USGA: Bob Jones Award Capsules

Bob Jones Award Capsules

Presented annually since 1955, the USGA's Bob Jones Award is given in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf. The Association's highest honor seeks to recognize a person who emulates Jones' spirit, his personal qualities and his attitude toward the game and its players.

Recipients have a broad spectrum of the game, from great professionals such as Jack Nicklaus, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Tom Watson, to amateur stalwarts William C. Campbell, Carol Semple Thompson and Michael Bonnallack, to contributors such as past USGA Executive Director Joe Dey, entertainers Bob Hope and Bing Crosby, journalist Herbert Warren Wind and President George H.W. Bush.

Here are capsules of each of the Bob Jones Award winners:

Davis Love III - 2013

A 20-time winner on the PGA Tour, Love is considered one of the great players of his generation. He not only won the 1997 PGA Championship at Winged Foot Golf Club, but also twice captured The Players Championship and was a member of six U.S. Ryder Cup and six Presidents Cup teams. He is a two-time Masters runner-up (1995 and 1999) and finished second at the 1996 U.S. Open at Oakland Hills C.C., a shot behind winner Steve Jones. As an amateur, the former University of North Carolina All-American represented the USA on the 1985 Walker Cup Team, where he gained two key points on Sunday in a 13-11 American win at Pine Valley G.C. In 2012, Love captained the U.S. Ryder Cup team. Off the course, Love earned the USGA International Book Award for Every Shot I Take, a tribute to his late father, Davis Love Jr., a noted teaching professional who qualified for seven U.S. Opens and was invited to two Masters. In 2005, he established the Davis Love Foundation to assist national and community-based programs that work to build a better future for at-risk children.

Annika Sorenstam - 2012

Universally regarded as one of the most dominant female players in the game's history, the Swedish-born Sorenstam earned 90 worldwide victories during a 15-year professional career, including 72 on the LPGA Tour. Those 72 wins included 10 major titles -- three of which came at the U.S. Women's Open (1995, 1996 and 2006) -- and she earned a record eight Rolex LPGA Player-of-the-Year awards, a record-tying eight money titles and six Vare Trophies for the lowest scoring average. She also became the first woman to shoot a 59 in a professional round, achieving the feat at the 2001 Standard Register PING event in Phoenix. Off the golf course, she was named an Ambassador to the USGA in 2008, a role in which she helps the Association make the game more accessible to players of all skill levels. In 2009, she was named a Global Ambassador by the International Golf Federation and she supported the successful effort to have golf added to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. She also dedicates time to her ANNIKA Foundation, which she started in 2007 as a way to teach children the importance of a healthy, active lifestyle through fitness and nutrition. In 2008, Sorenstam stepped away from professional golf to focus on her family and her ANNIKA brand of businesses.

OchoaMugShotJonesAwardCapsules --- Lorena Ochoa plays her tee shot on the fifth hole during

Lorena Ochoa - 2011

Lorena Ochoa retired from the LPGA Tour in her prime at 28 in 2010 to concentrate on her family and foundation in Mexico, which includes a school for underprivileged children in her native Guadalajara. Was the dominant female professional upon her retirement, having claimed LPGA Tour Player of the Year and Vare Trophy honors four consecutive years (2006-2009). In a 30-month span that began in April 2006, she won 21 times, including two major titles. Enjoyed a decorated amateur and college (University of Arizona) career before turning pro in 2002. In 2001 she became the youngest athlete and first golfer to receive Mexico's highest sporting acccolade, the National Sports Award. She became the first Mexican golfer to win a LPGA Tour event in 2004.

Mickey Wright - 2010

Mary Kathryn "Mickey" Wright is considered one of the game's greatest female players. A native of San Diego, Calif., Wright won the 1952 U.S. Girls' Junior before capturing four U.S. Women's Open titles. Wright finished her LPGA career with 82 victories, 13 of which were majors. During a 12-month span between 1961 and 1962, she held all four professional ladies major titles. In 1999, the Associated Press named Wright the Female Golfer of the Century. Her flowing and powerful swing was called one of the best -- for men or women -- by greats Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson. She retired at the age of 34 in 1969 due to health concerns, but came out of retirement several times, including 1973 when she won the Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner's Circle wearing tennis shoes because of a foot ailment.

