| Fullname | William Macfarlane |
|---|---|
| Birth date | 29 June 1889 |
| Birth place | Aberdeen, Scotland |
| Death date | 15 August 1961 (aged 72) |
| Death place | London, England |
| Status | Professional |
| Extour | PGA Tour |
| Prowins | 23 |
| Pgawins | 20 |
| Majorwins | 1 |
| Masters | 6th: 1934 |
| Usopen | Won: 1925 |
| Open | DNP |
| Pga | T3: 1916 |
William Macfarlane (29 June 1889[1] – 15 August 1961) was a Scottish professional golfer.
Career
Macfarlane was born in Aberdeen, Scotland.[1]
Like many British golfers of his era, he took a position as a club professional in the United States. In 1925 he won the U.S. Open at Worcester Country Club in Worcester, Massachusetts. He tied Bobby Jones over 72 holes, with both men shooting 291. Macfarlane had set a new U.S. Open single round low-score of 67 in the second round. The two men played an 18-hole playoff and both of them shot 75. Macfarlane won a second 18-hole playoff by 72 shots to 73.
Macfarlane played in the U.S. Open 16 times, but only had one other top-10 finish. He won 21 times on the PGA Tour.
Personal life
Macfarlane died in Miami, Florida.
Professional wins (21)
PGA Tour wins (20)
- 1917 (1) War Relief Tournament (Englewood)[2][3]
- 1921 (1) Philadelphia Open Championship
- 1924 (1) Westchester Open
- 1925 (2) U.S. Open, Shawnee Open
- 1928 (1) Shawnee Open
- 1930 (3) Metropolitan Open, Westchester Open, Mid-South Open Bestball (with Wiffy Cox)
- 1931 (2) Miami International Four-Ball (with Wiffy Cox), Kenwood Open
- 1932 (1) St. Petersburg Open
- 1933 (4) Metropolitan Open, Mid-South Pro-Pro (with Paul Runyan), Mid-South Open (tie with Paul Runyan and Joe Turnesa)
- 1934 (1) Pennsylvania Open Championship
- 1935 (2) Florida West Coast Open, Glens Falls Open
- 1936 (2) Walter Olson Golf Tournament (tie with Tommy Armour), Nassau Open
Major championship is shown in bold.
Source:[4]
Other wins (3)
Note: This list is probably incomplete.
- 1916 Rockland CC Four-Ball
- 1922 Westchester Open
- 1933 Miami Biltmore Open (December)
Major championships
Wins (1)
| Year | Championship | 54 holes | Winning score | Margin | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1925 | U.S. Open | 1 shot lead | +7 (74-67-72-78=291) | Playoff 1 | Bobby Jones |
1 Defeated Jones in second 18-hole playoff – Macfarlane 75-72=147 (+5), Jones 75-73=148 (+6).
Result timeline
| Tournament | 1912 | 1913 | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Open | T18 | WD | WD | T35 | NT | NT | ||
| PGA Championship | NYF | NYF | NYF | NYF | SF | NT | NT |
| Tournament | 1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Open | T8 | WD | 1 | T20 | T18 | T14 | T27 | |||
| PGA Championship | R32 | QF | R16 | R16 |
| Tournament | 1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | NYF | NYF | NYF | NYF | 6 | T31 | T19 | 38 | ||
| U.S. Open | T43 | CUT | T47 | T47 | T32 | |||||
| PGA Championship | R16 | R32 |
| Tournament | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | NT | NT | NT | ||||
| U.S. Open | NT | NT | NT | NT | WD | ||
| PGA Championship | NT |
Note: Macfarlane never played in The Open Championship.
NYF = tournament not yet founded
NT = no tournament
WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Summary
| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| U.S. Open | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 16 | 12 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Totals | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 15 | 27 | 23 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 10 (1923 PGA – 1931 PGA)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1923 PGA – 1925 U.S. Open)
See also
References
- ^ "Births in the District of St Nicholas in the Burgh of Aberdeen". Statutory Births 168/001 0934. ScotlandsPeople. Archived from the original on 21 November 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
- ^ "Yonkers Golfers Lead: MacFarlane And McLean Tie For First Place In Big Tourney". The Yonkers Statesman. July 25, 1917. p. 4. – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Willie MacFarlane of Local Club Defeats McLean for the 36 Laurels". The Yonkers Herald. July 28, 1917. p. 6. – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Willie MacFarlane". PGA Tour. Retrieved 2025-09-14.