Watts Cookin'
by Joe Watts
Joe Watts is the executive director of the Utah Golf Association

Summer - August - 07
Gratitude Is Ken Cromwell’s Legacy

The first two honorees were Dean Candland, long time professional at Logan Golf and Country Club, and Tommy Williams, a graceful playing pro for nearly 50 years on the Utah professional circuit.

This year the tournament was named after Ken Cromwell, one of Utah’s most loved players.

In 1996, when he became a senior at the age of 55, he was named the overall, not just senior, UGA Player of the Year. That year he won three events with the younger guys, and three senior events, including the UGA’s two majors, the Senior Match Play and the Senior Amateur. He also qualified for the British Senior Am and finished tied for 10th in Scotland.

Beginning that year he went on a winning streak that will probably never be matched again. He won eight straight UGA and USGA senior events, including all three UGA Senior Amateurs, two Senior Match Play titles, and three USGA Senior Amateur qualifiers. In the USGA Senior Amateur at Prairie Dunes he qualified for match play and advanced to the quarterfinals before losing.

After turning 50 he became eligible for the U.S. Senior Open and he qualified and played in four Senior Opens, at Ridgewood CC in New Jersey, at Cherry Hills in Denver, Olympia Fields in Chicago, and Saucon Valley in Pennsylvania, with the highlight coming when he made the cut at Cherry Hills.

When he was in his prime he advanced to match play in the Utah State Amateur five years in a row from 1974 through 1978, and from 1974 through 1986 made match play 10 out of the 12 years. Reaching match play at the State Am has become a special plateau of achievement.

At the State Am he advanced to the finals, the semifinals, and the quarterfinals. In 1974 he was runner-up to Don Branca at Alpine. All totaled he won 11 matches at the State Am including wins over notables Doug Bybee and current tour star Dean Wilson when he played at BYU.

He has played in nearly every golf tournament offered in every city in Utah and made fast friends with professionals and amateurs throughout the state. He won many of those individual and four-ball tournaments, too many to enumerate. He played in many four-ball events with Rob Despain amd Jeff Hoye as his playing partners.

One of his many highlights was shooting a 60 at The Barn, missing putts on the last two holes that would have given him a 59.

One of his most notable wins was the UGA Mid-Am and Masters championship in 1994.

He has represented Utah in three Pacific Coast Amateur championships and made the team for the Utah/Arizona Shootout on three occasions, twice in the at-large division and once as a senior.

The Utah Section of the PGA, in recognition of his support of the section, gave him their annual Amateur of the Year Award in 1990.

He played in a PGA Senior Tour event when he was given a sponsor’s exemption to play in the Showdown at Park Meadows.

He turned professional and enrolled in the PGA of America Apprentice Program. During that period he won the Senior Division of the Idaho Open and the Nevada Open, and won the Utah Section PGA Senior Match Play title.

Ken was born in Trenton, New Jersey on May 7, 1939, the son of Kenneth and Mildred Cromwell. He has two older sisters, Elizabeth Cullen and Martha Lawlor.

He was an outstanding athlete at Solebury High School and Trinity College, competing in basketball, football, baseball, and golf. He averaged 31 points per game in his final prep hoop year, batted .454 in baseball at Trinity, and was captain of all the teams.

His athletic career has been diminished a bit by injuries. He quit football and turned to golf because of a knee injury that required surgery. At the State Am finals against Branca the match was delayed for nearly a half hour as he suffered an erratic heart beat that required attention. In his later years he has suffered from a muscle disease that has inhibited his golf swing, but he fights through all these problems with a smile.

He’s a big hunk of a man and he needs to be in order to contain that big, soft, mushy heart. He is Utah’s Golfing Gentleman.

As one watches him play golf it is a joyous experience. One notices the focus, the determination, the desire for perfection, and yet, one must ask “how does he maintain that focus?” He plays so unselfishly, so considerate of everyone in the group, and even in the other fairway. He is constantly being distracted by friends saying hello, but he’s always got time to pay full attention to them. He somehow remains focused without being oblivious to the needs of his fellow competitor.

He speaks with a strong, yet quiet voice, an assurance. And what does he say? The words he speaks the most often are ‘Thank You”. He says it so often that one could say it is just a reflex, a habit, except that it is so obviously genuine. He is truly appreciative and grateful for every small thing, and he is never remiss to express it. After all is said and done “gratitude” is the trait that defines him.

Joe Watts is the executive director of the Utah Golf Association and a frequent contributor to Fairways.