Gordon Brewer - 2009

Brewer won the USGA Senior Amateur in 194 and '96 and was runner-up in the 1985 U.S. Mid-Amateur. A key figure in Pennsylvania golf as an administrator and volunteer, he was president of the Pennsylvania Golf Association and chairman of the J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust Fund. Brewer was a member of the USGA Executive Committee from 1996 to 2001 and chaired the Implements and Ball Committee. He was on the PGA Board of Directors from 2001 to 2003. He was president of Huntingdon Valley (Pa.) Country Club and of Pine Valley Golf Club in New Jersey.

George H.W. Bush - 2008

Bush, the former United States president, is the descendent from USGA volunteers. His father, Prescott Bush, was USGA president in 1935. It is Bush's grandfather, George H. Walker, USGA president in 1920, that the Walker Cup is named. Throughout his life, Bush has enjoyed golf as an important avocation. He pursued the game vigorously while serving as U.S. president and raised its profile much as did U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower in the 1950s.

Louise Suggs - 2007

A three-time USGA champion, Suggs was a founding member of the LPGA. After capturing three tournaments also open to professionals, the 1946 and '47 Women's Western Open and the 1946 Titleholders, Suggs won the U.S. Women's Amateur in 1947. She won the British Ladies Open Amateur in 1948 and was named to the Curtis Cup team. Suggs turned professional and served as LPGA president three times in an era when the players virtually ran the tour. Her victories in the 1949 and 1952 U.S. Women's Open were among her finest performances.

Jay Haas - 2006

Haas, a nine-time winner on the PGA Tour and a member of three USA Ryder Cup Teams, was a member of the victorious USA Walker Cup Team in 1975. The affable professional played in more than 30 USGA championships, including 26 U.S. Opens. His best finish in the Open was a tie for fourth in 1995. He had three topo-5 finishes and five top-10s. Haas and his son, Bill, were the only father-son duo to compete in the U.S. Open twice (2003 and 2004). Both made the cut in 2004.

Nick Price - 2005

Price won three major championships and more than 40 professional titles worldwide. During the 1990s, he was the best player in the game, winning 15 PGA Tour titles and another 12 times internationally. In 1994, his six victories included the British Open and PGA Championship. In 2002, Price became the first winner of the ASAP Sports/Jim Murray Award from the Golf Writers Association of America for his consistent, thoughtful cooperation and accomodation to the media. That same year he received the Payne Stewart Award from the Tour for his professional conduct and commitment to charties.

Jackie Burke Jr. - 2004

The 1956 Masters and PGA Champion became a noted instructor and philosopher on the game. He had 17 professional victories and won the Vardon Trophy in 1952. He had a 7-1 record in five appearances for the USA in the Ryder Cup Matches. His thousands of pupils included Phil Mickelson and Hal Sutton. With his friend, Jimmy Demaret, Burke founded The Champions Golf Club in Houston. A longtime promoter of adhering to the Rules of Golf, he led the formation of the Southern Texas Amateur Golf Association, with Champions as its first member. The club has hosted more USGA championships (three) than any club in Texas.

Carol Semple Thompson - 2003

Thompson won seven USGA championships, beginning with the 1973 U.S. Women's Amateur. She won four consecutive USGA Senior Women's Amateur titles (1999-2002) and the U.S. Mid-Amateur twice (1990 and '97). She played on a record 12 USA Curtis Cup Teams and twice served as captain (2006 and '08). In addition, she played on the USA Women's World Amateur Team five times. A career amateur, she has competed in more than 100 USGA championships. In 1994, she became the second female to serve on the USGA Executive Committee (1994-2000) and she remains an active volunteer with the Association.

