Richard Davol Chapman (March 23, 1911 – November 15, 1978) was an American amateur

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

er. ''

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'' magazine dubbed him "the

Ben Hogan William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory, hi ...

of amateur golf".

Career

Chapman was born in

Greenwich, Connecticut Greenwich ( ) is a New England town, town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 63,518. It is the largest town on Gold Coast (Connecticut), Connectic ...

. Chapman won the 1940

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

. He was a member of Winged Foot Golf Club in

Mamaroneck, New York Mamaroneck ( ), is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2 ...

, which was the site of his first major triumph. He remains one of only three players to have won a

USGA The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rules ...

title on their home course. He holds a place in the

Masters Tournament The Masters Tournament (usually referred to as simply the Masters, or as the U.S. Masters outside North America) is one of the four men's major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week in April, the Masters is the ...

record book for the most appearances (19) as an amateur, a distinction he shares with Charles Coe. Although Chapman was quite the international player, winning the 1951 British Amateur, he also won the Connecticut Amateur, Massachusetts Amateur, New York Amateur, and Carolinas Amateur. He also won the prestigious

North and South Amateur The North and South Men's Amateur Golf Championship, commonly known as the North and South Amateur, is an annual golf tournament held since 1901 at the Pinehurst Resort in Pinehurst, North Carolina, US. An invitational tournament, participants ar ...

. At the 1958

, Chapman and his son, Dixie, both qualified, giving a rare father-and-son appearance. Chapman's career was put on hold for

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, where he served as a major in the U.S. Army Air Corps. After the war, Chapman picked up where he left off, with a string of victories in the British, French,

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

, and Italian amateurs. Chapman is one of only two players (the other is Harvie Ward) who has won the U.S., British, and Canadian Amateur Championships. "Blessed with a strong competitive spirit and an inquiring mind into the technicalities of the swing," reads the entry on Chapman in ''Who's Who in Golf''. "Chapman not only played the game but wrote about it and worked at its many phases." In the 1950s, Chapman collaborated with the USGA on a handicap format for foursomes play called the Chapman System, also known as Pinehurst or American Foursomes. The system worked as follows: two golfers on the same team each tee off, then play the other's ball. From there, they select the ball with which to complete the hole and continue as in foursomes. Chapman played on the winning

Walker Cup The Walker Cup is a golf trophy contested in odd-numbered years by leading male amateur golfers in two teams: United States, and Great Britain and Ireland featuring players from the United Kingdom and Ireland. The official name is the Walker Cup ...

teams in 1947, 1951, and 1953. Chapman's final success came in 1967 with a victory in the International Senior Amateur. A stroke in the early 1970s hampered his career, and he died in Rancho Santa Fe, California in 1978. Chapman was a member of The Tin Whistles.

Awards and honors

In 2001, Chapman was inducted into the Connecticut Golf Hall of Fame.Connecticut Golf Hall of Fame Members

Amateur wins

''this list is probably incomplete'' *1934 Westchester Amateur *1936 Connecticut Amateur *1938 Connecticut Amateur *1939 French Open Amateur Championship, New York State Amateur *1940

*1948

Golf Illustrated Gold Vase The Golf Illustrated Gold Vase was a prestigious amateur golf tournament in England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it cover ...

*1949 Canadian Amateur *1950 Massachusetts Amateur *1951 British Amateur, New England Amateur *1952 French Open Amateur Championship *1953 Carolinas Amateur *1957 Carolinas Amateur *1958

*1960 Italian Open Amateur

Major championships

Amateur wins (2)

Results timeline

''Note: Chapman never played in the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. The PGA is one of the four men's major golf champi ...

.''
M = Medalist
LA = Low Amateur
NT = No tournament
WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R256, R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place Source for The Masters
www.masters.com
br> Source for U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur
USGA Championship Database
br> Sources for British Amateur
The Glasgow Herald, May 24, 1935, pg. 22.The Glasgow Herald, May 26, 1936, pg. 20.The Glasgow Herald, May 29, 1937, pg. 21.The Glasgow Herald, May 27, 1939, pg. 3.The Glasgow Herald, May 28, 1948, pg. 6.The Glasgow Herald, May 30, 1952, pg. 2.www.opengolf.com
br> Source

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur *

1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...

(winners),

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

(winners),

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito ...

(winners)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chapman, Dick American male golfers Amateur golfers Golfers from Connecticut United States Army Air Forces officers Sportspeople from Greenwich, Connecticut 1911 births 1978 deaths 20th-century American sportsmen