"Certainly by 1910, the amateurs were 'out' in the major metropolitian areas. And while CBM was an 'amateur' I don't consider him an amateur as an architect."
John:
To use the term "amateur architect" correctly in this thread I think we need to attempt to use it as best we can in as much of the context of the way they used the term back then.
So what did it mean to them back then?
First of all, obviously an "amateur" in those days was one that did not benefit financially IN ANY WAY from golf and that included playing, teaching, architecture and even writing---the latter perhaps more theoretical than actual.
But back in those days the Americans and the USGA were really stringent on what the term and concept of "amateurism" meant and what the term and concept of "professionalism" meant in golf generally. The USGA appeared to be much more stringent on amateurism than the other side.
It was not until around 1920 that the USGA Amateur Status code made an exception for professional golf architects. Essentially that let off the hook the likes of Tillinghast, Travis and perhaps Emmet. Quimet too, although they questioned his amateur status for his relationship with a sporting goods store, not for architecture.
But the others such as Macdonald, Crump, Wilson, Fownes, Thomas, Behr, maybe Hunter etc never took a dime for anything they did in golf course architecture.
They obviously never did because they didn't want to compromise their amateur playing status but they all also seemed to believe a so-called "amateur sportsman" just should not profit from the game in any way. The fact that most of those mentioned were independently wealthy might have had something to do with it too, although that was never mentioned.
But it struck me as significant the extent Alan Wilson went to in his report on the creation of Merion in explaining that the club did not use an "architect"---that they only used "amateurs" (The Merion Construction Committee that included amateur members including Hugh Wilson) and "sportsmen" (referring to Macdonald and Whigam) to design and build their course.
It almost appeared from the tone of Wilson's report that the term "architect" denoted professionalism.
So it's interesting to reflect on exactly what they meant by the term "amateur" or "amateur sportsman" or even the term "architect" in those early days.
One thing they apparently did not mean by the term "amateur" in architecture was someone who necessarily did not have the knowledge or the talent of the professional architects of that time.
Thomas made that pretty clear when he described Hugh Wilson as one of the most talented in architecture in America whether amateur or professional.