Judy Rankin - 2002

The first woman to win more than $100,000 in one season (1976) in professional golf, Rankin largely retired from the LPG in the late 1970s after 26 official victories and found success as a television golf broadcaster a few years later. In her landmark year of 1976, she was named Player of the Year and won the Vare Trophy for the lowest scoring average after seven tournament wins. She was president of the LPGA in 1977 and '78. In 1996 and 1998, she was captain of the victorious USA Solheim Cup Team.

Thomas Cousins - 2001

Cousins initiated the renovation and rehabilitation of East Lake Golf Course and its surrounding Atlanta neighborhood, saving the historic course and creating a renaissance in a blighted area near the site. His group, The East Lake Community Foundation, a non-profit organization, demolished a crumbling public housing project and built new public housing with an accompanying 18-hole executive golf course.

Barbara McIntire - 2000

McIntire won the U.S. Women's Amateur in 1959 and 1964, and played on six USA Curtis Cup Teams from 1958 through 1972. She was captain of the USA team in 1976 and 1998. In 1964 she was a member of the first USA team for the inaugural Women's World Amateur Team Championship. She is one of only six American players to have won the U.S. and British women's amateur championships. In 1956, she nearly became the first amateur to win the U.S. Women's Open, losing an 18-hole playoff. A longtme USGA volunteer, she was a member of the Association's Women's Committee and was chairman twice.

Edgar Updegraff - 1999

A career amateur, Updegraff played on the USA Walker Cup Team in 1963, '65 and '69, and served as captain in 1975. He competed in the Masters six times in the 1960s. Updegraff was a two-time Western Amateur champion and won the Sunnehanna Amateur, the Southwestern Amateur and the Pacific Coast Amateur. In 1981, he won the USGA Senior Amateur. A former member of the USGA Sectional Affairs Committee, he was a long-time director of the Arizona Golf Association, serving as its president from 1981-82.

Nancy Lopez - 1998

After a stellar amateur careere that included a pair of U.S. Girls' Junior titles (1972 and '74) and a Curtis Cup appearance (1976), Lopez blazed into women's professional golf and nearly carried the entire LPGA Tour on her shoulders. Winning nine tournaments in her rookie year, she captured Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year honors.More importantly, she attracted many new faces to the game, particularly young girls. Lopez's wide smile and friendly manner captivated spectators and media representatives alike and during the 1970s and '80s, she generated new interest in the game.

Fred Brand Jr. - 1997

Brand loved the game throughout his life, from the time he won the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association (WPGA) Junior in 1925 through his years as one of Pennsylvania's top golf administrators. As a director of the WPGA, he jump-started the Caddie Welfare program in 1939. Brand was a longtime member of the WPGA Executive Committee and was president of the Pennsylvania Golf Association in 1961. A former president of Oakmont C.C., he served for many years on the USGA Executive Committee.

Betsy Rawls - 1996

As a player, Rawls captured the U.S. Women's Open four times as well as a total of 55 official LPGA Tour events overall. She was a purist of sorts, and demonstrated an intelligent approach to playing the game. She was, quietly, also one of its leaders. After a long and successful professional career, she became the LPGA's tournament director and strongly influenced the way courses were set up as well as serving as a knowledgeable official on the Rules of Golf. In 1981, she became executive director of the McDonald's LPGA Championship, which distributed $23.8 million in charitable donations.

Herbert Warren Wind - 1995

Wind was one of the most knowledgeable observers of the game and shared his thoughts as a correspondent for Sports Illustrated and The New Yorker, as well as in his many golf books. His volume, "The Story of American Golf," remains the seminal work on golf in the United States, from its origins to the modern-day game. His work as a writer and editor is regarded by many as the best in golf's history and his fairness and keen insights added immeasurably to the great literature of the game. Wind also coined the term "Amen Corner" for Augusta's famous trio of holes (11-13).

