If the game of golf were to flourish in the wide-open spaces of the state, to grow beyond just a sprinkling of courses in major cities, it needed someone to champion the cause. Granted many had a hand in the crusade, but there was one man in particular, H.L. “Harry Lee” Edwards, whose efforts stood head-and-shoulders above the rest. Often they would lament the fact that there was no place to play in Dallas. Now by this time H.L. was a man of means and knew how to get things done. So he did what any self-respecting golfer would do if he found himself without a club to call home – he built one. He found some land at the corner of Oak Lawn and Lemmon Avenues and built a nine-hole course, the origin of Dallas Country Club.

In addition to being a tireless promoter of the game, H.L. was also an accomplished player. During his 58 years in Dallas, he won many titles but perhaps none more satisfying than the inaugural Texas Golf Association’s State Amateur Championship held from April 19-21, 1906, at the Dallas Country Club. Edwards defeated Frank Lewis, of San Antonio, in the finals earning him the first trophy awarded by the Association he helped establish, on a course he helped found. The State Amateur trophy, presented annually to the winner of the “Championship of Texas for Men,” is named in his honor.

H.L. Edwards passed away in 1947 at the age of ninety-one. There can be little doubt that the “Father of Golf in Texas,” as he would come to be known, would be thrilled his contributions to the game have endured, allowing countless others to enjoy the game he loved so much both through the Texas Golf Association and at the clubs he helped start.

Birthplace: England

Born: 1856

Died: 1947