(6) JH Taylor
John Henry Taylor rounded out the “Great Triumvirate” and is unfairly seen as the weakest link. Born a year after his rivals in 1871 in Westwood Ho! Devon, he had perhaps the toughest route to the top of all, born into a working class family and orphaned at the age of eight. He came through the caddie ranks and worked as a junior greenkeeper at Royal North Devon Golf Club, turning pro in 1890. Growing up in the wild weather of southwest England set him up to become renowned for his ability to handle adverse conditions better than most. He was like a golfing Michael Schumacher when it rained and his five Open wins came with an average winning margin of over six strokes. In a twenty-two year period from his first Open in 1893 until 1914 he won five times, came second a heartbreaking six times (including 4 years in a row from 1904-1907) and was out of the top ten on only two occasions. Where Braid had power and Vardon had rhythm, Taylor was renowned for his accuracy and the tale is told of him having “directional posts removed from the blind holes out of fear that his drives would hit them and carom into bunkers”! In all, he came second to Vardon three times, and to Braid twice. His reputation as a course designer is little remarked upon, unfairly perhaps as he was the man behind Royal Birkdale.