Lewis Oehmig - 1994

A career amateur who won a number of championships, Oehmig really came into his own as a senior golfer. He won the USGA Senior Amateur three times in a 13-year span from 1972 through 1985, also winning in 1976. His most memorable victory was in the 1985 Senior Amateur when he defeated Dallas resident Ed Hopkins in the final, a win that took 20 holes. Oehmig was 69 years old at the time, the oldest Senior Amateur champion. His three wins established a record for most championships won in the Senior Amateur.

P.J. Boatwright Jr. - 1993

As an administrator, Boatwright was part of the USGA staff from 1959 until his death in 1991. In a variety of roles, at one time or another Boatwright dealt with nearly every phase of USGA work. He ran championships, became the USGA's in-house Rules of Amateur Status expert, oversaw handicapping and dealt with implements and ball issues. From 1969, P.J. was the person most responsible for the conduct of the U.S. Open. Overshadowing all of his many accomplishments, he was considered the ultimate authority on the Rules of Golf.

Gene Sarazen - 1992

One of the major figures in golf history, the colorful Sarazen was the first to win all four professional majors, the U.S. and British Open, Masters and PGA Championship, during his career. He helped spread the word about golf throughout the world on his many exhibition tours and he developed the sand wedge. He produced a number of provocative ideas and opinions that delighted golf reporters and columnists everywhere. After his successful playing career, he became co-host of Shell's Wonderful World of Golf, a popular television program that took the great players to the world's greatest courses.

Ben Crenshaw - 1991

Crenshaw's gentle manner and great sportsmanship masked his strong competitive instincts, but the two-time Masters champion became one of golf's most beloved professional players. The Texas native, with his local rival, Tom Kite, dominated collegiate golf under the watchful eye off their mentor, Harvey Penick, from the University of Texas. Crenshaw was an immediate success on the PGA Tour, winning his first event. He also is an esteemed golf historian and proponent of saving and reviving courses designed by golf course architect Donald Ross.

Peggy Kirk Bell - 1990

Bell was a noted amateur before turning professional in the early days of the LPGA Tour. While she experienced some success as a player, she soon retired to raise her three children and with her husband, Bullet Bell, owned and operated the Pine Needles Country Club and Resort in North Carolina. Pine Needles became a virtual hangout for dedicated golfers and the Bells were largely responsible for the spirit of the place. Peggy Kirk Bell became one of the foremost instructors in the game. Honored many times for her contributions to golf instruction, she taught well into her 80s.

Chi Chi Rodriguez - 1989

Rodriguez had a poor background in Puerto Rico but golf elevated him into a new life. He turned professional in 1960 and had eight wins on the PGA Tour, including the 1964 Western Open. While he never won a major championship, he was much beloved by golf fans and his colorful personality shone on the course. After his financial success, Rodriguez started the Chi Chi Rodriguez Youth Foundation, the first of its kind connected with a golfer. at his facility in Clearwater, Fla., he promoted activities for abused and neglected children.

Isaac B. Grainger - 1988

A longtime expert on the Rules of Golf, Grainger served for many years on the USGA Executive Committee and was USGA president in 1954 and '55. He served as chairman of the Rules of Golf Committee and was the longtime vice chair of the Augusta National Rules Committee. Grainger was a former president of the Metropolitan Golf Association and has a USGA award named in his honor, given to USGA volunteers who have 25 years of service to the Association.

Tom Watson - 1987

A fine player for a long time, Watson experienced brilliant success in the British Open, winning five, but could not get his game to peak in the U.S. Open. Finally, in 1982 at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links, he was in a vaunted duel with four-time champion Jack Nicklaus. On the par-3 17th hole, Watson holed a miraculous chip for a birdie from high greenside rough to take the lead. Watson birdie at the 72nd hole secured a two-stroke win and gave him a prized victory over Nicklaus.

