Lawson Little
Lawson Little, born on June 23, 1910, in Newport, Rhode Island, was a prominent American golfer who gained recognition for his exceptional skills and achievements in the sport. The son of a U.S. Army officer, Little spent his childhood at various military posts, including in China, where he developed a passion for golf. His physical prowess, enhanced by weightlifting and gymnastics, contributed to his powerful tee shots, earning him the nickname "Cannonball" Little.
Little's career soared in the 1930s, becoming the first player to win both the U.S. and British Amateur Championships in consecutive years (1934 and 1935). This feat garnered him the prestigious James E. Sullivan Memorial Award in 1935. Transitioning to professional golf in 1936, he quickly made a name for himself by winning the Canadian Open and achieving remarkable success in numerous tournaments across North America and Europe. His accomplishments continued through World War II, where he was ranked second only to Ben Hogan.
Little's later years included participation in the British Open and a final major victory at the St. Petersburg Open in 1948. He was recognized for his contributions to the sport by being inducted into the PGA Hall of Fame in 1961, and he passed away in 1968. Ultimately, Lawson Little's legacy is marked not only by his physical strength but also by his strategic mental approach to the game of golf.
Lawson Little
Golfer
- Born: June 23, 1910
- Birthplace: Newport, Rhode Island
- Died: February 1, 1968
- Place of death: Monterey, California
Sport: Golf
Early Life
William Lawson Little, Jr., was the son of Colonel William Lawson Little of the United States Army Medical Corps and his wife. Lawson, Jr., was born at Fort Adams, the U.S. Army base at Newport, Rhode Island, on June 23, 1910. Because of his father’s career, the family moved a great deal. Lawson spent his boyhood and adolescent years at a number of U.S. Army posts, including several in China. All of these bases had golf courses, and golf became Lawson’s favorite form of recreation.
In the early part of the twentieth century, U.S. Army bases in countries such as China were rather small, and people from all Western nationalities tended to form friendships across national lines. Therefore, Lawson formed many golfing friendships with people from England and Europe.
The Road to Excellence
Lawson was short, but he developed powerful arms and shoulders through weightlifting and gymnastics exercises such as the parallel bars and the rings. Lawson’s squat, muscular build allowed him to drive the ball unusually long distances on his tee shots. These drives were so fast and so strong that, early in his career, Lawson was nicknamed “Cannonball” Little.
Furthermore, Lawson had fine control over his muscles, and, once his ball was on the green, the “Cannonball” became a delicate and precise putter. Early in his career, Lawson also learned he could intimidate some of his opponents by adopting a fierce facial expression during the course of the game.
The Emerging Champion
In 1934, Lawson became a top international golfer. In that year he became the U.S. Amateur champion by defeating David Goldman, won the British Amateur Championship by defeating James Wallace, and was named a member of America’s Walker Cup team—quite a year for a young man just out of college.
The next year, 1935, Lawson again won the amateur titles on both sides of the Atlantic. This alone ensured his place in golfing history; he was the first player to win both the U.S. and British titles in two consecutive years. In recognition of this accomplishment, the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) named Lawson the 1935 winner of the James E. Sullivan Memorial Award, the highest honor for an amateur athlete.
Continuing the Story
In 1936, Lawson became a professional golfer and began playing in tournaments with cash prizes. He immediately made his mark on the professional golf world by winning the Canadian Open, setting a new record for the course on which it was played.
Each year Lawson traveled all over the United States, Canada, and England winning major tournaments. In 1939, World War II broke out in Europe, and Lawson had to restrict his play to North America. Even then his career bloomed. In 1940, eleven hundred people played in the qualifying rounds for the U.S. Open Tournament at Olympia Fields Country Club of Chicago. The lowest score on 36 holes was 134, shot by Lawson. In the tournament, Lawson tied Gene Sarazen, 287 strokes each, but Lawson won the tie-breaking round 70 strokes to 73.
Because of shortages of gasoline for travel and to emphasize the seriousness of the war, fewer golf tournaments were held after the United States entered World War II at the end of 1941. However, in 1942 and 1944, Lawson was ranked second only to the legendary golfer Ben Hogan. When the war was over, Lawson returned to international golfing and did well in the British Open in 1946 and 1947. In 1948, Lawson won his last major tournament, the St. Petersburg Open held at the Lakewood Country Club in St. Petersburg, Florida.
In 1951 and 1952, the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) honored Lawson by naming him cochairperson in charge of organizing national tournaments. In 1961, Lawson was inducted into the PGA Hall of Fame at Pinehurst, North Carolina. He died in 1968.
Summary
Although physically strong, Lawson Little felt that much of his success was the result of his mental ability. Before teeing off, he always thought out his play and made allowances for unexpected circumstances.
Bibliography
Golf Magazine’s Encyclopedia of Golf: The Complete Reference. New York: HarperCollins, 1993.
Kalb, Elliott. Who’s Better, Who’s Best in Golf? Mr. Stats Sets the Record Straight on the Top Fifty Golfers of All Time. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2006.
Strege, John. When War Played Through: Golf During World War II. New York: Gotham Books, 2005.