Eddie Loos

Edward Wallace Neal Loos (July 31, 1893 – July 9, 1950) was an American professional golfer who played in the early-to-mid 20th century. His best performance in a major golf championship was a T10 finish in the 1924 U.S. Open. He won the 1917 Shawnee Open, the 1921 California State Open, and the Illinois PGA Championship in 1922 and 1924. Loos was a frequent competitor in the PGA Championship, last playing in 1935. He had 13 second-place finishes on the PGA Tour after 1915.

Eddie Loos
Loos in 1921
Personal information
Full name	Edward Wallace Neal Loos
Nickname	Two-Putt Eddie[1]
Born	(1893-07-31)July 31, 1893 New York City, New York
Died	July 9, 1950(1950-07-09) (aged 56) Laguna Beach, California
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Nationality	United States
Career
Turned professional	c. 1913
Retired	1943
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour
Professional wins	8
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	3[2]
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	DNP
PGA Championship	T17: 1919, 1920, 1923, 1934, 1935
U.S. Open	T10: 1924
The Open Championship	DNP

Early life

Loos was born July 31, 1893 in New York City. He first played golf and also worked as a caddy at the Van Cortlandt Park Golf Course in the Bronx as a teenager.[3]

Golf career

A tall blonde-haired man, Loos was a good putter—seldom three-putting a green—and was sometimes called "Two-Putt Eddie" by the press and fellow players during his playing career.[1] He was the head professional at the Philadelphia Cricket Club in late 1916, taking over for Alex Duncan who left to take a job at the Chicago Golf Club.[4] In 1918 he left the cricket club to join the navy and after the war played exhibition matches with Jim Barnes before moving to Chicago where he was hired at Beverly Country Club.[5] He also worked at a number of other different clubs, including Atlantic City Country Club, Riverton Country Club, Pocono Manor Country Club, Ravisloe Country Club, and Charlotte Country Club.[3][6] While posted as professional at Pasadena Country Club in March 1921, he won the California State Open beating John Black and Macdonald Smith by 3 and 4 shots, respectively.[7] In the winter in the mid-1920s he worked as professional at the Cleveland Heights Country Club in Lakeland, Florida.[8]

In August 1917 Loos won the Shawnee Open with rounds of 69-74-75-72=290 (+2) beating runner-up Emmett French by seven strokes and won $250—plus $25 for the tournament's low round—and a gold medal.[9] Walter Hagen was third on 298. In September 1917 Loos continued his good play by winning a 36-hole tournament held at Westmoreland Country Club near Chicago. He shot 146 and nipped Bob MacDonald who was a single shot back at 147. In March 1918, Loos came second behind Jim Barnes in the Florida Open. Loos finished sixth in the 1920 Western Open,[4] and in 1922 won the Illinois PGA Championship at Lake Shore Golf Club in Glencoe, Illinois, beating Jock Hutchison.[10] He won the same event again in 1924 at Glen Flora Country Club in Waukegan, Illinois, battling rain and high winds in the process.[11]

On July 20, 1919, Loos partnered with Jim Barnes in a match play event contested at the Donald Ross-designed Beverly Country Club course in Chicago against Jock Hutchison and Bob MacDonald. Loos, playing on what was at the time his home course, shot a 68 after getting off to a slow start. The other cards were: Barnes (73); MacDonald (72); Hutchison (73).[5] Loos and Barnes won the match 4 and 3.[5]

Loos had some bad luck in the 1931 Los Angeles Open. Playing the 71st hole with victory within his grasp, he played a shot from the rough that settled a mere two inches from the hole. As he was preparing to tap in, he looked down and to his chagrin noticed the name "Walter Hagen" stenciled on the ball. He had improperly played Hagen's ball instead of his own and was assessed a two-stroke penalty that gave the title to Ed Dudley.[3][12][13] Dudley, however, didn't necessarily win because someone else lost—he shot a 68 in the final round,[12] the best score of the day.

