The September 2001 Feature Interview was a mock interchange between George Thomas and Geoff Shackelford conducted after a rose show. After reading it, a Golf Digest panelist wrote something to the extent: 'What a coup - I didn't realize Thomas was still alive!'
Alas, Thomas wasn't, having passed away in 1932. Nonetheless, Geoff's extensive knowledge and appreciation of Thomas made that Feature Interview realistic and as jam-packed with insight as any we have done.
Along those lines, and in an effort to keep things fresh, we 'conducted' a Feature Interview with 'Old Tom' Morris this month. We should be on safer ground this time - if someone says 'Gee, I didn't know he was still alive…,' I'll be, errrr, mmm, very surprised.
The answers are 100% the words of Old Tom Morris. Melvyn Morrow kindly provided two significant articles (acknowledged at the end of the Feature Interview) from his vast family archives and I reverse engineered into the questions. I was especially keen to do this after a May visit to Prestwick which reminded me of Old Tom's dazzling work in the sandhills near the clubhouse.
Look at this 1849 view across the 1st and up the Home hole at St. Andrews. The R&A clubhouse wouldn't be built for several years. Morris was still based at St. Andrews and had yet to head to Prestwick. His shop below along Links Road was nearly 20 years away. 
From the feathery to the gutta and then the Haskell, Old Tom Morris was involved every step of the way.Ron Whitten and Geoffrey Cornish wrote in the back of
The Golf Course, 'Those who knew him described 'Old Tom' as a man it was impossible to dislike.' So what, you snarl: Nice guys finish last. Well, the point is how different it might have been if Old Tom was a wall when Charles Blair Macdonald or Donald Ross or AW Tillinghast or Fowler or Colt came for a visit? What if he had been a totally unhelpful/indifferent/unresponsive jerk to them?
What if the wrong guy was at the center of the fledgling golf universe at the wrong time? Mercifully, that was not the case.
Just as he had learned from his mentor, Allan Robertson, Old Tom had the grace to pass along knowledge and help others. Happily, history continues to repeat and you see it today when a Tom Doak or Bill Coore goes out his way to help young people learn (just as Pete Dye had helped them). The sport of golf has been very fortunate to have such gentlemen and golf course architecture continues to build from past lessons learned.
The foundation for the Golden Age came from a renewed appreciation for the attributes of The Old Course at St.Andrews. Time has shown that the game couldn't have had a better host town or a better custodian than Old Tom Morris. The realm of their influence is untold.
Hope you enjoy this month's Feature Interview.
Working with Melvyn on it was a ton of fun – as he said, 'We are just scratching the surface'. In the process, I learned about the Union Parlour which is the top left building in the top photograph, the Bruce Embankment, how close the sea once came to the 1st fairway and the R &A Clubhouse when it was initially built, on and on. Our usual debate on the true Golden Age ensued and I still hold true to the one loosely defined as being from 1900 to 1938 because of the width and breadth of high quality work around the world (versus the work of a concentrated few around Great Britain's coast pre-1900). Anyway, all great fun and I hope that GolfClubAtlas.com can do something similar once a year or so. Please email me at rmorrissett@cabotlinks.com if you have an idea/material for such a future 'interview.'
Be warned though: Old Tom is a tough act to follow as not many men are referred to as an ‘institution.’
Best,