Harry Colt
Harry Shapland Colt (* August 4, 1869 in Highgate, † November 21, 1951 in East Hendred, Berkshire ) was a golf course architect, the main proponent of the Golden Age of golf architecture.
Life and work
After studying law at the University of Cambridge (1887-1890) Harry Colt worked (actually Henry Shapland Colt, often referenced under HS Colt ) in 1894 as an attorney and partner of the firm Sayer & Colt. Alongside he assisted the Professional Douglas Rolland during the construction of the golf course in Rye. In 1895 he was appointed honorary secretary of the club and in 1897 he was a founding member of the R & A Rules Committee.
As in Sunningdale a club secretary was sought, he applied for and received in 1901 the contract for an annual salary of 150 pounds. From this secure employment out he started his career as a golf course architect. First, he revised the club's own place of Willie Park Jr., from 1907, he acquired first external contracts: Alwoodley ( with Alister MacKenzie ) and Royal Zoute ( in Knokke ). With Stoke Poges (1908), Swinley Forest (1910 ), Woodhall Spa ( 1911), the Eden Course (1913 ) St. Andrews and St. George's Hill ( 1913) he created some of today 's most renowned places of Britain before the First World War his career in Europe interrupted. His first overseas holes were opened in 1912 (GC Toronto ) and 1914 (Hamilton GC), in the USA, he worked also in 1914 the routing for Pine Valley.
As early as 1906 he had Charles Hugh Alison recruited as assistant and later promoted to partner in 1923 John Morrison came up and in 1928 the name was changed as a Colt, Alison & Morrison Ltd.. Under this Signet subsequently resulted in significant golf courses around the world. Harry Colt himself was responsible for the transformation of Royal Lytham and St Anne's (1919), for each second places in Sunningdale ( New Course, 1922) and Moorpark ( West Course, 1923), as well as for Prestbury (1920 ), St. Germain (France, 1921), Wentworth (1924 ), County Sligo ( 1927 redesign ), Kennemer (Netherlands, 1927), Muirfield ( redesign in 1928, with Tom Simpson), Utrechtsche De Pan (Netherlands, 1929 ), La Mer in Le Touquet (1930 ) and as a crowning achievement of his career Royal Portrush ( 1932).
He also helped John Morrison to its breakthrough in Germany by Falkenstein (1930 ) designed together with him, among other places for the Aachener Golf Club ( 1927), the Frankfurter GC ( 1928) and the Hamburg GC. Colt, Alison and Morrison, and Alister MacKenzie, with whom she cultivated a loose partnership came to a total of more than 300 golf courses worldwide, about 115 of which are from Harry Colt itself
Colt was the first golf architect who did not come from the ranks of professional golfers. Like a conventional architect he made for his routing and planting plans drawings - then also an innovation. Along with this professionalization, he advised the golf clubs in agronomic issues and pioneered the integration of residential development. According to the program of the golden age, he stood for a strategic and natural way possible design and considered a good place would be so varied that each club get to use. This he tried to achieve with different path lengths and a fuel-efficient, but highly variable and effective bunkering. He was one of the first who thought at angles: The beneficial game line he defended stronger than the safe route to the green.