Billy Casper was one of our favorites here at 3 Jack Almanac. Just last summer he came up in conversation around the 3JA offices. We quickly agreed he had to be the most underrated/overlooked golfer ever. Off the top of our heads, we recounted what we could remember of his career achievements. Shortly afterward I looked up his career and it was even more impressive than we recalled.
Billy Casper passed away Saturday, February 7th in his Utah home at the age of 83.
Despite playing during the peak of popularity for the Big Three, Casper won 51 events on the PGA Tour, including 3 majors. He won the U.S. Open twice in 1959 and 1966, and won The Masters in 1970. Billy added 8 international wins in a time period when playing overseas was not a popular nor financially rewarding option. He won 9 Champions Tour events and the 1984 Legends of Golf event. That gives Billy Casper 69 career wins.
“Every time I looked up at the leaderboard and I was coming down near the end of the golf tournament, I was trying to find (Arnold) Palmer and (Gary) Player, and I was always trying to find (Billy) Casper.”
-Jack Nicklaus
Casper was player of the year in 1966 and 1970 and won the PGA money title twice. From 1962 to 1970, no one won more tournaments than Billy Casper, except Nicklaus. They each won 33 times during that stretch.
He played in 8 Ryder Cups earning 23.5 points, more than any American golfer ever. He only lost 10 matches out of 38 played. To put that in perspective, Tiger Woods has lost 17 matches and Phil Mickelson has 16 losses. In 1969, Casper was the winning U.S. Ryder Cup Captain.
The reason Buffalo Bill was so overshadowed by the Big Three has mostly been blamed on him leaving Mark McCormack’s IMG. McCormack went on to make golf more popular than ever with his marketing of Palmer, Nicklaus, and Player. Even Casper’s autobiography, “The Big Three and Me”, echoes this sentiment.
Golf was never the most important thing in Casper’s life though. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Shirley, 11 children and 71 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
He’s widely remembered as an extremely kind, giving man and that is exactly how he wanted it.
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