George Clifford Thomas Jr. (October 3, 1873 – February 23, 1932) was an American golf course architect, botanist, and writer. He designed the original course at Whitemarsh Valley Country Club, outside

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

; and more than twenty courses in California, including

Riviera Country Club The Riviera Country Club is a private club with a championship golf course and tennis courts in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of the Westside of Los Angeles, California. The Riviera was designed by golf course architects George C. Thomas Jr ...

in Pacific Palisades and Red Hill Country Club in

Rancho Cucamonga Rancho Cucamonga was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Bernardino County, California, given in 1839 to the dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant formed parts of pr ...

. Thomas, along with

A.W. Tillinghast Albert Warren "Tilly" Tillinghast (May 7, 1876 – May 19, 1942) was an American golf course architect. Tillinghast was one of the most prolific architects in the history of golf; he worked on more than 265 different courses. He was inducted into ...

, William Flynn, Hugh Wilson, George Crump, and William Fownes together made up the "Philadelphia School" of golf course architecture. Together, the group designed over 300 courses, 27 of which are on in the top 100 golf courses in the world.

Biography

Thomas was born in Philadelphia on October 3, 1873. He attended

Episcopal Academy The Episcopal Academy, founded in 1785, is a private, co-educational school for grades Pre-K through 12 based in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. Prior to 2008, the main campus was located in Merion Station and the satellite campus was located in D ...

, and graduated from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

in 1894. His father was a partner in the investment bank

Drexel & Company Drexel Burnham Lambert was an American multinational investment bank that was forced into bankruptcy in 1990 due to its involvement in illegal activities in the junk bond market, driven by senior executive Michael Milken. At its height, it was a ...

, where the son worked until 1907. As a teenager, he began designing a golf course on his family's suburban estate, Bloomfield Farm. ''Note:'' This includes He sold the course in 1908 to a group of golfers who converted it into Whitemarsh Valley Country Club. He designed a 9-hole course in

Marion, Massachusetts Marion is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,347 at the 2020 census. For geographic and demographic information on the village of Marion Center, please see the article Marion Center, Massachusetts. His ...

, and a course in

Spring Lake Heights, New Jersey Spring Lake Heights is a borough located in the southern coastal portion of Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 4,713,Sunnybrook Golf Club, and witnessed Donald Ross's 1914-15 construction of its original course in

Flourtown, Pennsylvania Flourtown is a census-designated place (CDP) in Springfield Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Springfield Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Flourtown is adjacent to the neighborhoods of Erdenheim, ...

. He was friends with Hugh Wilson, who designed

Merion Golf Club Merion Golf Club is a private golf club located in Haverford Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, a township bordering Philadelphia to the northwest along the historic Main Line. The club has two courses: the East Course, and the West Course ...

's original East Course in 1912, and its original West Course in 1914; with George Crump, who designed

Pine Valley Golf Club Pine Valley Golf Club is a golf course in Pine Valley, Camden County, in southern New Jersey. It was ranked the number one course in ''Golf Magazines 100 Top Courses in the U.S. and the World in 2012, 2015, 2019, and 2020. It is a private cl ...

's original course in 1915; and with A. W. Tillinghast, who later designed the

Philadelphia Cricket Club The Philadelphia Cricket Club, founded in 1854, is the oldest country club in the United States. It has two locations: Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, and Flourtown, Pennsylvania. History Founded on February 10, 1854, the Philadelphia Cricket ...

's original course in Flourtown. Crump, Tillinghast, Wilson, William Flynn (who constructed Wilson's courses at Merion), and Thomas were masters of the "Philadelphia School" of golf course design, which encouraged high-risk/high-reward play. He served in the

Army Air Service The United States Army Air Service (USAAS)Craven and Cate Vol. 1, p. 9 (also known as the ''"Air Service"'', ''"U.S. Air Service"'' and before its legislative establishment in 1920, the ''"Air Service, United States Army"'') was the aerial war ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, attaining the rank of captain. "The Captain" remained his nickname for the rest of his life. He moved to California in 1919, where he designed the course at La Cumbre Country Club in Santa Barbara.

