Malcolm/Bob,
What Tom and David will conveniently neglect to tell you is that during the late 1890s, and for most of the next fifteen or so years, most of the Green Committees around Philadelphia were VERY involved in the architecture of their golf courses, and by far the exceptions were those courses done by professional golfers, up through WWI..
I could provide example after example, and will do so if anyone feels it's necessary but let's just start with Merion.
Merion had a 9-hole Willie Campbell designed course open in 1896, but as golf grew more popular at the club, by late 1899 it was determined that 18 was needed and Rodman Griscom's father's farm was utilized for an 18-hole course that opened in 1901.
About 7 of Campbell's original holes were incorporated into the new 18 hole course that was designed and constructed by Rodman Griscom and his Green Committee...the same Rodman Griscom who was on Hugh Wilson's committee in 1911. H.G. Lloyd was on the same Green committee in 1903 although I'm trying to determine if he was there in around 1900/01.
We also know that Dr. Harry Toulmin was one of three men who designed the Belmont Golf Club course, which was the forerunner to Aronimink.
While we don't know what Wilson learned or didn't at Princeton, we know he was there on the committee for about 15 months which included the period through final construction, grow-in, and course opening.
The fifth, Richard Francis, tells us he was added because of his surveying and engineering skills.
The five men on the committee were also five of the six best golfers of the hundreds of golfing members of the club. THe sixth, Howard Perrin, was relatively new to the club at the time, so these men were considered the club's "experts", and clearly were.
So this humble statement of gratitude from Wilson is indeed what it is...meant to thank Macdonald and Whigham for their help and acknowledge their expertise.
It is also very important to note that the article David quoted Hugh Wilson from was an article intended to be about agronomy and course construction. Piper and Oakley had asked Wilson to write a chapter for them on Merion's agronomy, so that his the subject and what Wilson is referring to, not architecture. You'll notice Wilson's humble statement indeed says, "the experience of each in construction and greenkeeping...", although even in that regard they were clearly each well beyond "the average club member".
Among the things Merion was most grateful to Macdonald and Whigham about was their helpful advice that they send some soil samples to Piper and Oakley early on, which struck up a long-running relationship and became the start of the USGA Agronomy Section.
David,
Thanks for sharing those early pictures of Princeton here.