Trail History
Discover the rich history of San Antonio’s golf courses on our timeline, showcasing key milestones, from legendary tournament winners and memorable events to major renovations and course upgrades by the Alamo City Golf Trail. Explore how these iconic courses have evolved over the years, becoming a central part of San Antonio’s golfing community and legacy.
In 1922, Bob MacDonald won the inaugural Texas Open by one shot over Cyril Walker. Now 100 years later, the Valero Texas Open is the oldest Professional Golf Tour tournament to have been held in the same city its entire existence!
Designed and built by John McGlynn and Emil Loaffler, Willow Springs was built upon land, then called the Kampmann Estate, and originally was named Woodland Golf Course.
Walter Hagen, American holder of the British Open championship, won the Texas Open golf championship here today when William Mehlhorn of Shreveport, La., who tied with Hagen yesterday for the title with a 279 for the seventy-two holes medal play, took a six on the eighteenth hole, losing to Hagen by one stroke.
The original clubhouse was a small one-story building that burned down in 1920. In 1922, the City hired Ralph H. Cameron to design and build a new clubhouse for the golf course and the Texas Open. $8,000 was raised by the City for clubhouse construction. Cameron designed other notable San Antonio buildings, including the Scottish Rite Cathedral (1923), Neo-Gothic Medical Arts Building (1925), the Frost Brothers Store (1930), and the U.S. Post Office and Court House (1937).
Joe Kirkwood, Rockwood Hall (N.Y.) professional, won the Texas open golf championship here today with a score of 279 for the seventy-two holes, seven strokes ahead of James Ockenden, French open champion, and George Kerrigan of Long Beach, Cal., who were tied for second place.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Feb. 14. — Joe Turnesa, youthful pro from Elmsford, N.Y., staged a comeback in the Texas open today and nosed Macdonald Smith of San Francisco out by one stroke for the title. Turnesa had 144, 140 — 284 for his two day’s play, while Smith’s score was 140, 145 — 285.
Macdonald “Mac” Smith (March 18, 1890 – August 31, 1949) was one of the top professional golfers in the world from about 1910 into the mid-1930s. He was a member of a famous Scottish golfing family. Smith is regarded, based on his results, as one of the best golfers of all time who never won a major championship. He won 25 official events on the PGA Tour, and placed in the top ten of major championships a total of 17 times.
Cruickshank won 17 tour events in his career and his greatest year was 1927, when he won the Los Angeles and Texas Opens and finished as the leading money winner for the year. His last victory on tour was in 1936 and he had 16 top-10 finishes in major championships.
Bill Mehlhorn (1898-1989), frequently known as “Wild Bill,” wasn’t from the Wild West, but Elgin, Ill., who got involved in golf at an early age. He was called “Wild Bill” because he could go “wild” shooting a string of low scores, but he always wore a wide-brimmed cowboy hat, adding to the belief he’d been a cowboy. Mehlhorn won 20 tournaments including the Western Open, the Texas Open (twice), and had 14 top tens in the majors, including runner up to Walter Hagen in the 1925 PGA Championship.
Bill Mehlhorn (1898-1989), frequently known as “Wild Bill,” wasn’t from the Wild West, but Elgin, Ill., who got involved in golf at an early age. He was called “Wild Bill” because he could go “wild” shooting a string of low scores, but he always wore a wide-brimmed cowboy hat, adding to the belief he’d been a cowboy. Mehlhorn won 20 tournaments including the Western Open, the Texas Open (twice), and had 14 top tens in the majors, including runner up to Walter Hagen in the 1925 PGA Championship.
Denny won the Los Angeles and Texas Opens in 1930; was runner up in the 1931 PGA; won Miami-Biltmore and Glen Falls in 1932; won the British Open and Gasparilla Open in 1933.
Two 69s Give Espinosa First Prize in Texas Open, With 281 for 72 Holes; ESPINOSA, WITH 281, TAKES TEXAS OPEN
SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Jan. 31.— Clarence Clark, tall, blond professional of Bloomfield, N. J., won the 11th annual Texas open golf tournament here today, finishing his final 18- hole round with a sparkling 69, Clark’s 69, two under par, gave him a 287 for the entire 72 holes. First place money was $6OO. Tied for second just one stroke behind Clark were Gene Sarazen, New York professional, and Gus Moreland, Dallas, Texas amateur champion. Harry Cooper, Chicago; Dudley Bell, Houston, Texas; and Paul Runyan, Westchester.- N. Y., all professionals, were tied for third place with cards of 290. Sarazen, a favorite, blew his chance ‘to win when he reached the ninth hole on his last round. Playing against time so he might catch a train to Jacksonville, Fla., to continue ‘his winter tournament schedule, the | New Yorker played a shot into a water trap on the sporty Brackenridge course. He threw his iron into the water and stalked off.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas., Feb. 11. — Stout-hearted Wiffy Cox of Brooklyn increased the size of his wallet today when he won the $2,500 Texas open with a 72-hole card of 141,71, 71 — 283, one under par.
SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 12 (AP)– E.J. (Dutch) Harrison, who has been following the tournament trail longer than most anybody– seventeen years to be exact–won the Texas open today from Doug Ford of Briarcliff, N. Y., a freshman to championship golf.
