1921 PGA Champion
Hagen and Horton Smith in 1929
(The Walter Hagen Story by himself as told to Margaret Sea...)
The Walter Hagen Story by himself as told to Margaret Seaton was published in 1956.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006AUK9A/?tag=2022091-20
1956
Walter Charles Hagen was born in Rochester, New York, Hagen came from a working-class family of German descent. His parents were William and Louisa (Boelke) Hagen, his father worked as a millwright and blacksmith in Rochester's railroad-car shops. Walter was the second of William and Louisa's five children and the only son.
Hagen developed his golf game at the Country Club of Rochester, beginning as a caddie, and earned money to help support his family from pre-teen age. He earned ten cents per round and was occasionally tipped another five cents. Hagen played golf at every chance he got, caddie access to the course was limited to off-peak times, as it was elsewhere in the U.S. during that era. Hagen, with assistance from head professional Alfred Ricketts, gradually improved his golf skill to the stage where he was an expert player by his mid-teens, and was then hired by the club to give lessons to club members and to work in the pro shop.
He made his top-class professional debut at age 19 at the 1912 Canadian Open, placing 11th, a good showing. Hagen followed up with a surprise 4th place showing at the 1913 U.S.
Hagen was also very skilled at baseball, primarily as a pitcher and shortstop. He canceled a 1914 tryout for the Philadelphia Phillies in order to play in a golf tournament. Later that week, Hagen was the U.S. Open Champion, and his career was changed forever.
Hagen represented the Country Club of Rochester early in his professional competitive career. He was well supported by its members and management for his external competitive ventures. Beginning in 1918, Walter Hagen served as the first club professional at the now legendary Oakland Hills Country Club, in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, northwest of Detroit. He worked for Oakland Hills until 1919, and then became the first touring professional unaffiliated with a club, a status he held alone for several years.
In the late 1920s Hagen represented the Pasadena Yacht & Country Club, a new development in St. Petersburg, Florida, in which he had a financial interest.
He had one of the longest and most successful careers in the history of golf, for many years playing in spectacular exhibition matches, besides his championship games.
In 1927 he captained the American team that won the Ryder Cup in competition against the British at Worcester, Massachusetts He retired from active competition in 1937.
Hagen also made significant money endorsing golf equipment, and played a major role in helping to design clubs for Wilson Sports, which bore his name (either "Walter Hagen" or "Haig Ultra").
In 2000, Hagen was ranked as the seventh greatest golfer of all time by Golf Digest magazine.
Hagen was ranked as the eighth greatest player of all time by Sports Illustrated / Golf Magazine in a major 2010 ranking.
Hagen captained the United States in the first six Ryder Cups, and played on the first five U.S. teams: 1927, 1929, 1931, 1933, and 1935.
Hagen has been inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, in the charter class of 1974.
Hagen has been portrayed by Bruce McGill in the 2001 movie The Legend of Bagger Vance, and by British actor Jeremy Northam in the 2004 Bobby Jones biopic Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius.
(The Walter Hagen Story by himself as told to Margaret Sea...)
1956Hagen once expressed his creed in these words: "Don't hurry, don't worry, you're only here for a short visit, so be sure to smell the flowers along the way."
Hagen was a dashing and assertive character who raised the status of professional golfers and improved their earnings as well. Hagen was also widely known for his dashing wardrobe while playing, this featured expensive tailored clothes in bright colors and plush fabrics.
Physical Characteristics:
Height 5 ft 10.5 in (1.79 m)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg)
