McDermott, John J. Jr.
Golf
b. Aug. 8, 1891, Philadelphia, PA
d. Aug. 2, 1971
McDermott was one of the truly tragic figures in sports. Cocky and brash, he tied Alex and MacDonald Smith in the 1910 U. S. Open but lost the playoff to Alex. He told Alex that the outcome was a mistake that would be rectified the following year, and it was. McDermott won the Open in 1911, the youngest winner ever, and repeated in 1912; he is one of only five golfers who have won two Opens in a row. A great iron player who could reputedly drop a shot onto a newspaper, McDermott was the first golfer to break par for seventy-two holes.
In 1914, McDermott went to England to compete in the British Open, but missed a ferry boat and arrived late. Officials offered to let him play, but he declined, saying it would be unfair to the other golfers. He sailed back to the U. S. on the Kaiser Wilhelm II, which collided with another ship, and McDermott spent some time in a lifeboat before being rescued. When he finally got home, he discovered that he'd lost most of his money in the stock market.
Shortly afterward, McDermott blacked out when entering the clubhouse in Atlantic City, where he was the club pro. He spent the rest of his life in mental hospitals and rest homes or living with his family in Philadelphia, the victim of mental illness. He never played golf again.