William P. Bell William Park Bell (April 19, 1886 – June 21, 1953) was a noted golf course architect, active from the 1920s into the early 1950s. Biography Born in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, Billy Bell studied agriculture at Duff's Business Institute in Pittsbur ...

collaborated and supervised its construction. He and Bell later collaborated on courses for

Los Angeles Country Club The Los Angeles Country Club is a golf and country club on the west coast of the United States, located in Los Angeles, California. History In the fall of 1897, a group of Los Angeles residents organized the Los Angeles Golf Club, and a lot wa ...

, Ojai Country Club,

Bel-Air Country Club The Bel-Air Country Club is a social club located in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California. The property includes an 18-hole golf course and tennis courts. The golf course is the home course for the UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic team ...

, Fox Hills Golf Course, Red Hill Country Club, and others. In 1926, he published a seminal book, ''Golf Course Architecture in America'', in which he stated the goal behind his work: "When you play a course and remember each hole, it has individuality and change. If your mind cannot recall the exact sequence of the holes, that course lacks the great assets of originality and diversity." He considered the course at Red Hill Country Club to be his masterpiece. It is the only one of his courses that has never been extensively altered.

Dogs and roses

He raised

English setter The English Setter is a medium-size breed of dog. It is part of the setter group, which includes the red Irish Setters, Irish Red and White Setters, and black-and-tan Gordon Setters. The mainly white body coat is of medium length with long si ...

s, and was one of the founders of the English Setter Club of America. In 1912, he began breeding roses on Bloomfield Farm, trying to create a variety that would thrive in Philadelphia's Mid-Atlantic climate. His botanical work continued in California, where he cultivated some 1,200 varieties, including his own "Bloomfield" hybrids. He wrote two books on roses.

Family

He married Edna H. Ridge in Philadelphia on July 6, 1901. They had two children: George Clifford III, born April 13, 1905; and Josephine Moorehead, born April 14, 1907. Thomas died of a heart attack at their home in Beverly Hills on February 23, 1932.

Legacy

Geoff Shackelford, a golf course architect and author, wrote a 1995 history of Riviera Country Club and a 1996 biography of Thomas. In 2008, Thomas was posthumously inducted into the Southern California Golf Association's Hall of Fame. In 2010,

Gil Hanse Gilbert Hanse (born August 12, 1963) is an American golf course architect. Hanse, along with his business partner Jim Wagner, was selected to design the Rio 2016 Olympic Golf Course, the first Olympic venue to host golf since 1904. Education A ...

restored the North Course at Los Angeles Country Club to Thomas's 1921 design. On ''

Golf Digest ''Golf Digest'' is a monthly golf magazine published by Warner Bros. Discovery through its sports unit under its Warner Bros. Discovery Golf division. It is a generalist golf publication covering recreational golf and men's and women's competiti ...

'' 2010 list of the 100 greatest golf courses in America, Riviera Country Club was ranked 31st, and the restored North Course at Los Angeles Country Club was ranked 47th. In June 2012, the first George C. Thomas Jr. Invitational Tournament was held on the North Course at Los Angeles Country Club.

Golf courses

* Whitemarsh Valley Country Club,

Erdenheim, Pennsylvania Erdenheim is a community in Springfield Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is served by the 19038 ZIP Code. The primary commercial areas are located along Bethlehem Pike. The name is German for "Earthly Home," and comes from nearby Er ...

(1892?-1908).
Marion Golf Club
Marion, Massachusetts (9 holes, 1900). * Spring Lake Golf Club, Spring Lake Heights, New Jersey (1911). * La Cumbre Country Club,

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

(1920, with William P. Bell, demolished).
Red Hill Country Club

Rancho Cucamonga, California Rancho Cucamonga ( ) is a city located just south of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and Angeles National Forest in San Bernardino County, California, United States. About east of Downtown Los Angeles, Rancho Cucamonga is the 28th ...

