A. V. Macan

Arthur Vernon Macan, Jr. (1882–1964) was an Irish immigrant to Canada who designed golf courses in western North America, primarily in British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest.[5][6][7] He won the Pacific Northwest Amateur in 1913.

A.V. Macan
Born1882
Dublin, Ireland
DiedAugust 1964 (aged 82)
Sequim, Washington, U.S.[1]
Alma materTrinity College Dublin
Occupation(s)Attorney,
Golf course architect
Known forgolf course design
SpouseJuliet Adelaide Richards Macan[2]
Children2
Parent(s)A.V. Macan, Sr.
(1843–1908)
Mary A. Wanklyn Macan
(18xx–1886)[3][4]
Military career
AllegianceCanada Canada
Service/branch Canadian Army, (CEF)
Years of service1916–1918
RankLieutenant
Battles/warsWorld War I:
Battle of Vimy Ridge

A lawyer by trade, Macan was born in Ireland, the son of Dr. A.V. Macan (1843–1908), a noted physician who was knighted.[3][8]

Early years

Macan's mother died in 1886 when he was four; he was raised in Dublin. He attended the Shrewsbury School in England and Trinity College Dublin.[8] Introduced to golf around age nine, he became one of the top players in Ireland, and quickly tired of the legal profession. He moved his family to western Canada and settled in British Columbia at Victoria in 1912.[7]

World War I

In his early 30s, he volunteered for service in World War I in 1916 as an officer in the Canadian Expeditionary Force of the Canadian Army,[9][10] and was wounded by a shell casing fragment in 1917 at the Battle of Vimy Ridge in France.[11] Blood poisoning in his left foot resulted in the amputation of his lower left leg.[12][13] After the war, he returned to Canada and continued to play competitive golf and design courses.

Courses designed

British Columbia

Qualicum (1913), Royal Colwood (1913; 1921–1922 renovation), Cowichan (1922), Marine Drive (1923), Gleneagles (1927), Gorge Vale (1920 & 1930), Langara Golf Course (1926), old Shaughnessy Heights (1927; 1940 renovation), Stanley Park Par-3 (1927), University (1927), Victoria (1930 & 1955 renovations), Manito Country Club (1935), Cowichan (1947), Kelowna (1949 & 1959 renovations), Nanaimo (1953 & 1961), McCleery (1956), Richmond (1959), new Shaughnessy (1959), Capilano (1960 renovation), Penticton (1961 renovation), and Queen Elizabeth Park (1961).

Washington

Inglewood (1920, 1928 renovation), Chehalis (1922), Manito (1922),[14] Waverly (1922 – 1950s renovation), Rainier (1923 – front nine), Glen Acres (1924), Fircrest (1924), Broadmoor (1925), Seattle (1950 renovation), Overlake (1953), Sun Willows (1954), Yakima (1956 back nine), Everett (1962 renovation), Lake Spanaway Municipal (1964), and Sunland (1964).

Oregon

Columbia-Edgewater (1924), Alderwood (1924; 1949 renovation), Astoria (1924), Illahe Hills (1928), Colwood National (1928), Lloyds (1930), Gearhart (1932 renovation)

Idaho

Hillcrest (1940; 1957 & 1961 renovations), Purple Sage Municipal (1963)

California

California Golf Club (1925), Contra Costa (1925), San Geronimo (1961)[7]

Death

Macan died at age 82 in August 1964 on the Olympic Peninsula in Sequim, Washington; he had a fatal heart attack while working on site of what was to become the Sunland Golf Club.[1]

Honours

Macan was inducted into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame in 2018.[15]

References
  1. Olson, Arv (2012). Backspin: 120 Years of Golf in British Columbia. Heritage House Publishing Co. Ltd. pp. 34–36. ISBN 9781927051412.
  2. Golf Architecture
  3. Cosgrave, Ephraim MacDowel (1908). "Dublin and Co. Dublin. Contemporary Biographies: Sir A.V. Macan". W.T. Pike & Co. p. 190.
  4. "Macan, Arthur Vernon (DNB12)". Wikisouce. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  5. Stambaugh, Scott (2009). The resurrection of A.V. Macan in the Pacific Northwest. Golf Architecture, A worldwide perspective. Volume 5. pp. 35–46. ISBN 9781455615919.
  6. Mingay, Jeff (February 10, 2010). "AV Macan: Canada's democrat of golf". Golf Course Architecture. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  7. "A.V. Macan: Golf Course Architect for the Pacific Northwest". Nanaimo Golf Club. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  8. "Arthur Vernon Macan". Pacific Northwest Golf Association. Hall of Fame. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  9. Stephenson, Paul (October 16, 2007). "Researching Canadian golf architects: AV Macan and Stanley Thompson". Great War Forum. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  10. "Golf child's play to patrol's duty". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. November 27, 1916. p. 16.
  11. "Macan, golf champ, wounded at Vimy". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. May 10, 1917. p. 20.
  12. "Macan, golf champ, wounded". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. August 22, 1917. p. 14.
  13. Sheehan, John (July 18, 2002). "Vernon Macan (long article)". Golf Club Atlas. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  14. "Sporty holes on Manito course". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). December 11, 1921. p. 3, sports.
  15. "A.V. Macan – Canadian Golf Hall of Fame". Golf Canada.
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