We find ourselves at the mid-point of the 84th annual Masters Golf Tournament. The first 36 holes are in the books, the cut to the low 50 golfers and ties has been made, and the roars from Amen Corner have been uniquely subdued this time around. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Masters is being contested in November. The Par Three Contest on Wednesday was canceled. Most notable is the fact that the 2020 Masters is being contested without spectators.
Those louder than life groans when tee shots on the par-3 12th hole tumble into Rae’s Creek have been silenced along with the decibel-shattering cheers when an eagle putt drops on the par-5 15th hole. To the contestants at this year’s Masters, it is a very different Masters. Nonetheless, it is one of golf’s four major championships, and come Sunday afternoon there will be one golfer celebrating a career-defining moment as he dons the Masters green jacket.
The 2020 Masters is the third and final major held this calendar year. The PGA Championship was delayed until August and the United States Open was rescheduled for September. The British Open was canceled. On the LPGA Tour, the United States Women’s Open will be held in Houston next month. More on that later.
During the weekend of the Masters, I always like to take a look back at a past Masters, often taking a walk down memory lane from 25, 30 or 50 years ago. Yet this time around I want to take a look at two men and four Masters’ victories that occurred in the 1940s and the 1950s. While they were putting on green jackets during the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower presidencies, their impact upon the game of golf lives on today and will have some degree of influence upon major championship golf later this year.
Jimmy Demaret
Jimmy Demaret was born in Houston in 1910. He was a caddie, served as an assistant golf professional, and moved up to a full-time professional as a 17-year-old. He started playing the tour at a most difficult time in American history, mainly during the heart of the Depression when money was scarce and tournament winnings were minimal. Demaret was a contemporary of the likes of Ben Hogan, Sam Snead and Byron Nelson, and while he wasn’t the top player of his generation, he was close to it. He was definitely the funniest and best dressed.
During the course of his 30-year career, Demaret won 31 professional tournaments. In 1938 he won the San Francisco Open at the S.F. Golf Club, beating Sam Snead in the finals. He traveled the world and won such far-flung tournaments as the Havana Invitational and the Argentine Open. Ben Hogan called Demaret the “best player I’ve seen in windy conditions.” He was also the tour’s most colorful dresser. His nickname among fellow pros was “The Wardrobe.” Owner of a vibrant personality, Jimmy played himself on I Love Lucy, the Jim Backus Show, the Lucy Show, and Follow the Sun. In retirement he was the co-host, along with Gene Sarazen, on Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf.
Demaret’s 31 victories included three Masters. He won in 1940, defeating future U.S. Open titlist Lloyd Mangrum by four shots. In 1947 he took home a second green jacket, beating Byron Nelson by two strokes. Demaret added a third Masters win when he won the 1950 edition, finishing two strokes ahead of PGA champion Jim Ferrier. When one peruses the list of past Masters champions, only golfers named Jack, Tiger and Arnie have more green jackets.
Jackie Burke Jr.
Jackie Burke Jr. was born in Fort Worth in 1923. Three years earlier, his father had finished runner-up to Ted Ray in the United States Open. He too followed the path from the caddie yard to the pro shop to the tour, turning pro as an 18-year-old. The early part of his career was on hold as he served in the Marine Corps for four years. He returned to professional golf in 1946, won 16 times on tour, played on five Ryder Cup teams, and won the PGA Championship.
In 1956 Burke was eight shots off the pace entering the fourth round of the Masters. On a cold, blustery day, Jackie shot the low score of the final round, a 1-under-par 71. All of the golfers ahead of him on the leader board faltered as Ken Venturi shot 80, Cary Middlecoff carded a 77, Hogan shot 75, Doug Ford shot 77, and Tommy Bolt came in with a 76. Burke won the ’56 Masters by one stroke over Venturi. A very good golfer in the days of Snead, Hogan and Nelson, Jackie Burke Jr. suddenly and unexpectedly had his own green jacket.
Champions Club
In 1957, the two Texans, Demaret and Burke Jr., decided to pool their money and took a chapter out of the Bobby Jones book by deciding to build their dream golf course. They found extensive land on the outskirts of Houston, brought in noted architect Tom Fazio, and developed a 36-hole complex. They called their dream course The Champions Club.
The Champions Golf Club was an immediate hit. It hosted the 1967 Ryder Cup. The Cup was won by Team USA and the American win was the biggest triumph in Ryder Cup history. Ben Hogan was the captain. Former Lake County resident Johnny Pott was one of a handful of invaluable team members that year, going 4-0 in his matches. Two years later Orville Moody won the 1969 U.S. Open at Champions. Demaret and Burke Jr. were very hands-on owners of Champions, going to the extent of choosing members based on an interview process. Even today, Champions has the greatest percentage of single-digit handicap golfers as members.
Demaret died in 1983 from a heart attack. Burke is still alive, is 97 years old, and is doing well as evidenced from his interview recently on the David Feherty Show. As for the Champions Golf Club, it will be hosting the U.S. Women’s Open next month. In a year of rescheduled majors, it will be the final major golf championship of the year. Meanwhile, the final major on the men’s calendar, the Masters, is playing out this weekend at the Augusta National Golf Club. In the 84-year history of the Masters, Texas boys Jimmy Demaret and Jackie Burke Jr. took the same journey from the caddie yard to the green jacket ceremony to win a combined four Masters titles. Come Sunday evening we’ll know who will join them as the 84th champion of the Masters Golf Tournament.
