William Park Sr. (30 June 1833 – 25 July 1903) was a Scottish professional golfer. He was a 4-time winner of the

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

Early life

Park was born in

Wallyford Wallyford is a village near Musselburgh and approximately east of Edinburgh in East Lothian, Scotland. History The village was initially populated by coal miners and later grew as an overspill/commuter town for workers in Musselburgh and Edi ...

East Lothian East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In 1975, the histo ...

, Scotland. Like some of the other early professional golfers, Park started out as a

caddie In golf, a caddie (or caddy) is the person who carries a player's bag and clubs, and gives the player advice and moral support. Description A good caddie is aware of the challenges and obstacles of the golf course being played, along with the ...

. He later ran a golf equipment manufacturing business. On the course, he made his money from "challenge matches" against rivals such as

Old Tom Morris Thomas Mitchell Morris (16 June 1821 – 24 May 1908), otherwise known as Old Tom Morris, and The Grand Old Man of Golf, was a Scottish golfer. He was born in St Andrews, Fife, the "home of golf" and location of the St Andrews Links, and died t ...

Willie Dunn Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scree ...

and

Allan Robertson Allan Robertson (11 September 1815 – 1 September 1859) was considered to be one of the first professional golfers. Early years In the mid-19th century golf was played mainly by well-off gentlemen, as hand-crafted clubs and balls were e ...

, which were the most popular form of spectator golf in his era.

Playing style

Park, a tall, strong man, was a very long hitter and an excellent putter, but sometimes got into trouble through overly aggressive play. He had surpassed the older Willie Dunn by age 20, and travelled to

St Andrews Links St Andrews Links in the town of St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, is regarded as the "Home of Golf.” It has one of the oldest courses in the world, where the game has been played since the 15th century. Today there are seven public golf courses; the ...

to play and learn that course. He issued a public challenge in 1853 to Robertson, generally recognised as the best player, which was, however, not taken up. Custom of the time allowed the best player to refuse a challenge of this sort without damage to his reputation. Park further fuelled controversy through his aggressive self-promotion, but this did lead to increased interest in golf rivalries, more press coverage, and more matches and tournaments being set up, developing the professional game and increasing the incomes of players such as Park, Morris, and Robertson.

Family

He married Susanna Law in

Inveresk Inveresk (Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic: ''Inbhir Easg'') is a village in East Lothian, Scotland situated to the south of Musselburgh. It has been designated a Conservation area (United Kingdom), conservation area since 1969. It is situated on s ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, on 29 March 1860. The couple would have ten children. Park's brother Mungo and his son Willie Jr. both also won the Open Championship. Mungo's victory came in

1874 Events January–March * January 1 – New York City annexes The Bronx. * January 2 – Ignacio María González becomes head of state of the Dominican Republic for the first time. * January 3 – Third Carlist War &ndas ...

and Willie Jr. had two wins, in

1887 Events January–March * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Har ...

and

1889 Events January–March * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the ...

Death and legacy

Park died on 25 July 1903. He is primarily best remembered as the winner of four Open Championships, including the inaugural event in 1860, when the field was just eight strong. His other victories came in 1863, 1866 and 1875. Park was the co-holder of the record for most wins in the tournament until James Braid picked up his fifth win in 1910.

Major championship

Wins (4)

Results timeline

*''Note: Park played only in

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

.'' NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Willie 01 Scottish male golfers Winners of men's major golf championships World Golf Hall of Fame inductees Golfers from Musselburgh 1833 births 1903 deaths People from Wallyford