Legendary Amateur Charlie Seaver Dies


October 25, 2004

Legendary amateur golfer Charles Seaver, who competed on the 1932 USA Walker Cup squad and is the father of Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver, died Monday morning at his home in Pebble Beach, Calif., following a short illness. He was 93 years old.

Seaver went 2-0 in the 1932 Walker Cup, winning one singles match and one foursomes match as the USA posted an 8-1 victory over Great Britain and Ireland at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass.

Two years earlier, Seaver lost in the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur to Gene Homans, 1 up. Homans would go on to lose to Bobby Jones in the final at Merion Golf Club as Jones completed his quest to win all four major golf championships (U.S. Open, British Open, U.S. Amateur and British Amateur) in one year.

"I got to play Bobby Jones three times," recalled Seaver decades later, "but not the most important time."

Seaver is one of two players to hold the California Amateur, Northern California Golf Association (NCGA) Amateur and Southern California Golf Association (SCGA) Amateur titles at the same time. He won the 1933 state and NCGA titles and the 1934 SCGA Amateur. Because of the timing of the events, he held all three trophies simultaneously. George Von Elm won all three titles in 1925.

Born in Kansas City, Mo., in 1911, Seaver moved to California with his parents in 1912. His father, Everett, was a fine amateur player in his own right, winning the 1908 Trans-Mississippi Amateur and 1920 SCGA Amateur. Charles Seaver entered his first tournament at the age of 9 (with a 30 handicap) and captured The Los Angeles Country Club Invitational at 15.

Seaver also won the Fresno City title six times in the 1940s and he also won the 1949 Northern California Open. He played 39 times in the Bing Crosby National Pro-Am (known now as the AT&T National Pro-Am) at Pebble Beach, winning the team title in 1964 with pro Mike Fetchick.

In 1998, the SCGA and NCGA began the biennial Seaver Cup competition, an event pitting the state's top amateurs, naming the permanent trophy in Seaver's honor. The fourth set of matches are scheduled Nov. 2-3 at Ojai Valley Inn & Spa.