(9 holes, 1921 and 9 holes with William P. Bell, 1946). * North Course,

, Los Angeles, California (1921 redesign, with Herbert Fowler; 1927-28 redesign, with William P. Bell). Now restored to Thomas's 1921 design. * Saticoy Country Club,

Ventura, California Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura (Spanish for "Saint Bonaventure"), is a city on the Southern Coast of California and the county seat of Ventura County. The population was 110,763 at the 2020 census. Ventura is a popular tourist des ...

(9 holes, 1923). Now Saticoy Regional Golf Course. * Los Angeles Municipal Courses,

Griffith Park Griffith Park is a large municipal park at the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains, in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The park includes popular attractions such as the Los Angeles Zoo, the Autry Museum of the Ameri ...

, Los Angeles, California (36 holes, 1923). Renamed the Woodrow Wilson and Warren G. Harding Memorial Golf Courses. *

Palos Verdes Golf Club Palos Verdes Golf Club is a private golf and social club on the West coast of the United States, located in Palos Verdes Estates, California, a suburb southwest of Los Angeles. History The golf course design began in 1923, and the course was ...

Palos Verdes Estates, California Palos Verdes Estates (''Palos Verdes'', Spanish for "Green Sticks") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The city was master-planned by the noted American landscape architect and pl ...

(1924, Consulted to William P. Bell design). * Ojai Country Club,

Ojai, California Ojai ( ; Chumash: ''’Awhaỳ'') is a city in Ventura County, California. Located in the Ojai Valley, it is northwest of Los Angeles and east of Santa Barbara. The valley is part of the east–west trending Western Transverse Ranges and is ...

(1925, with William P. Bell). Now Ojai Valley Inn & Spa. *

, Bel Air, Los Angeles, California (1926, with William P. Bell). *

, Pacific Palisades, California (1927, with William P. Bell). * Fox Hills Golf Course,

Culver City, California Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most d ...

(1927, with William P. Bell, demolished). Now the site of Culver City Shopping Mall. * Stanford University Golf Course,

Stanford, California Stanford is a census-designated place (CDP) in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is the home of Stanford University. The population was 21,150 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. Stanford is ...

(1930, with William P. Bell).Stanford Golf Course
/ref> File:Griffith Park from the air.jpg, Wilson and Harding Golf Courses (center, far left),

, Los Angeles, California File:RivieraCountryClub18th.jpg, 18th hole, Riviera Country Club, Pacific Palisades, California. Because of the half-bowl shape of the topography, this hole is nicknamed "The Amphitheater". File:PVGC-12-12.jpg, 12th hole, Palos Verdes Golf Club, Palos Verdes Estates, California File:14th hole, Palos Verdes Golf Club (2003).jpg, 14th hole, Palos Verdes Golf Course - designed by George C. Thomas & William P. Bell (photo taken in 2003)

References

* Geoffrey S. Cornish, Ronald E. Whitten: ''The Architects of Golf''. HarperCollins, New York 1993. * Geoff Shackelford: ''The Riviera Country Club; A Definitive History''. Riviera Country Club 1995. * Geoff Shackelford: ''The Captain: George C. Thomas Jr. and His Golf Architecture''. Sleeping Bear Press, Chelsea 1996. * George C. Thomas Jr.: ''The Practical Book of Outdoor Rose-growing for the Home Garden''. J.B. Lippincott Co., Philadelphia 1914. * George C. Thomas Jr.: ''Golf Course Architecture in America: Its Strategy and Construction''. John Wiley & Sons, New York 1926. Reprint: Clocktower Press, Ann Arbor 1997. * George C. Thomas Jr.: ''Breeding Roses at Home''. American Rose Society, 1929.

External links

''New York Times'' obituary, February 29, 1932George C. Thomas Jr. from Whitemarsh Valley Country Club.Riviera Country Club: A Historian's Dream Article
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, George C. Jr. 1873 births 1932 deaths Golf course architects Writers from Philadelphia People from Beverly Hills, California Rose breeders