SAN ANTONIO, Tex., Feb. 12 (AP). –E.J. (Dutch) Harrison, with a seventy-two-hole total of 271 strokes, 13 under par, won the Texas open golf tournament today.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Feb. 12 (AP)–The national open champion, Byron Nelson, shot his first round of golf above the 60s in two years of the Texas open tournament, but his 70 was good enough to beat Ben Hogan of White Plains, N.Y., by a stroke in the 1940 title play-off at Brackenridge Park today.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Feb. 9 — Lawson Little, national open champion, shot a 67, four under par in the afternoon round today to win the annual $5,000 Texas open golf tournament with a total of 273, eleven under par, for seventy-two holes. Beating Ben Hogan, by three strokes.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Feb. 16 (U.P.) — Melvin (Chick) Harbert, 27-year-old professional from Battle Creek, Mich., won the Texas open golf tournament today, beating Ben Hogan by four strokes in an eighteen-hole play-off.
SAN ANTONIO, Tex., Feb. 12 — Johnny Revolta, the Evanston, Ill., professional whose forte is iron play, swept over Brackenridge course for a seven-under-par-64 today to take a five stroke lead at the half way mark in the 72-hole $5,000 Texas Open.
In January 1945, Byrd won the Texas Open with a score of 268, beating Nelson by one stroke, and setting a new Texas Open record, which had previously been 271
SAN ANTONIO, Tex., Feb. 13 (AP) — Dave Douglas of Wilmington, Del., found the pot at the end of the rainbow today — he won the 72-hole $10,000 Texas open with a score of 268
Sam Snead won the 1950 Texas Open at Brackenridge Park and Fort Sam Houston, co-hosting sites for the tournament that year. Jim Ferrier came in second place, eight shots behind Snead.
Jack Burke, Jr. will always be remembered for his string of four consecutive victories (Texas Open, Houston Open, Baton Rouge Open, and St. Petersburg Open) in 1952.
SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 15 (AP) — Tony Holguin, a youngster with a broad grin, hit a golf jackpot and gladdened the hearts of his hometown folks today as he posted a 3-under-par 68 to win the $10,000 Texas Open with a 72-hole total of 264.
February 1954, Harper won the Texas Open and amazed the world of golf by shooting 63-63-63 in that order; that 189 stands today as the 54-hole record.
In 1955 Mike Souchak established the PGA 72-hole scoring record with a 257 at the Texas Open. He was a 15-time winner on the PGA Tour, and for decades held the record for lowest winning tournament score. Mike Souchak (60-68-64-65), 1955 Texas Open stood for 46 years
SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 17 (AP) –Jay Hebert of Sanford, Fla., sank a four-foot putt for a birdie on the final hole today to win the Texas Open with a seventytwo-hole total of 271.
At the Texas Open, Johnston was tied for second through 36 holes, six strokes behind Dave Marr. In the 36-hole finale, Johnston fired scores of 66-68 to coast past Marr and hold off Bob Rosburg for a three-shot triumph.
Wes Ellis, Jr., hometown boy but playing out of Aldecress, N.Y., collected a $2,800 first place check by winning the Texas Open Golf Tournament, Feb. 22, 1959. Ellis carded a last day score 67, 4 under par, for a tournament total of 276.
Brackenridge was completely renovated and remodeled in 1968 due to the construction project on 281 and I-35. The controversial decision to construct U.S. 281 right through the back nine caused the course to lose 10 acres, and a few of the long par 4s on the back nine were shortened. The architecture firm Johnson and Dempsey and Associates, along with George A. Hoffman and Murray Brooks, redesigned the back nine holes to fit on smaller property. Ponds were added to the course but the river was filled in throughout certain parts of the golf course.
The Municipal Golf Association San Antonio (MGASA), also known as the Alamo City Golf Trail, is a non-profit corporation that has partnered with the City of San Antonio to operate the City’s eight golf facilities and be stewards of municipal golf. In May 2007, City Council approved a ten-year management agreement with the MGASA to improve the golf facilities and manage their operation.
The golf course experienced a revival in 2008 after a $4.5 million renovation. Architect John Colligan restored fifteen of the original 18 holes; the course now measures 6,243 yards from the back tees (par-71) and occupies only 113 acres of urban green space.
An adjacent building to the Brackenridge Park Golf Clubhouse once served as the working studio for artist Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor who created the heads of the U.S. Presidents on Mount Rushmore. The structure was built in 1885 from local limestone and timbers to serve as a water pumping station. In 1905, the pump house became obsolete with the drilling of artisan wells into the Edwards Aquifer. Around the abandoned pump house, the untamed land was sculpted into a golf course. In Reid Meyers’ self-published book, “The Ghosts of Old Brack,” he spotlights Gutzon Borglum’s arrival in San Antonio in 1924 and his rental of the old pump house. Through the windows, he likely would have seen golfers warming up. “That was what made it nice as an artist studio, the setting and light, the large space,” says San Antonio historian Maria Watson Pfeiffer.
After Borglum’s use of the studio passed, it served as the creative space of other noted regional artists, and art students of the Wiite and Fort Sam Houston.
Today, the Borglum Studio looks out on the 17th hole of the golf course.
After a 10-month renovation, the course features upgraded greens, re-grassed fairways and tee boxes, new bunkers, a refreshed clubhouse, and a brand-new golf cart fleet.
