Hall of Fame golfer Walter Hagen is one of many athletes and celebrities that played on the Jungle Country Club course. In 1924, he became president of the nearby Bear Creek Golf and Country Club. He moved into a Mediterranean-style villa at 320 Park Street South, less than a mile from the Jungle Hotel.
"Walter Hagen contributed more to golf than any player today or ever. He took the game all over the world. He popularized it here and everywhere. Walter was at the head of the class... [he] should not be forgotten. What golf ought to do is build a monument to that man."
‒ Golf legend Gene Sarazen quoted in Sports Illustrated
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| Hall of Fame golfers Gene Sarazen and Walter Hagen (colorized) |
Here on the west coast of St. Petersburg, it seems that Walter Hagen has been forgotten. His 1925 Mediterranean-style home is now known as Tony Little's house. Little is the superstar pitchman for fitness equipment on the Home Shopping Network which is based in St. Petersburg. He sold the property a few years back. I spoke with the current owner and she hadn't heard of Walter Hagen, but she and her husband know Tony Little personally. She told me that at one time there was a mural inside the house of Little in the nude, but it was removed by a previous owner. A neighbor who knew Little said the mural was in a bathroom shower area. I've been searching for a picture of it and will publish if I can find it. Maybe it was something like this, with some nudity added:
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| Tony Little |
Pasadena-on-the-Gulf Opportunity Was "The Dream of My Life"
By the early 1920's, Hagen was an established golf champion. While wintering in St. Petersburg, he was approached by Jack Taylor, the flamboyant, high-rolling developer of Pasadena-on-the-Gulf. Taylor planned on building a golf course and creating a "splendid aristocratic resort community." Hagen was offered $30,000/year to be the president of the country club, to help design the course, and to represent the club in tournaments.
Stephen Lowe ‒ author of Sir Walter and Mr. Jones: Walter Hagen, Bobby Jones, and the Rise of American Golf ‒ writes: Hagen characterized the project as the "dream of my life." "This being the first time that I have had a finger in the pie," he went on, "I hope to make the most of it." Pasadena-on-the-Gulf and the Spanish villa-style home that the Hagens occupied were indeed a long way from the old homestead in Corbett's Glen [New York].
Hagen's home on Park Street was less than a mile from the Jungle Country Club, so he was quite familiar with the course. There wasn't a sense of competition between the country clubs ‒ it was thought that the two west coast golf courses would have a synergistic effect in luring golfers to St. Petersburg. In fact, the Jungle club loaned tractors and other equipment for the new Pasadena course construction.
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| The Walter Hagen home: 320 Park Street South. Photo: Steve of the Jungle |
The home has been remodeled and expanded since Hagen moved out. Tony Little purchased the property at a time when his exercise equipment empire was thriving. A neighbor relates this story: a friend of Little's suggested that the house was not very big for someone of his wealth and status, so he bought the house next door (once owned by Dixie Hollins) and connected the two homes with a ballroom, then added an outdoor racquetball court on the new property.
Publisher's note: Dixie Hollins was active in civic affairs. He was the first Superintendent of the Pinellas County School District and was influential in municipal financing. Hollins was owner of the Pasadena Golf Course during the Depression. Dixie Hollins High School (now Hollins High School) is named for him.
Coincidentally, Tony Little began lifting weights as a student at Dixie Hollins High School. He would go on to win bodybuilding championships including Mr. St. Petersburg, Mr. Florida and Mr. Junior America. He might have won the Mr. America championship, if not for a Pinellas County school bus that plowed into his car and altered his life.
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| Tony Little, 1978. St. Petersburg Times |
For more photos of the opulent 5 Bedroom, 9 Bath, 10,291 square foot mansion, visit realtor.com and page down to the property history section.
There is a virtual tour here.
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| When Tony Little lived here, the exterior color was terracotta. |
The Bear Creek golf course was completed on schedule in early 1925, but the Florida land boom collapsed in late 1926. Jack Taylor abandoned his Pasadena sales office and laid off the staff. Hagen moved out of the house on Park Street, but continued as president of the country club. In 1927, Hagen and his wife occupied a suite at the Sunset Hotel on Park Street and Central Avenue.
In March of 1929, Hagen scored a record 64 on the Jungle course in a well-publicized match that included top golfers Gene Sarazen, Johnny Farrell and Leo Diegel.
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| St. Petersburg Times Mar 3 1929 |
Notable Quotes
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| You can do it! ‒ Tony Little |
Which one of you is going to be runner-up?
‒ Walter Hagen to the golfers competing against him.
Walter Hagen was to golf what Babe Ruth was to baseball. The first professional golfer to make his living playing the game rather than teaching it, Hagen won eleven major professional tournaments over his long career -- two U.S. Opens, four British Opens, and five PGA Championships (including an amazing streak of four consecutive PGA wins) -- a record surpassed only by Jack Nicklaus.
‒ Tom Clavin, author of Sir Walter: Walter Hagen and the Invention of Professional Golf.
Walter Hagen and Babe Ruth
Walter Hagen often played golf with another "west coast" superstar.
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| John Montague, Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Walter Hagen. |
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| Scorecard signed Walter Hagen (bottom) and Babe Ruth (along left side). |
Walter Hagen on Film
1922: Walter Hagen becomes the first American winner of The Open.
How Walter Hagen Ruined My Golf Game
In my youth I played a lot of golf, but I was never very good. I played with a mismatched set of clubs found in my attic. I added some clubs from thrift stores and garage sales. Some of the clubs were "Walter Hagen" brand. I didn't know anything about Walter Hagen. I recently discovered that some Walter Hagen clubs were manufactured in the heat and humidity of Longwood, Florida and the club shafts tended to contract when shipped to northern climes. This caused the clubs to be unbalanced and sometimes break apart. That explains why I was such a lousy golfer.
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| Steve of the Jungle in 1975 |
Thanks to Zachary Heath of the St. Petersburg Library System for his assistance in researching the St. Petersburg city directories.
1978 photo of Tony Little appeared in "The Gospel of Tony Little," Tampa Bay Times 12/11/2011.
