THE IMPREGNABLE QUADRILATERAL OF GOLF

©2008 World Golf Hall of Fame

Bobby Jones at the age of 14,
playing in the 1916 U.S. Amateur Championship
Author Photo by Kellar & White
Published in The American Golfer, Volume XVI,
No. 6, October 1916
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones Jr. (March 17, 1902 – December 18, 1971) was one of the greatest golfers to compete on a national and international level. He participated only as an amateur, primarily on a part-time basis, and chose to retire from competition at age 28.
Explaining his decision to retire, Jones said, "It (championships) is something like a cage. First you are expected to get into it and then you are expected to stay there. But of course, nobody can stay there."[1]
Jones is most famous for his unique "Grand Slam," consisting of his victory in all four major golf tournaments of his era (the open and amateur championships in both the U.S. & Britain). He is most famous for "The Impregnable Quadrilateral", a phrase coined by friend and writer O.B. Keeler. This term is often referred to as Golf’s Grand Slam and consisted of his victories in all four majors in the single calendar year of 1930. No other golfer to date has replicated this feat.

Bobby Jones's 1930 Harvest
'The impregnable quadrilateral of golf'
© 2008, Golf Links to the Past, Inc

The men's major golf championships, often referred to simply as "the majors", are the four most prestigious annual tournaments in professional golf. In order of their playing date, the current majors are:
April - Masters Tournament (weekend ending 2nd Sunday in April) - hosted as an invitational by and played at Augusta National Golf Club
June - U.S. Open (weekend ending with the 3rd Sunday in June) - hosted by the USGA and played at various locations in the U.S.
July - The Open Championship (weekend containing the 3rd Friday in July) - hosted by The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews and always played on a links course at various locations in the UK August - PGA Championship (4th weekend after the Open Championship) - hosted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America and played at various locations in the U.S.
Jones was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He was a child prodigy, who won his first children's tournament at the age of six and made the third round of the U.S. Amateur Championship at 14. That same year, 1916, he won the Georgia State Amateur Championship for his first important title at Capital City Club located in Brookhaven, where he became an active member later in life. He was trained and coached by club professional Stewart Maiden, a native of Carnoustie, Scotland, who was a very fine player. Jones played frequently with his father, Col. Robert P. Jones, a skilled player himself. The younger Jones sometimes battled his own temper on the course, but later cured this problem as he became more experienced. Jones toured the U.S. during World War I from 1917-18, playing exhibition matches before large crowds to generate income for war relief. He qualified for his first U.S. Open at age 18 in 1920. He won the Southern Amateur three times, 1917, 1920, and 1922.
As an adult, he hit his stride in 1923, when he won his first U.S. Open.

Bobby Jones First U.S. Open Win
© 2008, Golf Links to the Past, Inc

From that win at New York's Inwood Country Club, through his 1930 victory in the U.S. Amateur, he won 13 major championships (as they were counted at the time) in 20 attempts. Jones was the first player to win The Double, both the U.S. Open and the British Open in the same year (1926).

Bobby Jones with British Amateur Trophy
© 2008, Golf Links to the Past, Inc

Bobby Jones 1930 Ticker-Tape Parade NYC
after winning both the British Open and Amateur Championships
© 2008, Golf Links to the Past, Inc

He is still the only player ever to have won the Grand Slam, or all four major championships, in the same year (1930). He represented the United States in the Walker Cup five times, winning nine of his 10 matches. He also won two other tournaments against professionals: the 1927 Southern Open and the 1930 Southeastern Open.
Jones is considered one of the five giants of the 1920s American sports scene, along with baseball's Babe Ruth, boxing's Jack Dempsey, football's Red Grange, and tennis player Bill Tilden.
Jones' four titles in the U.S. Open remain tied for the most ever in that championship, along with Willie Anderson, Ben Hogan, and Jack Nicklaus. His four second-place finishes in the U.S. Open also tie that record, along with Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, and Phil Mickelson. His five titles in the U.S. Amateur are a record. Jones was ranked as the fourth greatest golfer of all time by Golf Digest magazine in 2000. Jack Nicklaus was first, Ben Hogan second, and Sam Snead third
(Source: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
BBC journalist and friend Alistair Cooke wrote in , “What we are left with in the end is a forever young, good-looking Southerner, who, to the great good fortune of people who saw him, happened to play the great game with more magic and more grace than anyone before or since.”
(From bobbyjonesgolf.com)

Analysis of Bobby Jones' Golf Swing
(From hickorygolfers.com)

