|
|
 Four notable individuals who helped shape the game of golf in the Southland and beyond have been inducted as the third
class of the Southern California Golf Association (SCGA) Hall Fame at a
luncheon following the SCGA's annual meeting on Oct. 27 at the Sheraton
Universal Hotel in Universal City.
Memorabilia was won display from each inductee, including Babe Zaharias' Olympic medals, Norman Macbeth's Wilshire membership book, Dr. Frank "Bud" Taylor's Walker Cup jacket, and a selection of Billy Casper's many trophies. At the luncheon,
each inductee was introduced by a short speech followed by the
unveiling of a portrait painted by noted artist Scott Medlock. Casper attended the event and gave a moving speech on what the Hall of Fame honor means to him. The others were honored posthumously. |
|
NORMAN MACBETH (1879-1940)
Two-time SCGA Amateur champion, SCGA and CGA President, and designer of Wilshire CC.
 Macbeth was inducted by Kent Keller, the Immediate Past President of the SCGA who is a member of Wilshire CC in Los Angeles. Macbeth designed Wilshire in 1919, his enduring monuments in golf architecture. Away from designing, Macbeth was the Royal Lytham & St Annes Club Champion in 1896, 1897, 1898, the SCGA Amateur champion in 1911 and 1915, the NCGA Amateur champion in 1921, and served as SCGA President (1929) and California Golf Association (CGA) President (1938).
"His place in the realm of golf in Southern California was most unusual and the rare devotion which he has shown to the interests of the sport entitles him to the endearment of all golfers," said 1940 SCGA President C. Pardee Erdman. "He was a fine comrade, a faithful friend and a true sportsman."
|
BABE DIDRIKSON ZAHARIAS (1911-1956)
Olympic medalist, LPGA record holder, and one of the world's greatest female golfers and athletes.
 "All of my life," Zaharias once said, "I have always had the urge to do things better than anybody else." That she did, as Zaharias was inducted by another notable woman, Phoenix Mercury general manager and Phoenix Suns vice president Ann Meyers Drysdale. Zaharias was named Woman Athlete of the Year six times between 1932 and 1954 and The Associated Press called her the greatest woman athlete of the first half of the 20th century.
Zaharias won gold medals in the 80 meter hurdles and javelin and a silver medal in the high jump at the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles; she was also a prolific basketball player. However, golf was her standout sport. She won 82 tournaments on the amateur and professional level, including 17 consecutive amateur tournaments in 1946 and 1947. She also played in men's PGA Tour events, and was a founding member of the LPGA. Zaharias died of colon cancer at age 45.
|
DR. FRANK "BUD" TAYLOR (1916-1991)
Standout life-long amateur golfer and two-time California Amateur champion.
Taylor attended University of Southern California's dental school, but didn't play golf for the universityl. Instead, Taylor became the first person to win back-to-back California Amateur Championships since 1912, when he did so in 1954-55 and went on to play on three Walker Cup teams. The 1959 Walker Cup team, of which Jack Nicklaus was also a member, is considered by many to be the greatest team assembled.
Taylor continued his prowess by holding the course records at three Southland clubs: Red Hill CC, O’Donnell CC and Shadow Mountain CC. He was inducted by Ed Holmes, the 2007 SCGA President.
|
|
BILLY CASPER (1931- )
Won 51 PGA Tour events and is considered by many to be the "magnificent fourth" in an era of the "big three."
 When considering great amateur golf careers, Billy Casper’s was rather uneventful. Born in San Diego and raised in Chula Vista, Casper, who was inducted by USGA President Jim Vernon and spoke at the Hall of Fame, attended Notre Dame but found little success on the amateur golf circuit. Upon turning professional in 1954, however, he quietly and steadily built a stellar, and memorable, Hall-of-Fame career that remains one for the record books.
During a time when professional golf was coming more and more to the forefront of American sport, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player were anointed as the “big three” of that era. Yet Casper surely belongs on that list as well. His number of PGA Tour victories — 51 in all — ranks seventh of all time, far ahead of Player, Tom Watson and Walter Hagen. Included in that total are three majors: the 1959 and 1966 U.S. Opens and the 1970 Masters.
From 1964 through 1970, Casper won 27 times, more than Palmer, Nicklaus and Player did during that time frame. Casper was Player of the Year in 1966 and 1970, won the Vardon Trophy five times, and played on eight consecutive Ryder Cup teams from 1961 to 1975. In addition, Casper has won nine times on the Champions Tour, including the 1983 U.S. Senior Open.
Casper’s two most memorable victories were in the U.S. Open, when his deadly short game and prolific putting were at their peak. In 1959 he defeated Bob Rosburg by a shot on Winged Foot Golf Club’s West Course. Seven years later at The Olympic Club, Casper came from seven shots back over the final nine holes to tie Palmer; Billy then beat Arnie in an 18-hole playoff the following day.
Although many people remember this Open for Palmer’s "collapse," Casper shot 3-under-par 32 on the final-round back nine, was under Olympic’s par of 70 in four of the five rounds, never three-putted during championship, and shot 1-under-par 69 (including a back nine of 34) to win the 18-hole playoff by four shots.
Casper was elected into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1978 and the PGA Hall of Fame in 1982. In 1989, Casper founded Billy Casper Golf, an innovative and progressive golf course management company encompassing more than 100 managed golf facilities across the nation.
Today, he lives outside Salt Lake City surrounded by his family, and regularly tours the country visiting fans of the game. His charitable contributions are numerous, with a focus on investing in the future of America — our children.
|
The Medlock portraits will hang at Golf House West, the SCGA's
headquarters in nearby Studio City.
Medlock has created the paintings
for the previous two SCGA Hall of Fame classes. The INAUGURAL CLASS consisted of Johnny Dawson, Dr. Paul Hunter, Gene
Littler, Edward B. Tufts, George Von Elm and Mickey Wright. Inducted in the SECOND CLASS were Bruce McCormick, Eddie Merrins, Jim Murray, George C. Thomas, Jr., and Charles Maud.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
