Ray Billows was one of golf’s greatest players of his generation. But, instead of trying to make a living as a professional, Billows decided to remain an amateur and compete as such. Of course, this was at a time when amateur golf was considered a bigger game than professional golf and when the U.S. Amateur was much larger in stature than it is today. In fact, over the years some of the game’s most legendary names have won the U.S. Amateur, guys like Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. Guys on the losing side of the final match are also quite historic: Ben Crenshaw, Tom Kite and John Cook. Making it to the finals of the U.S. Amateur is an accomplishment in itself. After days of surviving 36-hole stroke-play rounds and 36-holes of match play rounds, the last two men standing tee it up for a final day of 36-holes of match play. Ray Billows, who won 74% of all the U.S. Amateur match-play events he played, made it to the finals three times. Unfortunately, however, Billows never came out on top and is the only man in history to lose the U.S. Amateur three times. How good was Billows? Byron Nelson said Ray Billows was best the long-iron player in the world. Bobby Jones said Ray executed certain shots better than anyone in the world. He played on two Walker Cup teams. Billows, who played in the Masters a few times, recorded a hole-in-one on No. 16. In fact, Billows was so well thought of, and so respected, that the USGA Museum in Far Hills, NJ created an exhibition honoring Billows. But never winning the U.S. Amateur was the biggest disappointment in Ray’s career. Tom Buggy, who played golf with Ray in the early 1970s, wrote a book about Ray, “Ray Billows, The Cinderella Kid,” and joins Sports’ Forgotten Heroes for a wonderful conversation about a golfer who dominated the amateur ranks everywhere he went, but could never win the game’s biggest event.
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