Jess Sweetser - 1986

The 1922 U.S. Amateur champion played in the golden age of American amateur golf, facing such great players as Bob Jones, Chick Evans, Bob Gardner, Francis Ouimet and Jess Guilford. He defeated Evans, 3 and 2, to win the 1922 Amateur and was runner-up to Max Marston in 1923. Sweetser played on six USA Walker Cup Teams, from the inaugural Match in 1922 to the 1932 team, and served as Walker Cup captain in 1967.

Fuzzy Zoeller - 1985

Zoeller won the 1984 U.S. Open at Winged Foot and was largely honored with the Bob Jones Award for demonstrating the fun of the game. At Winged Foot, he played behind Greg Norman, who was finishing the 72nd hole with a lead-tying score of 276. The lead Norman was tying belonged to Zoeller, who stood in the 18th fairway waving a white towel when Norman turned to look Zoeller's towel wasn't really a flag of surrender -- he won the 18-hole playoff with Norman the following day, 67 to 75.

R. Jay Sigel - 1984

Sigel epitomized the amateur golfer and during his long career he played on a record nine USA Walker Cup Teams. He won the U.S. Amateur in 1982 and repeated the feat in 1983. One of the first premier "mid-amateurs," Sigel won the 1983 U.S. Mid-Amateur. Not long after receiving the Bob Jones Award, he won the Mid-Amateur again in 1985 and '87 before turning pro at 50 to play on the Champions Tour..

Maureen Ruttle Garrett - 1983

Garrett was a cheerful, gracious Englishwoman who was instrumental in building bridges between her fellow countrywomen and female amateurs in the U.S. A former Great Britain & Ireland Curtis Cup player, she was captain of the GB&I side's 1960 squad when the Match was contested in England. Although her team lost, 6.5-2.5, Garrett promoted friendship, becoming the first captain to her her team dine with the American team. Her efforts to entertain American visitors and her appearances in the country demonstrated her continuing generous spirit.

William J. Patton - 1982

A lifelong amateur, Patton nearly won the 1954 Masters in his first appearance. In the thick of the fight, he suffered a double bogey at the par-5 13th hole when he tried to reach the green in two shots and hit his ball into Rae's Creek. He finished one stroke out of a playoff with Ben Hogan and Sam Snead for the title. Patton was a former North & South Amateur and Southern Amateur champion. He played on five USA Walker Cup Teams, from 1955 through 1965.

JoAnne Gunderson Carner - 1981

The colorful Carner first made her mark as one of the finest American amateurs of all time, winning the U.S. Women's Amateur five times and playing on four USA Curtis Cup Teams. She also won the 1956 U.S. Girls' Junior. After she won an LPGA tournament as an amateur in 1969, Carner turned professional and soon established herself as one of that tour's great champions. She won the U.S. Women's Open twice, making her the only player in women's history to win the Girls' Junior, Women's Amateur and Women's Open. Tiger Woods has equaled the feat on the men's side. Booming drives incredible distances, displaying a go-for-broke playing style and joking her way through tournament rounds, she was a great favorite of galleries and helped popularize the game.

Charlie Yates - 1980

Yates grew up at East Lake G.C. in Atlanta, where he was befriended by his hero, Bob Jones. Jones' great sportsmanship remained an influence on Yates throughout his life. A fine amateur, Yates won the Georgia Amateur in 1931 and '32, and was the individual NCAA champion in 1934. He won the 1938 British Amateur, like his hero Jones had done eight years before. Selected to play on the USA Walker Cup Team in 1936 and '38, he served as captain in 1953. He earned an invitatioin to the Masters 11 times and was low amateur on three occasions.

Tom Kite - 1979

Kite and his lifelong friendly rival, Ben Crenshaw, tied for the 1972 NCAA championship when Kite, like Crenshaw, was a student at the University of Texas. Also like Crenshaw, he was a longtime pupil of famed instructor Harvey Penick. Kite turned professional later in 1972 and over the years won 19 PGA Tour events. He won the 1992 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach and was a member of seven USA Ryder Cup Teams. In 1980 and '81, he won the Vardon Trophy for lowest scoring average and in 1989 was named Player of the Year.

