Tam O'Shanter

18mm, br

About this token:

• Rey writes: You ask if I know anything about your token. I caddied or attended tournaments at Tam O' Shanter from 1940 till 1954. I will be eighty this year but still remember those days. Of course your token was used as a Ball Marker on the green when someone's ball obstructed a shot from the away player who always shot first. In those years Tam O' Shanter had the largest golf opens with the largest purses in the world. The rummer goes that That George S. May http://golf.georgesmay.com/ Won the course on a bet from Henry Ford back in the early thirties. I goes this way. It seems that MR. May was trying to sell Henry ford on the idea of using his business consulting firm to improve profits in the Ford Motor Car Company. While at lunch Mr Ford said Ford Company is doing just fine but I have a golf course in Niles IL I will bet you the course you cannot make a profit with. (I guess he had owned it for quit some time and it always lost money.) They shook hands on it and the rest is history.
  Over the years I was there all the great golfers came to the open. It was the first televised nationally. The PGA resented the open because it was open to everyone who could pay the low entrance fee and make it through the elimination rounds. The PGA's view was why should their famous members show up and bring prestige to this event and even have to pay to get in. Mr. May's view was, this open pays more money than any other golf event in the world. All you have to be is one of the top bunch to get the money. If you are as good as you say you are what's the problem? Somewhere in the early fifties the PGA struck the event and from then on everything went down hill. The parties could not strike a deal both believed they were one the right side. If you have any questions I will try to answer them. Done forget we are going back sixty years though.
  If that last letter is a G it could stand for World Class Golf.
• Rich writes: The Tam O Shanter golf token is from a golf club in the Chicago area.
• Steve writes: The Tam O'Shanter golf club was in Niles Illinois near Chicago. Many famous PGA rounaments were played there. Our family belonged to the club in the 50's. I recall stroies of Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, etc there. Also, many famous Chicago gangsters were connested to the club. It was sold and built on in the early/mid 60's. There is still a Tam O'Shanter public course in Niles. You can look at
  http://golf.georgesmay.com/ or
  http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/525.html

Know anything about this token? Please send me a note: pineconeforge(at)gmail.com

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