Prof. Tom Warren was a faculty member of the Beloit College Department of Education from 1970 to 2001 serving many years as Chairman. During some of these years, he was faculty representative to the Midwest Conference and a member of the football “Chain Gang."
Impressions of Bill Knapton, the golfer
(As of 1.27.20)
I like these words that are on the Beloit College plaque honoring basketball coach Bill Knapton: “A consummate student and teacher . . .” So true, but they don’t just apply to basketball. Bill also was a fine coach and life-long learner of golf. I remember him saying something like, “You can forever benefit from trying to get that little ball into that little hole. Play golf.” Upon leaving Beloit, Bill and Joan retired to The Villages in Florida, a retirement community that claims: “[Here] you’ll enjoy free membership to any of [our golf courses] for life!”
When you play a lot of golf with somebody, as I did with Bill, you get to know that person well: As a swinger of the club. As a competitor. As a sportsman. As a student of the game, and as someone who must react to agonies and ecstasies in the here and now. You get to repeatedly see the moving sculpture that is their swing, and you get to witness their character in action.
Bill’s stance was firm and confident with hands low, grip “strong,” and arms close to his body. His swing was rhythmic, balanced, and shortish throughout, with the club never reaching parallel at the top. A three-quarter follow-through with a little pose finished it off. Bill was not a long hitter, but very straight, and he picked up shots on everyone with his precise, dependable short game.
He maintained a low single-digit handicap for decades and, displaying exceptional skill in separate years, won the Wisconsin Senior Public Links Championship and SWANI title (Southern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois). He was a good and gracious winner as well as a friendly, classy loser, but if things didn’t turn out well, he wanted a chance to get even, soon.
Like in basketball, Bill’s knowledge of golf rules was thorough, but he was not a fanatic who regularly “called somebody” for a trivial violation in a friendly game, like the accidental movement of the ball a fraction of an inch or the tapping down of spike marks. During such times, he practiced the advice spoken by pro Tom Watson: Use common sense. Play the ball as is, and move on.
Bill’s knowledge of professional players worked its way into his learning and teaching. He once pointed out that he thought my hands at address were high, like Nancy Lopez’s. I took it as an example of one golfer informing and perhaps helping another, unlike the gentle gamesmanship that Bill could also dole out: Like “Uh, Tom, didn’t you hit one into the water here the last time we played this hole?” or “You’re hooking the ball quite a bit today. Watch that out-of-bounds on the left.”
The most supportive words I ever heard Bill say to a playing companion were: “You never blame anyone but yourself for a bad shot. You never make excuses. You stay in control. You like this game, don’t you!” These same comments describe Bill whose rounds, like those of any golfer, contained moments of bad shot agony. His behavior during these times were examples of walking the good walk. “Plan your next shot. Envision something positive coming off the face of your club. Do it.” He didn’t need words to deliver this advice. He just did it. On the course, Bill projected a mood of calmness even when experiencing frustration and stress, but he once confided that, “During an important game, I sometimes drink a beer between nines to calm me down.” This surprised me since our golfing forays never included alcohol, and he always appeared calm.
Our conversations on the course were mostly about golf: swing thoughts, fundamentals, strategies, favorite courses, “this” course,” the good players,. . .but once in a while I would bring up something about particular basketball games from the past. Like the quality of play from his whole squad in the triple overtime win at Ripon. Like a particular unexpected conference championship game victory, like the heart-breaking playoff loss to Augustana in Beloit when the Bucs were ranked first in the country. In responding, he impressed me as somebody who valued his players, loved winning, and treasured both of his sports that entailed putting balls into holes.
My life is better because of Bill Knapton: A superb golfing companion. A person of character.
