ST. GEORGE'S GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB - Key Persons

Stanley Thompson (1893-1953) was one of five brothers (Nicol, Bill, Matt, Stanley, Frank) born in Toronto's east end, who became leading Canadian golfers in the 1920s. Heralded as "The Amazing Thompsons", Stanley was considered by some to be the finest golfer of the five and led the qualifying round for the Canadian Amateur in 1924. Despite his natural golf ability, his true passion was for golf course design. Stanley Thompson dabbled in golf course architecture before the First World War. When he returned from the war, where he served as a lieutenant in the Canadian Field Artillery, he formed Stanley Thompson & Company - a golf course design company that would become a leader in the field. The "Golden Age" of golf course architecture in Canada had begun and Thompson was at the forefront. Between 1920 and 1953 he designed, remodeled, or constructed 145 golf courses in Canada, the United States, the Caribbean, and South America. Some of his most celebrated works include Highlands Links (Nova Scotia), Banff and Jasper (Alberta), St. George's (Toronto), and Capilano (Vancouver). Stanley Thompson was shy and introverted, but was known for telling "stories" that many reporters questioned but nevertheless published. He was a lover of steak, rye whiskey, and cigars. His ‘larger than life' persona is one of the reasons he came to be known as "The Toronto Terror." His first wife died in 1943, and he remarried a few years later. He was on his way to South America, having stayed the previous night at Toronto's Royal York Hotel, when he suffered an aneurysm. A day later, on January 4, 1953, Stanley Thompson died in the hospital at the age of 59. In 1980, he was elected to the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame.