Fred Herd the Scottish golfer was born on 26th November 1873 at St Andrews.
Fred was one of five golfing brothers from "the home of golf". There isn't a great deal of background about Fred, but what is known, is worth a wee post, you will understand what I mean as I go on.
Fred emigrated to the USA aged 24, to ply his trade and settled there, for a while, becoming a naturalized citizen. Fred's claim to fame is he won the fourth won the US Open at Myopia in Massachusetts, Herd was six strokes off the lead at the midway point. But he carded a 75 in the third round, which was the best score by anyone in the tournament, and one of just two sub-80 scores in the tournament. When he scored 84 in the final round, Herd won by seven strokes over runner-up Alex Smith. Herd's winning total was 328, second-highest in U.S. Open history.
In an 1898 magazine article, Herd attributed his victory to "consistently good putting."
Unfortunately, Fred was know to like a "wee swally," after winning that 1898 tournament, the USGA, having heard stories about Herd's drinking, was reluctant to let him take the championship trophy. They required him to leave a deposit for it because USGA officials were afraid he might pawn it to buy booze!
He further raised his profile in the US by winning a home and away challenge against triple Open Champion Jamie Anderson, then pro at Onwentsia. His failure to retain the title was attributed in a splendidly partisan piece of reporting in the Dundee Courier, to ‘the course at Baltimore being better suited for quarrying than for golfing purposes’.
He was the professional at the South Shore Country Club from 1898 until 1920 when he returned to the UK and became professional at Knebworth from where he played in the McVitie and Price (biscuit makers) £800 competition at Watford in 1921. He was a veteran according to the Aberdeen Journal and 'in recent years little has been seen of him in competition' but his first round of 76 in the qualifier was three behind the leader, brother Sandy.
Such was his US Open win revered he is remembered in verse, in a poem published in an issue of Golf magazine....
All hail to Champion Freddie Herd, from Caledonia's soil, Who came to Freedom's sunny land our Golfers' game to foil. Their vaunted swing and faultless style before his skill must bow. You wer'na known twa weeks ago, but, man, you've done it now.
