Bogeyman

The Bogeyman

Dan O’Neill - Managing Editor

Meadowbrook is a special place for Amateur

Come August - God willing and the pandemic don’t rise - the 30th Metropolitan Amateur will be conducted at Meadowbrook Country Club. The date is special for both the competition and the club.

The winner of the championship will have his name added to the prestigious Jim Tom Blair Trophy, 10 years after Blair passed away at the age of 79, he remains one of the greatest amateurs Missouri ever has known.

What’s more, the 2020 championship comes 60 years after the dedication of Meadowbrook at its present location in Ballwin, Mo. Now, the old Bogeyman might be confused for Ronald McDonald long before he’d be mistaken for Charles Blair Macdonald, but he always has considered Meadowbrook to be among St. Louis’ most endearing golf facilities.

Meadowbrook doesn’t have a U.S. Open, PGA or Ryder Cup in its closet, but it has charming qualities and a fascinating history of its own. The club originally opened in the Overland area, a public facility bordered by Lackland and Midland avenues. At a time when the city of St. Louis stretched north and south, the Meadow Brook Club straddled the end of the streetcar run that followed the same path.

In 1944, as World War II impacted business everywhere, the public venue went private. Meadowbrook Country Club was established and as war ended, membership grew. In 1946, Frank Moore, became Meadowbrook’s head professional. The brother of Cardinals center fielder Terry Moore, Frank Moore was considered the best player in St. Louis at the time. However, in 1950, he left Meadowbrook to run a bowling establishment he partly owned with celebrated brother.

What can you say? Guess bowling was up his alley.

On Dec. 12, 1957, disaster struck. A fire destroyed the clubhouse. Eventually, management was able to secure 320 acres of rural property at Kehrs Mill and Clayton Roads and plans were made for a new facility to include “the finest features of some of the finest clubs in the country,” promised club president Ben Blum.

In March 1960, the doors opened and a few weeks later, so did the tee boxes. The 18 holes of golf designed by renowned architect Robert Bruce Harris became the talk of the golfing crowd. And with FHA financing, you could purchase a home in the new Claymont community for $20,000-$30,000.

Quick! Sherman! To the WABAC Machine. Set the controls to 1960 … and call a realtor.

Ten years later, a home-cooked champion emerged once more, as Meadowbrook’s Eli Grant survived Brian Craig’s final-round 66 to capture the 2010 Metropolitan. That same evening, Sam Bradford completed 6 of 13 passes and suffered four sacks in his NFL debut, as the Rams lost an exhibition opener to the Minnesota Vikings.

Good times, ay?

Of course, the Rams are in Los Angeles now and Bradford is out of football altogether. The No. 1 pick in the 2010 NFL draft never made it big in the NFL, but he did make $130 million during an injury-hampered career, so he’s got that going for him … which is nice.

As for Meadowbrook, it’s still here. And when the Jim Tom Blair Trophy is once more on the line at the 30th playing of the Metropolitan, the Beauty in Ballwin will shine once more.

A fire destroyed the Meadowbrok Country Club clubhouse and made the front page in December, 1957. Today, the repositioned club is a pristine postcard as it awaits the 30th playing of the MAGA Amateur Chamionship on Aug. 6-8..

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