Bing Crosby and Bob Hope - 1978

The two renowned show business partners pursued golf all over the world and attracted millions of new fans to the game in their comedic golf matches. During World War II, they raised millions of dollars in exhibition matches in support of war bonds. Crosby also served on the PGA Advisory Committee and his love for golf led him to sponsor the Bing Crosby National Pro-Am, first at Rancho Santa Fe (Calif.) Golf Club and then at Pebble Beach, while Hope sponsored the annual Bob Hope Desert Classic in Palm Springs, Calif.

Joseph C. Dey Jr. - 1977

In a ceremonial sense and in a practical sense, Dey represented the game on all fronts for more than 40 years. He became executive director of the USGA in 1934 and was one of the foremost Rules officials in golf. He was instrumental in encouraging the USGA and R&A to adopt a uniform code of rules, which it did in 1951, and in establishing the first international championship, the World Amateur Team Championship. In 1969, Dey was named the Commissioner of the Tournament Players Division of the PGA, helping the players resolve differences with the PGA of America. In 1975, he was elected captain of the R&A.

Ben Hogan - 1976

One of only five golfers to have won the U.S. Open, British Open, Masters and PGA Championship during a career. Hogan won a record-tying four U.S. Open titles. His most memorable may have come at Merion in 1950, not long after recovering from major injuries suffered in a car accident that happened at the peak of his career. Hogan's courage prompted the Golf Writers Associatioin of America to name the Ben Hogan Award after him, honoring great comebacks from illness and injury. His knowledge of the game was respected by everyone and his book, "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf," became a classic.

Jack Nicklaus - 1975

Four-time U.S. Open winner Jack Nicklaus is considered not only the premier player of his era, but perhaps of all time. After winning the U.S. Amateur twice (1959 and '61) and Nicklaus took the PGA Tour by the throat, winning the 1962 U.S. Open in his rookie season, beating Arnold Palmer in an 18-hole playoff at Oakmont Country Club near Pittsburgh. He registered a record 18 major titles, including his improbable 1986 Masters triumph at 46. His power of the tee was awesome and his superb putting, particularly when finishing off a championship run, was famous. After retiring, he began a second career as a golf course architect and has received high praise for many of his designs.

Byron Nelson - 1974

Nelson is famous for his fabulous 1945 season, when he won 18 tournaments on the PGA Tour, including an astounding 11 in a row. Those records have never been broken. Nelson was one of the great players in golf history. He was twice named the Associated Press Athlete of the Year and went 113 tournaments finishing "in the money." A noted instrucctor after he retired from competition at the age of 34, Nelson was noted for affability and generosity of spirit. He became a respected television commentator and a PGA tournament bearing his name in the Dallas area has raised millions for charity.

Gene Littler - 1973

Littler was almost as good as an amateur as he was as a professional. In 1953, he won the U.S. Amateur and was a member of the USA Walker Cup Team. In 1954, still an amateur, he won a professional tournament and finished second to Ed Furgol at the U.S. Open. He turned professional later that year and would win 29 official tour events, including the 1961 U.S. Open, his only major title. The quiet, soft-spoken Littler was a member of the USA Ryder Cup seven times.

Michael Bonallack - 1972

A lifelong amateur, Bonallack won the English Amateur and the British Amateur five times each. He was a member of nine Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup Teams. Low amateur at the British Open in 1968 and '71, he later turned to golf administration. After receiving the Bob Jones Award, Bonallack became secretary of the R&A in 1984 and served until 1999. In 2000, he was named captain of the R&A.

Arnold Palmer - 1971
Perhaps no one did more to popularize golf, beginning in the 1960s, than Arnold Palmer. Palmer breathed life into the game, attracting millions of new fans as he slashed his way to major championships on television. At his height, his fame was awesome. A pleasant, courteous player, he influenced young golfers to emulate his gracious manner. His victory in the 1954 U.S. Amateur was the beginning of his championship victories. His multiple victories at the Masters and his come-from-behind win in the 1960 U.S. Open with a a sparkling final-round 65 sealed his fame.

