Merion has hosted more U.S. Golf Association events—17 of
them—than any club in America since golf came to the club in 1895. That’s when a
group of members from Merion Cricket Club in Haverford, just outside
Philadelphia, took up golf. But in 15 years, the much livelier Haskell ball made
the layout obsolete. The board of governors decided to build a new course two
miles away, in Ardmore, under the direction of member Hugh Wilson.
In 1916 the East course hosted the U.S. Amateur. Chicago’s Charles
“Chick” Evans won, becoming the first to capture the Amateur and the Open in the
same year. The only other player to achieve this extraordinary double also
competed in the 1916 Amateur. Fourteen-year-old Bobby Jones astonished the golf
world by carding the low score of 74 on the West course to earn a match-play
berth, then gained the third round before losing to Gardner.
When Jones returned to Merion for the 1924 U.S. Amateur, he won
every match effortlessly, downing Francis Ouimet, 11 & 10, in the semifinal,
and George Von Elm, 9 & 8, in the final.
In 1930, having won the British Amateur, British Open and U.S.
Open, Jones came to Merion confident of winning the U.S. Amateur to complete the
Grand Slam. Of course, he again won easily and not two months later, announced
his retirement. Jones’ career had commenced as a lad of 14 at Merion, and 14
years later that is where it ended in sublime triumph.
The routing of the East course has remained unchanged for decades.
There is balance, diversity and an overall elevation change of about 55 feet. No
two holes are even remotely alike. There are boundaries on both sides of play—on
the first nine, usually on the right, on the second nine, usually on the left.
There is a mix of short and long holes—five par 4s measure less than 400 yards,
while two stretch more than 500. In addition, the par 3s range from 120 to 246
yards. The greens come in all shapes, sizes and settings. And every green except
the 1st, 12th and 18th is visible from its tee.
Nicklaus once said, “Acre for acre, it may be the best test of
golf in the world.”
In 1934 Merion hosted its first U.S. Open, won by California’s
Olin Dutra, who edged Gene Sarazen by a stroke. Nobody noticed that a
21-year-old named Ben Hogan, playing in his first U.S. Open, shot 79–79 to miss
the cut.
The U.S. Open returned in 1950. Ben Hogan, 16 months after a
near-fatal auto accident, vowed that he was ready to compete on his battered
legs over 72 holes, the final 36 on a single pressure-filled day. With nine
holes remaining, Hogan found himself in the lead. But after a bogey on the 17th,
the cushion was gone. And he had trudged nearly nine miles on those fragile legs
since breakfast.
Following a perfect drive on the up-down-up 18th, he pulled his
1-iron out of the bag and made the swing immortalized by photographer Hy Peskin.
The ball landed on the front left of the green. The weary Hogan took plenty of
time on the 40-foot lag putt and very little time holing the four-footer to tie
George Fazio and Lloyd Mangrum. The next day, now revived, Hogan shot 69 in the
playoff to win.
“Merion meant the most,” Hogan said, “because I proved I could
still win.”
Par: 70
Yardage: 6,846
Year founded: 1895
Architect: Hugh Wilson
