Willie Ogg

William Robertson Ogg, Jr. (10 May 1888 – 25 December 1959) was a Scottish-American professional golfer, club maker, and golf course architect. He won the 1921 Shawnee Open, 1923 Maine Open, 1924 New England PGA Championship, and the 1924 Massachusetts Open. He finished tied for 9th place in the 1923 PGA Championship, a career-best result in major championships.

Ogg was one of the founding members of the PGA of America, serving as vice president. He was an excellent golf instructor and was the author of the book "Golf as I Know it", published posthumously in 1961.

He was the first golf club maker to build and patent the forerunner to the modern perimeter-weighted or cavity back iron. He emigrated from Scotland to the U.S. to pursue a career as a professional golfer.

Golf career Ogg began his career in golf as a club maker in Scotland where he worked for the St. Andrews Golf Company. After his arrival in the U.S. he eventually was elected the vice president of the PGA of America. Ogg was instrumental in arranging for the first Ryder Cup matches to be held at his home course of Worcester Country Club in 1927. He laid out the Green Hill Golf Club in Worcester, Massachusetts, and the course opened up for play on 1 April 1929. Ogg is also responsible for the design of the Country Club of Wilbraham in Wilbraham, Massachusetts. After leaving Worcester, he accepted a position as professional and course superintendent at Albany Country Club in Voorheesville, New York, where in 1954 he made changes to improve the quality of the golf course by planting thousands of trees and installing a modern watering system.

In 1933, Ogg – who at the time was serving as an advisory staff member for Wilson Staff – created a patented design for distributing weight away from the heel of the clubhead, moving it towards the "sweet spot" of the blade. This design feature was used in the Wilson "Ogg-mented" irons, the forerunner of perimeter-weighted or cavity back irons. While working for Wilson Staff, he also enhanced their line of woods in 1930 by improving their shafts; in doing so he obtained better balance between clubhead and shaft. This was the first PGA Championship with a field of 64 in the bracket, the previous four had fields of 32 players. In the Friday final, Gene Sarazen defeated Emmet French, 4 and 3. Ogg began the tournament with a 2 up victory over Clarence Hackney in his first round match. In the second round, he battled Sarazen in a closely contested match before finally losing 2 and 1. Ogg's final place in the event was a tie for 17th.

Death and legacy Ogg died on Christmas Day 1959 in Tampa, Florida. At the time of his death, Ogg was engaged in design work on a new course in Tampa.

Other wins (1) 1924 New England PGA Championship

Results in major championships Note: Ogg never played in the Masters Tournament or The Open Championship.

CUT = missed the half-way cut WD = withdrew "T" = tied for a place R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play

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