The grave of golfer Bobby Jones,
Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia
Photo taken by J. Glover (AUTiger)
March 12, 2005 with Nikon D70
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Resting in the original six acres Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia is Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones, an Atlanta-native amateur golfer known for first winning The Double. His grave can always be found with golf balls and other paraphernalia relating to the sport. The immediate area surrounding Jones' grave is adorned by all eighteen flower-bearing plants that are the namesakes of the holes on the Augusta National course.
(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
WKW wrote on Thursday September 29, 2005 in worldgolf.com, 'Jones set out in 1930 to win all four prestigious titles. But there was no special ESPN feature presentation on Jones’ quest and no shoe deal to promote his campaign in advertisements. He was attempting it out of athletic pride and just kept it to himself. In a time when Babe Ruth and Jack Dempsey were creating fans for their sports, Bobby Jones was doing the same for his. His contributions to golf should never be overlooked, nor should the fact that he did it for the love of the game and competition. Looking back, Jones’ accomplishment is more than a great athletic achievement. It was pristine'

Bobby Jones illustrated timeline
Brought by the Atlanta History Center
(From bobbyjonesgolfexhibit.com)

Gallery:


Bobby Jones on the eve of playing in his first national competition, the U.S. Amateur contested at Merion in 1916. Jones once said of the stance, "I always like to see a person stand up to a golf ball as though he were perfectly at home in its presence."
(from: bobbyjones.com)


This photo shows a young Bobby Jones, playing in his first U.S. Open, and Harry Vardon, the legendary English champion, meeting for the first time. Paired together in the qualifier, the normally stoic Vardon was approached by the young and talkative Jones, following a poorly played second shot on the fourth at Inverness. Jones asked, "Mr. Vardon have you ever seen a worse shot?" In which Vardon replied curtly, "No."
(from: bobbyjones.com)



Bobby Jones stated of the U.S. Open, "Nobody ever wins the National Open. Somebody loses it." The young champion is pictured following his first U.S. Open victory contested at Inwood Country Club in 1923.
(from: bobbyjones.com)



Bobby Jones once said of tournament play, "In order to win, you must play your best golf when you need it most, and play your sloppy stuff when you can afford it. I shall not attempt to explain how you achieve this happy timing."
(from: bobbyjones.com)



Bobby Jones is shown holding the Claret Jug following his British Open championship. He won the Open three times, the first in 1926 at Royal Lytham and St. Annes followed by a successful defense in 1927 at St. Andrews and finally as part of the historic 1930 Grand Slam at Hoylake.
(from: bobbyjones.com)


Bobby Jones and his longtime rival Walter Hagen in battle once again. Of Hagen, Jones wrote, "When you play a lot of intense and interesting competitive golf with and against a man, you develop a real affection for him. I was always grateful that I was lucky enough to come along at a time when there were so many players of competence, color, and personality. It isn't necessary to name them all, but Hagen on all counts stands near the very top of the list."
(from: bobbyjones.com)


















Bobby Jones pictured with his legendary rivals Walter Hagen and Gene Sarazen. These three men dominated world golf from 1914 through the mid-1930s -- together capturing 31 major championships. Also pictured is Johnny Farrell who defeated Bobby Jones at the 1928 U.S. Open.
(from: bobbyjones.com)


















Bobby Jones is pictured chatting with Masters champion Ben Hogan and his old rival Gene Sarazen. Once when speaking of Ben Hogan's game, Jones stated, "I thought I was a hard fighter. I thought Hagen and Sarazen were. We're not in a class with this fellow, Hogan. When he has a ninety-yard shot to play he expects to hole it."
(from: bobbyjones.com)

SCORE CARD:
Professional Majors:
U.S. Open: 1923, 1926, 1929, 1930
Open Championship: 1926, 1927, 1930

Other Significant Victories:
Other Wins:
1908: East Lake Children's Tournament
1911: Junior Championship Cup of the Atlanta Athletic Club
1915: Invitation Tournament at Roebuck Springs, Birmingham, Davis and Freeman Cup at East Lake, East Lake Club Championship, Druid Hills Club Championship
1916: Georgia Amateur, Birmingham Country Club Invitation, Cherokee Club Invitation, East Lake Invitation tournament
1917: Southern Amateur
1918: Southern Amateur
1919: Yates-Gode Tournament
1920: Davis-Freeman Tournament, Southern Amateur, Morris County Inviational
1922: Southern Amateur
1924: U.S. Amateur
1925: U.S. Amateur
1927: Southern Open, U.S. Amateur

1927 U.S. Amateur Champion,
Minikahda Club, Minneapolis, MN
© 2008, Golf Links to the Past, Inc

1928: Warren K. Wood Memorial, U.S. Amateur
1930: Southeastern Open, The Amateur Championship, U.S. Amateur

Other Accomplishments:
Walker Cup: 1922, 1924, 1926, 1928, 1930
Founded Augusta National Golf Club: 1933
Captain, World Amateur Team Championship: 1958
(Source: World Golf Hall of Fame)