Billy Maxwell
American professional golfer (1929–2021)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Billy Joe Maxwell (July 23, 1929 – September 20, 2021)[1] was an American professional golfer.
| Billy Maxwell | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Billy Joe Maxwell |
| Born | July 23, 1929 Abilene, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | September 20, 2021 (aged 92) Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 7.5 in (1.71 m) |
| Weight | 165 lb (75 kg; 11.8 st) |
| Sporting nationality |  United States |
| Residence | Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. |
| Career | |
| College | North Texas State College |
| Turned professional | 1954 |
| Former tours | PGA Tour Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 10 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 7 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | T5: 1962 |
| PGA Championship | T5: 1963 |
| U.S. Open | T5: 1963 |
| The Open Championship | DNP |
| U.S. Amateur | Won: 1951 |
| British Amateur | T9: 1952 |
Early life and amateur career
Maxwell was born in Abilene, Texas. He has a twin brother, Bobby, who was also a golfer.
Maxwell played college golf at North Texas State College and helped them win four consecutive NCAA Division I team championships (1949–1952). Maxwell also won the U.S. Amateur title in 1951. After an impressive amateur career, he served in the Army.
Professional career
In 1954, Maxwell turned pro. Maxwell won seven times on the PGA Tour. He also played on the 1963 Ryder Cup team and was elected to the Texas Golf Hall of Fame.
Maxwell resided in Jacksonville, Florida where, along with former PGA touring pro, Chris Blocker, he owned and operated Hyde Park Golf Club, a Donald Ross designed course.
Amateur wins
- This list is probably incomplete
- 1951 U.S. Amateur
- 1953 Mexican Amateur
Professional wins (10)
PGA Tour wins (7)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apr 3, 1955 | Azalea Open Invitational | −18 (65-68-68-69=270) | 1 stroke |  Mike Souchak |
| 2 | Apr 22, 1956 | Arlington Hotel Open | −16 (64-69-70-69=272) | 1 stroke | George Bayer, Ernie Vossler |
| 3 | Oct 27, 1957 | Hesperia Open Invitational | −13 (67-67-67-74=275) | 2 strokes | Dow Finsterwald |
| 4 | May 18, 1958 | Memphis Open | −13 (69-65-68-65=267) | 1 stroke | Cary Middlecoff |
| 5 | Feb 5, 1961 | Palm Springs Golf Classic | −14 (68-70-68-68-71=345) | 2 strokes | Doug Sanders |
| 6 | Aug 13, 1961 | Insurance City Open Invitational | −13 (69-68-68-66=271) | Playoff | Ted Kroll |
| 7 | Sep 3, 1962 | Dallas Open Invitational | −3 (68-70-68-71=277) | 4 strokes | Johnny Pott |
PGA Tour playoff record (1–2)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1955 | Baton Rouge Open[2] | Jimmy Clark, Bo Wininger |
Wininger won 18-hole playoff; Wininger: −6 (66), Clark: −2 (70), Maxwell: −1 (71) |
| 2 | 1957 | Western Open | George Bayer, Doug Ford, Gene Littler |
Ford won with par on third extra hole Littler and Maxwell eliminated by par on first hole |
| 3 | 1961 | Insurance City Open Invitational | Ted Kroll |
Won with birdie on seventh extra hole |
Source:[3]
Other wins (3)
this list is probably incomplete
- 1956 Mexican Open
- 1961 Puerto Rico Open
- 1973 Florida Open
Major championships
Amateur wins (1)
| Year | Championship | Winning score | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | U.S. Amateur | 4 & 3 | Joe Gagliardi |
Results timeline
Amateur
| Tournament | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | T49 | |||
| U.S. Amateur | R16 | 1 | R256 | |
| The Amateur Championship | R16 |
Professional
| Tournament | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | T43 | T18 | T34 | WD | T9 | T8 | T25 | T5 | T15 | T18 | T26 | T39 | ||||||
| U.S. Open | 27 | 12 | T8 | T27 | T26 | T22 | T8 | T5 | 14 | T36 | T52 | |||||||
| PGA Championship | T25 | T11 | T24 | T27 | WD | T5 | T13 | T43 | T63 | T10 | T40 |
Note: Maxwell never played in The Open Championship.
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place
R256, R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play
Sources: Masters,[4] U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur,[5] PGA Championship,[6] 1952 British Amateur[7]
Summary
| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 13 | 12 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 11 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 10 |
| Totals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 19 | 35 | 33 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 14 (1963 Masters – 1971 PGA)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (three times)
