Willie Anderson (golfer)

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For the Scotland national rugby union team coach, see Willie Anderson

Willie Anderson (left) with Alex Smith, whom he beat in a playoff to win in 1901

Anderson at the Western Open in 1909

William Law "Willie" Anderson (21 October 1879 – 25 October 1910) was a Scottish immigrant to the United States who became the first golfer to win four U.S. Opens, with victories in 1901, 1903, 1904, and 1905. He is still the only man to win three consecutive titles, and only Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, and Jack Nicklaus have equalled his total of four championships. He is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Anderson was born in North Berwick, Scotland. He emigrated to the United States in 1896, along with his father, Thomas Anderson, and his brother Tom. He played in the U.S. Open the following year, finishing in second by one stroke after Joe Lloyd eagled the final hole.

His first significant win came in 1899 at the Southern California Open, before he started his run at the U.S. Open. In the 14 straight Opens that he played, Anderson won four, was second once, third once, fourth twice, fifth three times, 11th twice and 15th once. He won titles with both the old gutta-percha golf ball, and the rubber-cored ball which came into use in 1902. Anderson also won the Western Open in 1902, 1904, 1908, and 1909.

Anderson made his living as a golf professional, working at ten different clubs in fourteen years. He died at age 31, officially from epilepsy in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is buried in Ivy Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia.^[1]

Anderson was an original member of the PGA Hall of Fame and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1975.

Major Championships

Wins (4)

Year	Championship	54 Holes	Winning Score	Margin	Runners Up
1901	U.S. Open	1 shot deficit	84-83-83-81=331	Playoff 1	Alex Smith
1903	U.S. Open (2)	6 shot lead	73-76-76-82=307	Playoff 2	David Brown
1904	U.S. Open (3)	2 shot deficit	75-78-78-72=303	5 strokes	Gilbert Nicholls
1905	U.S. Open (4)	1 shot deficit	81-80-76-77=314	2 strokes	Alex Smith

¹ Defeated Alex Smith in 18-hole playoff: Anderson (85), Smith (86)
² Defeated David Brown in 18-hole playoff: Anderson (82), Brown (84)

Results timeline

Anderson played in only U.S. Open.

"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

See also

• Golfers with most major championship wins

References

External links

• World Golf Hall of Fame profile
• Willie Anderson - The Forgotten Superstar of Golf
• Famous North Berwick Golfers - William Law Anderson

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