Death

Loos died on July 9, 1950 in Laguna Beach, California. He was found dead in the bathtub of his home. The body was discovered by a neighbor, Dave Topkins. Illness had forced his retirement from golf in 1943.[14][15]

Family

His son, Charles H. "Chuck" Loos (died 2015), was a former managing editor of the Daily Pilot (formerly the Orange Coast Daily Pilot) newspaper.[16]

Tournament wins

PGA Tour wins (3)

• 1917 Shawnee Open[9]
• 1922 Illinois PGA Championship[10]
• 1923 Southern California Open[17]

Source:[2]

Other wins (5)

Note: This list may be incomplete.

• 1917 Westmoreland Country Club Tournament[4]
• 1921 California State Open,[7] Northern California Open[18]
• 1923 St. Joseph Tournament[19]
• 1924 Illinois PGA Championship[11]

Results in major championships

Tournament	1919	1920	1921	1922	1923	1924	1925	1926	1927	1928	1929	1930	1931	1932	1933	1934	1935
U.S. Open	?	T17	12	15	?	T10	?	T37	?	T36	?	?	?	?	?	T25	?
PGA Championship	R32	R32	DNP	DNP	R32	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	R32	R32

Note: Loos never played in the Masters Tournament or The Open Championship.

DNP = Did not play
? = Unknown
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10.

References

1. Trevor, George (June 5, 1924). "Mehlhorn Leads in First Round of Golf Tourney". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
2. Barkow, Al (November 1989). The History of the PGA TOUR. Copyright PGA Tour. Doubleday. pp. 235–36, 254. ISBN 0-385-26145-4.
3. Trenham, Peter C. "A Chronicle of the Philadelphia Section PGA and its Members: The Leaders and The Legends: 1916 to 1921" (PDF). Philadelphia PGA. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
4. Trenham, Peter C. "A Chronicle of the Philadelphia Section PGA and its Members: Before The PGA – 1895 to 1915". TrenhamGolfHistory.org. Retrieved December 17, 2015.
5. "Loos' Great Golf Wins "Pro" Match at Beverly Club". Chicago Daily Tribune. Illinois. July 21, 1919. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Eddie Loos Finishes Third in Tournament, former Charlotte Country Club Professional Plays in Match in Philadelphia". The Charlotte Observer. North Carolina. June 26, 1917. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
7. Chapman, Hay (March 7, 1921). "Young Chicago Pro Wins California State Open From Fast Field". San Francisco Chronicle. California. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Cyril Walker and Eddie Loos". oclc.org. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
9. "Eddie Loos Victor on Shawnee Links". The New York Times. August 10, 1917. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Loos Captures State Pro Golf Title". Chicago Tribune. September 16, 1922. p. 14. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
11. "Loos Scores Two Par Rounds in Waukegan". The Decatur Herald. Illinois. September 9, 1924. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
12. Kirksey, George (January 13, 1931). "Ed Dudley Wins Los Angeles Open". Times Herald. Olean, New York. p. 30 – via Newspapers.com.
13. McLemore, Henry (January 6, 1941). "Today's Sports Parade". Shamokin News-Dispatch. Pennsylvania. p. 6. Retrieved December 23, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Former Golf Pro Dies". The San Bernardino County Sun. July 10, 1950. p. 15 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "Eddie Loos Found Dead in Bathtub". The St. Petersburg Times. Florida. July 11, 1950. p. 10. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
16. Zint, Bradley (March 31, 2015). "Former Daily Pilot Managing Editor Chuck Loos dies". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
17. Chapman, Hay (January 25, 1923). "Eddie Loos Wins the Southern California Golf Title". San Francisco Chronicle. California. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
18. "Eddie Loos is Gaining Prestige". New Castle News. Pennsylvania. March 23, 1921. p. 22 – via Newspapers.com.
19. "Eddie Loos Wins St. Joe Tourney, Bill Creavy Blows Up and is Forced to Take Third Money". The Wichita Daily Eagle. Kansas. October 8, 1922. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.