It is the Tayside hotel that has taken its place in golfing folklore.
Forget a room with a view — it was a room with a bath that US golfing hero Ben Hogan was after when he arrived in Tayside in 1953.
As the clock ticks on the return of The Open to Carnoustie in July, staff at Taypark House in Dundee have been rekindling memories of their famous visitor 65 years ago.
Hogan travelled to Angus as the shortest priced favourite ever at 6/4 after his successes earlier that season in the Masters at Augusta and the US Open at Oakmont.
He arrived at Carnoustie two weeks early to practice but he almost went straight back to America when he discovered there was no en-suite bathroom in his room at the Bruce Hotel in Carnoustie.
Hogan and his wife survived a head-on collision with a Greyhound bus in 1949 outside El Paso and he struggled to walk following the accident.
He knew that if he couldn’t soak his injured legs in a bath every night he wouldn’t be able to complete the championship.
As luck would have it, a room with a bath was available in Dundee at Taypark House which at the time was cash register-makers NCR’s private guest house.
The staff took him to their hearts, pooling their ration coupons to ensure he had a steak the night before the final round and putting good luck trinkets in his golf bag.
The company even gave Hogan a chauffeur to drive him to the course each day.
Richie Hawkins, owner of the Taypark House, said: “We are incredibly proud that Taypark House has a place in Open history thanks to Mr Hogan’s visit in 1953.
“It’s an incredible story to revisit ahead of this year’s Open where fans will have the chance to stay here during the tournament just like Mr Hogan did when he won 65 years ago.”
Dundee West End Lib Dem councillor Fraser Macpherson said: “Ben Hogan was generally considered one of the greatest players in the history of golf, so it is fantastic to learn about this heart-warming story and of the West End’s role in Hogan’s 1953 Open Championship win.
“It is also wonderful that the story of the role of the Taypark hotel is getting retold ahead of this year’s championship at Carnoustie.”
By way of a thank you, Hogan gave a clinic for the NCR employees at their factory and an inscribed watch to his driver.
