Billy Casper

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Billy Casper
Billy Casper and Brian Bateman.jpg
Billy Casper (left)
Personnel
Nation: United StatesUnited States United States
Career data
Professional since: 1952
Tournament wins: 69
Major wins : 3
Awards: PGA Player of the Year (1966, 1970)
World Golf Hall of Fame (1978)

William Earl "Billy" Casper (born June 24, 1931 in San Diego , California - † February 7, 2015 in Springville , Utah ) was an American professional golfer . His extremely efficient way of playing and his quiet nature stood in contrast to his more famous contemporaries, the Big Three ( Arnold Palmer , Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player ). Perhaps because of this, he is the most neglected figure in the history of professional golf.

career

After studying for a year at the University of Notre Dame , Casper joined the PGA Tour in 1954. Two years later he won his first tournament, the Labatt Open. In his remarkable career, Casper won 51 tournaments, including three majors, on the North American PGA TOUR between 1956 and 1975 . This makes him seventh in the list of most victories in PGA tours. Between 1964 and 1970, he won more PGA titles than then-stars Arnold Palmer and Gary Player combined, and four more than Jack Nicklaus . Outside of the PGA Tour, Casper was successful nine times.

He played eight times (continuously from 1961 to 1975) in the Ryder Cup for the USA. In 1979 he was the team's non-playing captain . With the exception of one (1969), which ended in a draw but was enough to defend the cup, all of these encounters were won. With a total of 23.5 points, he is the most successful American Ryder Cup player ever.

On the Senior PGA Tour , Casper was able to win nine tournaments, including a senior major , the US Senior Open 1983.

After the end of his tournament career, he successfully devoted himself to the design of golf courses . Casper died on February 7, 2015 at his home in Springville, Utah, at the age of 83 as a result of a heart attack.

Awards

  • PGA Player of the Year: 1966, 1970
  • Vardon Trophy (for best batting average): 1960, 1962, 1966, 1968
  • Leading money winner: 1966, 1968
  • World Golf Hall of Fame : 1978

PGA Tour victories

Major championships are in bold .

Champions Tour victories

  • 1982 The Shootout at Jeremy Ranch, Merrill Lynch / Golf Digest Pro-Am
  • 1983 US Senior Open
  • 1984 SENIOR PGA TOUR Roundup
  • 1987 Del E. Webb Arizona Classic, Greater Grand Rapids Open
  • 1988 Vantage At The Dominion, Mazda SENIOR TOURNAMENT PLAYERS Championship
  • 1989 Transamerica Senior Golf Championship

Senior Major in bold .

Other tournament victories

  • 1958 Havana Invitational
  • 1959 Brazilian Open
  • 1960 Brazilian Open
  • 1974 Trophée Lancôme (France, then not yet a European Tour Event)
  • 1975 Italian Open (European Tour)
  • 1977 Mexican Open
  • 1984 Legends of Golf (with Gay Brewer)
  • 1985 Union Mutual Seniors, Doug Sanders Invitational

Participation in team competitions

  • Ryder Cup : 1961, 1963, 1965, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1975; 1979

See also

Web links

Commons : Billy Casper  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original dated November 10, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.wgv.com
  2. ↑ Richard Goldstein: Billy Casper, Golfer Who Twice Won US Open, Dies at 83. Obituary in The New York Times on February 7, 2015 (accessed February 8, 2015).
personal data
SURNAME Casper, Billy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Casper, William Earl (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American golfer
DATE OF BIRTH June 24, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH San Diego , California , USA
DATE OF DEATH February 7, 2015
Place of death Springville , Utah