Thomas Dunn (29 December 1849
– May 1902
) was a golfer, golf club maker and prolific architect of many golf courses in the early 20th century. Less celebrated than his contemporary,
Old Tom Morris, Dunn created many functional layouts and helped lead the development of courses away from the coast into inland heathland locations, notably many around London. In total, Dunn had four top-10 finishes 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 ...
.
Early life
Dunn was born in
Musselburgh
Musselburgh (; ; ) is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, east of Edinburgh city centre. It had a population of as of .
History
The name Musselburgh is Old English language, Old English in ...
, the son of
Willie Dunn Snr (1821–1878).
Willie Dunn Snr and his twin brother, Jamie, were notable golfers of their time, playing against
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 expens ...
and Old Tom Morris. Willie was apprenticed under the Gourlay family. At the time of Tom's birth, Willie Dunn Snr was greenkeeper at
Blackheath where he remained until 1864.
Dunn learned the game and family business of golf, including club manufacture and groundsmanship, from his father. Dunn also had an elder sister; Catherine (b. 1842 also in Musselburgh), and four younger sisters; Rebecca (b. 1852), Janet (b. 1854), Jemima (b. 1856) and Sarah (b. 1858). His younger brother,
William
William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...
, (b. 1864 and known as Willie Jnr), like his younger sisters, was also born at Blackheath.
In 1864 the Dunn family moved back to Scotland and Willie Dunn Snr was employed at
Leith Links
Leith Links is the principal open space within Leith, the docks district of Edinburgh, Scotland. This public park is divided by a road into two main areas, a western section and an eastern section, both being largely flat expanses of grass bor ...
.
Golf career
Dunn competed in the
Open in 1868 finishing in 6th place. He competed a further seven times until 1886 but never improved his position.
Dunn's professional career started at
North Berwick
North Berwick (; ) is a seaside resort, seaside town and former royal burgh in East Lothian, Scotland. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, approximately east-northeast of Edinburgh. North Berwick became a fashionable holi ...
in 1869. Soon after, in 1870, he moved to the
London Scottish Golf Club at
Wimbledon
Wimbledon most often refers to:
* Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London
* Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships
Wimbledon may also refer to:
Places London
* W ...
and was formally the club's professional until 1880.
In 1871, he extended the course to eighteen holes.
Years later, Dunn revealed that this was initially 19 holes!
Also in 1871, he joined his father at Leith Links.
Following marriage to Isabella May Gourlay, Dunn established a golf club making business at his home on
Wimbledon Common
Wimbledon Common is a large open space in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, southwest London. There are three named areas: Wimbledon Common, Putney Heath, and Putney Lower Common, which together are managed under the name Wimbledon and Putney Co ...
. His two sons, John Duncan (b. 1873) and William Gourlay (b. 1874) were born here. Dunn's first daughter, Isabella May Gourlay Dunn, was born in early 1880.
[United Kingdom Census 1891 Class: RG12; Piece: 455; Folio: 90; Page: 18; GSU roll: 6095565] Dunn's younger brother, Willie Dunn Jnr, was apprenticed to him whilst at
London Scottish Golf Club in Wimbledon. During this period, Dunn's father died in
Millhill, Inveresk in 1878 aged 59.
Dunn and family returned to North Berwick in 1882 and Dunn became father to a third son, Seymour in 1882 and a second daughter, Norah Eleanor, in 1886.
Dunn left North Berwick for France during 1889 without informing his employer. Complaints were received that he was failing to attend his duties. Dunn subsequently wrote to the club explaining that he had been advised to head south for the good of his health and had been taken more ill whilst away. The club discharged him but made him a final payment.
Tooting Bec
In 1889, he was appointed greenkeeper and club maker to the Tooting Bec Golf Club where he laid out the
Furzedown
Furzedown is a ward, in both the districts of Streatham (Streatham West and part of Streatham Park) and Tooting within the London Borough of Wandsworth in south London. It is a mainly residential area close to Tooting Commons, which provide a ...
course. Dunn had taught the prime minister,
Arthur Balfour
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour (; 25 July 184819 March 1930) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As Foreign Secretary ...
, to play golf at North Berwick and while Parliament was sitting Balfour golfed at Tooting Bec.
The popularity of golf exploded during this period and demand for Dunn's services to lay out new courses was high.
Meyrick Park
In 1895 Dunn was approached to lay out a new course in Bournemouth. Given a choice of three locations, he selected the
Meyrick Park site and remained as professional for five years.
His son, John, continued the club-making while Dunn concentrated on designing golf courses.
Emigration to USA
John emigrated to the US and was appointed manager of the West Florida Golf Association. At the end of five years in Bournemouth, Dunn's health began to fail. Dunn also emigrated to America in 1899 and assisted his son. Tom was employed by Oriental and Manhattan Hotel group to supervise their Florida golf courses.
Tom Dunn returned to England in 1901 and took up residence at Hangar Lane. Soon thereafter he accepted a position as head professional and greenkeeper at
Hanger Hill where he laid out the course.
Death and legacy
Dunn died of
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
at the
Nordrach Clinic in
Blagdon
Blagdon is a village and civil parish in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Somerset, within the unitary authority of North Somerset, in England. It is located in the Mendip Hills, a recognised Area of Outstanding Natural ...
, Somerset in early May 1902 aged 52 years.
After his death, but not before, critics derided his predictable use of
hazards
A hazard is a potential source of harm. Substances, events, or circumstances can constitute hazards when their nature would potentially allow them to cause damage to health, life, property, or any other interest of value. The probability of that ...
and his 'hit and run' staking-out methods. However, he provided a service at a time when very few people understood the basic architectural principles required for a functional layout, and Dunn had the skill and experience to deliver to order. Dunn himself claimed to have laid out a total of 137 courses, and, although some have closed and many since been further embellished and developed, the basic underlying layouts of many of Dunn's courses remain.
Although
Beckenham
Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. Prior to 1965, it was part of Kent. It is situated north of Elmers End and Eden Park, east of Penge, south of Lower Sydenham and Bellingham, and west ...
, now Beckenham Place Park Golf Club, is sometimes attributed to Dunn,
it was laid out after Dunn's death.
Results in major championships
''Note: Dunn 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 ...
.''
"T" indicates a tie for a place
List of courses
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunn, Thomas
Scottish male golfers
Golf course architects
Golfers from Musselburgh
1849 births
1902 deaths
20th-century deaths from tuberculosis
Tuberculosis deaths in England