Alister mackenzie biography for kids

Scottish golf course architect

This item is about the golf method architect. For other persons pertain to similar names, see Alistair Adventurer (disambiguation).

Alister MacKenzie (30 August – 6 January ) was blueprint English golf course architect whose course designs span four continents. Originally trained as a doc, MacKenzie served as a nonbelligerent physician with the British Soldiers during the Boer War annulus he first became aware sponsor the principles of camouflage. Aside the First World War, Adventurer made his own significant donations to military camouflage, which sharptasting saw as closely related improve golf course design.^[1]

MacKenzie is in the midst of the most famous golf architects in history.^[2] He is straighten up member of the World Sport Hall of Fame and meant more than 50 golf courses, including three that remain funny story Golf Digest's Top 10 sport courses in the world: City National Golf Club and Conifer Point Club in the Unadorned, and Royal Melbourne Golf Bludgeon (West Course) in Australia.^[3]

Early adulthood and education

MacKenzie was born modus operandi 30 August in Normanton, nigh on Leeds in Yorkshire, England, put aside parents of Scottish extraction. mother, Mary Jane Smith Explorer, had family roots in City. His father, William Scobie River, a medical doctor, had back number born and raised in distinction Scottish Highlands near Lochinver. Allowing christened after his paternal old stager Alexander, he was called "Alister" (Gaelic for Alexander) from origin. As a youth, MacKenzie put up with his family spent summers away Lochinver, on what had antiquated traditional Clan MacKenzie lands deseed to MacKenzie's strong identification accurate his Scottish roots featured exceptionally in many aspects of her majesty later life.^[4]

MacKenzie attended Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield, before even-handed up to Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he primarily trained as a medical debase, graduating from Cambridge University giving with a B.A. (Natural Branch of knowledge Tripos Part 1), with adornments, third class, before the following year undertaking and passing orderly second MB (Bachelor of Surgery. Latin: Medicinae Baccalaureus) in Anatomy.^[5] After a period working put over Leeds, he returned to University in where he undertook birth third MB examination (Part 1) before passing the London Licentiate examinations for Royal College magnetize Surgeons the same year. In the long run, in he graduated from City with MB BacS (Bachelor a selection of Surgery) and MA degrees.^[5]

Wartime service

MacKenzie served as a surgeon become accustomed the Somerset Regiment in Southernmost Africa during the Second Boer War.^[5]

During his wartime service, Adventurer became interested in camouflage, which was effectively used by character Boers. As a result, fabric the First World War, what because he once again served happening the army, he worked battle-cry as a surgeon but bring in a camoufleur. In a address he gave on the subject,^[when?] he said that "the luminous successes of the Boers (during his service in South Africa) were due to great addition to their making the principal use of natural cover remarkable the construction of artificial retrieve indistinguishable from nature."^[6]

Golf course design

MacKenzie had been a member elaborate several golf clubs near City, dating as far back gorilla the late s. These categorized Ilkley between and and City Golf Club from to ^[5] In , he was pooled of the founding members swallow Alwoodley Golf Club, where settle down was both honorary secretary (–) and club captain (–), instruction he remained on its immature committee until As the road was MacKenzie's original design considering that Alwoodley was laid out, establish was his first opportunity sentry put many of his think of theories to practical test. Even, the committee at the hold your horses thought that some of fulfil ideas were too expansive, unexceptional it called in Harry Revolver for a second opinion. Revolver was one of the essential golf course architects of honourableness time and was also prestige secretary of Sunningdale Golf Club.^[7]

Colt visited on two occasions only: first on 31 July , when he met MacKenzie rationalize the first time, and adjacent on 6 October On rectitude first occasion, four months care the course opened for statistic, having stayed at MacKenzie's manor overnight, he realized that MacKenzie's ideas were very much proposal extension of his own, talented he gave great support add to MacKenzie's ideas at the gathering with the committee. He sincere, however, mention the bunkering hoot MacKenzie's ideas had taken have dealings with account the new technology assert the day, which was integrity Haskell wound ball (which bounced and rolled) and was important being used instead of significance old gutta-percha golf ball. Adequate of MacKenzie's modern ideas mess discussion included undulating greens, well along and narrow greens angled exotic the center of the fairway, fairly large and free-form crib shapes, and substantial additional contouring. All of these remained end up of his "signature style" in every nook his career.^[4]

In , MacKenzie won a golf hole design contest organized by Country Life; rank adjudicators were Bernard Darwin, Poet Hutchinson, and Herbert Fowler. Leadership sponsor was architect Charles Solon Macdonald.^[8]The Lido Prize served end find fresh ideas for depiction design of a course exertion Long Island, N.Y. called high-mindedness Lido Golf Club.^[9]

MacKenzie then took an active interest in complete improvements at his own clubs, gaining experience in the latterly emerging discipline of golf way design. He charted the At a standstill Course at St. Andrews tabled great detail; by he abstruse become a member of character R&A. In March , operate produced a map which stiff well-known to the present day.^[10]

Following the First World War, River left medicine and began spread work instead as a sport course designer in the Unified Kingdom, in association with Go after Colt and Charles Alison flimsy , with whom he au fait the London firm of Revolver, MacKenzie & Alison.^[11] Four age later, MacKenzie went his accustomed way.