Roberto de Vicenzo - 1970

An esteemed South American player who won the 1967 British Open, de Vicenzo appeared to take the golf world by storm when he seemed to have shot the low score to win the 1968 Masters. In his excitement at Augusta National Golf Club, de Vicenzo signed for a wrong score on one hole and lost to Bob Goalby by one stroke. De Vicenzo remained philosophical about his grreat mistake, taking full blame, and never disputed the ruling. He later won the inaugural U.S. Senior Open in 1980.

Gerald H. Micklem - 1969

Micklem, of England, made contributions to the golf world for 35 years. A fine amateur, he won the British Amateur in 1947 and 1953 and was appointed to the Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup Team in 1947, 1949, 1953 and 1955. He held a number of voluntary golf positions and was captain of the R&A in 1968-69. Micklem served as president of the English Golf Union in 1965-66 and was president of the European Golf Association in 1967-69.

Robert B. Dickson - 1968

In 1967, two years after he had suffered a one-stroke defeat in the U.S. Amateur at the hands of Bob Murphy, Dickson was victorious. In 1965, Dickson suffered a four-stroke penalty without complaint. a 15th club, which did not belong to him, was found in his bag after two holes. The Amateur was then conducted at stroke play. Finally, in 1967, Dickson had his day. He finished 72 holes at 285 to win the Amateur by one stroke over Vinny Giles. Dickson also won the British Amateur in 1967, the first player since Lawson Little in 1934 and '35 to hold both titles.

Richard S. Tufts - 1967

An acknowledged expert on the Rules of Golf, Tufts wrote several books, among them the much-admired "Principles Behind the Rules of Golf." The owner of the Pinehurst Resort, Tufts became USGA president in 1956 and served for two years. During his term, with Executive Director Joseph C. Dey, Tufts formulated the first standards of course setup for USGA championships.

Gary Player - 1966

Player traveled millions of miles throughout the world playing international golf circuits and was rewarded with nine major championships. After winning the U.S. Open in 1965, the South African donated part of the winner's purse to cancer research -- his mother died of cancer when he was eight years old -- and $25,000, a significant sum at that time, to the USGA for the furthering of junior golf. Player is one of five golfers to have won all four of golf's professional major championships, the U.S. Open, the British Open, Masters and PGA Championships.

Glenna Collett Vare - 1965

The first true female American golf star, Vare won a record six U.S. Women's Amateur titles in the era before women's professional golf was established. She epitomized amateur golf during the 1920s and '30s and was known as the "female Bobby Jones." She virtually had a lock on the title in any championship she entered and was noted for her sportsmanship and speedy pace of play. Her only failure was that she never defeated British great, Joyce Wethered, in individual competition. Their final match in the 1929 Ladies Open Amateur is legendary, although Vare lost.

Charles Coe - 1964

Coe was one of the great amateurs. He played on six USA Walker Cup Teams between 1949 and 1963 and was playing captain in 1959. He was captain of a seventh team in 1957. Coe won the U.S. Amateure in 1958 and was the victim of champion Jack Nicklaus in the final match in 1959. He won the 1950 Western Amateur and won the Trans-Mississippi Championship four times. In 1961, Coe finished just one stroke behind winner Gary Player at the Masters.

Patty Berg - 1963

One of the foremost players in history, she won 38 important amateur titles as well as a record 15 major professional titles, including the first U.S. Women's Open in 1946 (match play). Berg was a great showman and gave golf clinics sponsored by Wilson Sporting Goods throughout the U.S. and Japan, making thousands of new friends for the game. She had great wit, a strong personality and was a driving force behind the establishment of the new LPGA Tour, serving as the circuit's first president. Her clinics and public appearances well into her 80s delighted generations of fans.

