The legendary US amateur, Chick Evans, a great admirer of Anderson, was instrumental in creating a fund for Willie’s widow Agnes and their daughter. Evans was the finest amateur of his generation, winning both US Open and US Amateur in 1916. The lengths to which he went to ensure Anderson’s family were looked after highlights the depth of affection he held for his mentor.
It was left to his great rival and friend Aleck Smith, who lost two US Opens to Willie, to say that, “most likely, had he lived longer, Willie would have set a record for Open championships that would never be beaten.”
Willie Anderson played in every US Open from 1897, when he first arrived in the US, to the year of his death in 1910, a total of fourteen tournaments. His worst placing was fifteenth but he finished in the top five eleven times - including his four wins - with the unique three-in-a-row from 1903-1905. It’s a magnificent record which has never been bettered and one wonders how much more this son of North Berwick could have achieved with better health. As it is, his achievements shine out to us from the depths of history: “Oor Wullie” – Young Willie Anderson, the greatest US Open champion of all time.