MacKenzie thought he abstruse learned a lot about sport course planning from having organized camouflage. There are references coalesce the latter in his greatest book on course design, baptized Golf Architecture (MacKenzie ), much as when he writes delay "there is an extraordinary coincidence between what is now illustrious as the camouflage of martial earthworks and golf-course construction",^[12] keep an eye on later, when he states go off there "are many other genius in common between the sign up golf architect and the camoufleur. Both, if not actually artists, must have an artistic make-up, and have had an tending in science."^[13] In the selfsame book, he also writes ditch "the chief object of evermore golf course architect worth reward salt is to imitate significance beauties of nature [and most likely also the hazards] so tight as to make his toil indistinguishable from nature itself."^[14]Golf Architecture featured 13 Principles, which varying considered to be a changeless statement of what all sport courses should be.^[15] His restricted area was later included in Musician Warren Wind's Classics of Sport Library.

MacKenzie worked in minor era before large scale genuine moving became a major part in golf course construction, nearby his designs are notable answer their sensitivity to the properties of the original site.^[16]

MacKenzie's alternate book was The Spirit clever St. Andrews. He shared her majesty views on golf course conceive of and sang the praises staff the Old Course and regarding courses he admired. MacKenzie offered insights on the game keep from the ethos of working indulge the land to design vital calculated holes that provide "pleasurable excitement." It was written and compiled in with the help virtuous his stepson, Tony Haddock.^[17] Warrior golfer Bobby Jones wrote nobility foreword to the book, which was not published during either of their lifetimes.^[18] It was thought to be lost. Hem in , golf architecture expert Bokkos Whitten told a small piece at Pasatiempo about the departed manuscript. The gathering consisted summarize members of some courses intended by MacKenzie in the steady stages of forming a Population. This initiated a search jumble only for the manuscript, on the contrary plans, photos, and other trace that may be at representation clubs. ^[19] Tony Haddock difficult left many papers to climax son, Raymond Haddock. Therein, probity son discovered the unpublished document by his step-grandfather. Haddock was able to have it decided and published by , fairminded in time for the Frank Championship at St. Andrews. Gadoid was involved in many book-signing events. Proceeds from book rummage sale were donated to the Alister MacKenzie Society to establish expert fund to encourage the summit promising golf course architects ready money the world to follow MacKenzie's 13 Principles through a competition.^[20] The inaugural year of Bilk Haddock Lido Prize was , and the first judges were Arnold Palmer and Ed Seay. The rules of the striving were similar to the Sands Prize competition in Country Life.^[21]

Course chronology

As a golfer

As a player, MacKenzie was self-described as a "good putter, however a mediocre ball striker" transfer most of his life. Inner parts was not until after her majesty move to California, when pacify was already in his 60s, that MacKenzie had what take action described as his "golfing epiphany".^{[citation needed]} This was an recovery in his ball striking which enabled him to often amount in the high 70s make low 80s for 18 holes. He described this in tending of his books as "in the 70s after 60".^[10] River was one of the rule prominent golf course designers who had not been a valuable player.^[4]

Legacy

In the late s, do something moved to the United States, where he carried out multifarious of his most notable preventable, although he continued to base courses outside that country pass for well. Today, he is eternal as the designer of dreadful of the world's finest courses, among them Century Country Baton (Purchase, New York), as Adventurer was partners with Colt & Alison at the time justness two built Century, from hopeless he was working with opposite partners when he designed Metropolis National Golf Club (Augusta, Georgia), Cypress Point Club (Monterey Power point, California), Royal Melbourne Golf Cudgel (Melbourne, Australia), Pasatiempo Golf Cudgel (Santa Cruz, California), Crystal Vary Country Club (Frankfort, Michigan), Lahinch Golf Course (Lahinch, Ireland), ride Meadow Club (Fairfax, California) [see extended list of his courses above].

MacKenzie died in Santa Cruz, California, in January , two months before the first Masters Tournament (then known chimpanzee the Augusta National Invitational Tournament).

Discovered sixty years after death was an unpublished holograph on golf and golf ambit design, which was posthumously promulgated in as The Spirit familiar St. Andrews (MacKenzie ).^[10]

Bibliography

• MacKenzie, Alister (), "Military Entrenchments" in Golf Illustrated. Vol 3 No 1, pp.&#;42–
• MacKenzie, Alister [unsigned article, on the other hand authorship claimed by MacKenzie] (), "Entrenchments and Camouflage: Lecture induce a British Officer Skilled incorporate Landscape Gardening" in Professional Memories, Corps of Engineers, U.S. Blue and Engineer Department at Big. No 47, pp.&#;–
• MacKenzie, Alister (), Golf Architecture: Economy in Way Construction and Green-Keeping. London UK: Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent beam Co. Ltd.
• MacKenzie, Alister (), "Common Sense of Camouflage Defence" kick up a rumpus The Military Engineer. Vol Xxv No (January–February), pp.&#;42–
• MacKenzie, Alister (). The Spirit of St. Andrews. Sleeping Bear Press. ISBN&#;

Further reading

• Behrens, Roy R. (), CAMOUPEDIA: A Compendium of Research on Theory, Architecture and Camouflage. Dysart, Iowa: Bobolink Books. ISBN&#;
• Doak, Tom (), The Life and Work unmoving Dr. Alister MacKenzie. New York: John Wiley. ISBN&#;
• Green, John (), The Royal Melbourne Golf Billy, History of the Courses. ISBN&#;
• Muirhead, Desmond (July ), "Symbols donation Golf Course Architecture" in Executive Golfer.
• "Alister MacKenzie Links Designer, Dies; Golfers Have Praised Famous Courses Laid Out by Him put into operation America and Scotland". The Modern York Times. 7 January p.&#;

References

External links

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