Horton Smith - 1962

Smith was the first Masters champion, winning in 1934 and again in 1936. The PGA Tour was founded in 1934 and Smith was one of its first leading players, topping the money list in 1936. He won 32 official professional titles, the last in 1944, and was a member of five USA Ryder Cup Teams. Smith played in every Masters from 1934 until his death, a year after receiving the Bob Jones Award.

Joseph B. Carr - 1961

A lifelong amateur from Ireland, Carr played on 11 Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup Teams, including 1967 as a playing captain. But he never was on a winning side. He won the Irish Amateur four times, the Irish Closed six times and the British Amateur three times. A one-time semifinalist in the U.S. Amateur, he was invited to three Masters and twice made the cut. One of the most esteemed sportsmen of his day, Carr was a former captain of the R&A.

Chick Evans - 1960

One of America's great amateurs, Evans won the U.S. Open and the U.S. Amateur twice, the French Amateur, the Western Open and eight Western Amateurs, among other titles. In 1916, he became the first player to sweep the U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur. During World War I he played a number of exhibition matches to benefit the Red Cross. When he received $14,000 for making phonograph records of golf instruction, he could not keep the money and remain an amateur. He turned the money over to the Western Golf Association to provide scholarships for caddies, the beginning of the Evans Scholars Foundation, which is still in existence.

Findlay S. Douglas - 1959

Douglas, a Scottish amateur, won the 1898 U.S. Amateur and served as president of the USGA in 1929 and 1930. As USGA president, he presented Bob Jones with both the U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur trophies during the course of Jones' famed Grand Slam in 1930. Douglas' 1898 U.S. Amateur victory made him the last Scot to win the Amateur until 2006 when Richie Ramsay prevailed. He also lost in the finals of the championship in 1899 and 1900. He was president of the Metropolitan Golf Association in 1922-24.

Margaret Curtis - 1958

A towering figure in women's amateur golf, the three-time U.S. Women's Amateur chanmpion (1907, 1911-12), traveled with her sister Harriot, the 1906 U.S. Women's Amateur champion, to Great Britain where they played with a number of fine British amateurs. their trips inspired the sisters to seek an international competition among the top women amateuers. Their efforts resulted in the founding of the Curtis Cup Match, which began in 1932. Margaret Curtis was a heroine of World War I as she devoted herself to the efforts of the International Red Cross to bring relief to European victims of the war.

Mildred D. Zaharias - 1957

Of all golfers, Zaharas was closest to being a myth. Her superior athleticism made her a track star in the 1932 Olympics before she became a champion golfer. Her achievements in golf, however, including three U.S. Women's Open titles, brought her lasting fame. Her powerful game, flamboyant personality and showmanship drew record crowds and helped solidify the budding LPGA Tour in the 1950s. Too soon, her life came to an end after a heroic battle with colon cancer and she died on Sept. 27, 1956, after spending the last years of her life raising money to fight the disease. Nicknamed the Babe, Zaharias also won a U.S. Women's Amateur title in 1946.

William C. Campbell - 1956

One of the great gentlemen of the game, Campbell personified sportsmanship. He achieved fine success in his amateur career and in 1964, eight years after receiving the Bob Jones Award, Campbell won the U.S. Amateur. In 1979 and '80, he captured the USGA Senior Amateur and he was the runner-up in the inaugural U.S. Senior Open in 1980. He played on eight USA Walker Cup Teams. A longtime member of the USGA Executive Committee, Campbell served as president in 1982-83. He was only the second American, after Francis Ouimet, to be named captain of the R&A.

Francis Ouimet - 1955

A little-known amateur before the 1913 U.S. Open, Ouimet became America's first golfing hero when he defeated Harry Vardon and Ted Ray, the English professional stars of the era, in an 18-hole playoff at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass., and proved that golf was a game for the common man. Ouimet was a former caddie of modest means, but his victory thrust him into the limelight, a role he handled graciously. He represented the USA, either as a player or captain, on every Walker Cup Team from 1921 through 1949. In 1951, he was elected the first American to captain the R&A. He also won the 1914 and 1931 U.S. Amateur titles.

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