The Seaview course was also originally supposed to open in early 1914. In fact, in December 1913 Tillinghast reported;
"The new Sea View course,at Absecon is coming on beautifully. The fall seeding has been blessed with fortunate weather condition and greens and fairways already are beautifully green. Here is another course that I must inspect carefully before attempting a critical review (like he did with Merion East in early 1913, comments mine)."
Mr. Clarence H. Geist, the president, announces plans for a palatial club house, a feature which golfers at the Atlantic City shore will appreciate."
However, exactly one year later, and likely delayed due to the problems of dealing with using fill from the bay, Tilinghast again reported;
"The new course at Sea View Club is coming along beautifully and Mr. C.H. Geist announces that there will be a formal opening sometime soon after the holidays and without doubt the occasion will be a memorable one."
"Mr. Geist was seriously indisposed for nearly five weeks but as soon as his physician permitted him to leave the house he went immediately to the club and began preparations for this opening."
A month later, Tillinghast reported;
"Mr. Clarence H. Geist, president of the Seaview Golf Club, at Absecon,N. J., likes to do things on a generous scale. He announces a winter tournament for the opening of the new course, and the trophy which the president offers for the first flight is an unusually fine one. The tournament, a strictly invitation event, is scheduled to begin on Monday, January 11, and it continues through four days. But on the preceding Saturday, January 9, the course really will be formally opened by the playing of a four-ball match over thirty-six holes."
The course had a "soft opening" in summer/fall of 1914 to members, but due to construction issues and then Geist's illness, the course didn't have their Grand Opening until the January 1915 tournament.
We also now know for certain that Hugh Wilson had other things going on by 1913/14. Specifically, he had been asked by Ellis Gimbel to work on revamping Philmont with greens chairman Henry Strouse. He was on a committee appointed by Robert Lesley, Ellis Gimbel, and Clarence Geist (and two others) to locate appropriate sites for Philadelphia's first and long anticipated public course. He was also working with Ab Smith and J.Franklin Meehan on the new 18 hole course for North Hills.
But, we've recently also had confirmation that Hugh Wilson and his friends had not only located the site for the Cobb's Creek course, but had already designed it in 1914, prior to the approval by the city!
This January 1915 article already describes the course that had already been designed.
This was confirmed in another January 1915 article which states;
"Robert W. Lesley, president, stated on behalf of the Committee on the Park Golf Course, that
he had seen plans for an eighteen hole public golf course prepared as the result of many consultations with himself and other golf experts laid out at the northwestern end of Cobb's Creek Park..."
"He added further that he is assured that work on the preparation of the course will be begun as soon as the weather permits in the spring. The new links will be of championship length and character and will give Philadelphia a public course second to none in the United States."
to be continued...