Snead vs Goalby at Philadelphia Country Club 1962

[cold_war_era_golfer]

So I've gone down a rabbit hole of watching Bob Goalby play golf.  This started by discovering a photo of him playing what appear to be one of my favorite sets of Spaldings.   This round of golf is fantastic.  Bob's putting is lights out.  I cant figure out what the putter he's using is.  And I just love watching Snead and Goalby chip around the greens.  No flop shots just these sweet rhythmic chips that look more like someone dancing than taking a full swing.

 

 

Edited December 1, 2022 by cold_war_era_golfer

[jaworski]

Thanks for posting this. I really enjoyed watching them play.

Bob's putter may have be an Otey Crisman . The long heel shafted hosel and what appears to be a bit of a mallet head looks like one. Also has that aluminum look to it. I know they were very popular with the pros of that era.

[topfliter]

Very, very nice - thanks for posting... 

[mocokid]

On 12/1/2022 at 12:29 PM, cold_war_era_golfer said:

So I've gone down a rabbit hole of watching Bob Goalby play golf.  This started by discovering a photo of him playing what appear to be one of my favorite sets of Spaldings.   This round of golf is fantastic.  Bob's putting is lights out.  I cant figure out what the putter he's using is.  And I just love watching Snead and Goalby chip around the greens.  No flop shots just these sweet rhythmic chips that look more like someone dancing than taking a full swing.

 

 

What year is this? Guy with the dark glasses is CIA and was spotted in Dallas November 1963.

[Bigarch]

I grew up in the St. Louis area and Goalby is a bit of a local legend there since he grew up just across the river in Belleville, Illinois.  St. Clair Country Club where he grew up and learned the game is a neat golf course where you get every possible shot in the bag... uphill, downhill, sidehill, over water, etc..  A lot of good players have come out of there including the Haas boys (his nephews).  But the one thing about Goalby's record that surprises me, is that he never teed it up in the British Open.  He was an accomplished player winning the Masters and finishing 2nd in the US Open and 2nd in the PGA.  He obviously had the game to be able to play well there.  I wonder why he never played "The Open"??? 

[DoughBack18]

Excellent video there! I love seeing these courses and their layouts and conditioning from decades past. 
 

Side note- I have a feeling the current membership there may not be as keen on having a full sized car driving around on their fairways as a mobile camera crew as they were 60 years ago! 

[Shilgy]

On 12/29/2022 at 1:25 PM, Bigarch said:

I grew up in the St. Louis area and Goalby is a bit of a local legend there since he grew up just across the river in Belleville, Illinois.  St. Clair Country Club where he grew up and learned the game is a neat golf course where you get every possible shot in the bag... uphill, downhill, sidehill, over water, etc..  A lot of good players have come out of there including the Haas boys (his nephews).  But the one thing about Goalby's record that surprises me, is that he never teed it up in the British Open.  He was an accomplished player winning the Masters and finishing 2nd in the US Open and 2nd in the PGA.  He obviously had the game to be able to play well there.  I wonder why he never played "The Open"??? 

As far as Goalby and The Open it was quite common back then for Americans not to go.  They typically had to give up a few weeks to go over the pond and then they had to go to qualifying just to play in the event.  There were no automatic exemptions for certain wins or world rankings back then.

[bcstones]

On 12/1/2022 at 11:24 PM, jaworski said:

 

Bob's putter may have be an Otey Crisman . The long heel shafted hosel and what appears to be a bit of a mallet head looks like one. Also has that aluminum look to it. I know they were very popular with the pros of that era.

I think you're correct...tho, weren't most of Crisman's putters hickory shafted, I do have a couple of metal shafts (don't think they're aluminum....have to take a look, next time I'm in my storage). I was flipping back and forth between a mallet and the "hb" (hollow back, aka flange???). Wonder if it could have been a Ray Cook putter, I do have at least one that is smaller than his normal mallet.

[bcstones]

On 12/29/2022 at 2:25 PM, Bigarch said:

I grew up in the St. Louis area and Goalby is a bit of a local legend there since he grew up just across the river in Belleville, Illinois.  St. Clair Country Club where he grew up and learned the game is a neat golf course where you get every possible shot in the bag... uphill, downhill, sidehill, over water, etc..  A lot of good players have come out of there including the Haas boys (his nephews).  But the one thing about Goalby's record that surprises me, is that he never teed it up in the British Open.  He was an accomplished player winning the Masters and finishing 2nd in the US Open and 2nd in the PGA.  He obviously had the game to be able to play well there.  I wonder why he never played "The Open"??? 

I went and double checked Bob Goalby on the net, trying to see if I could get a line on what putter he might have been using...it surprised me that many articles were headlined w/the phrase "Masters fluke"...He deserved far better than that, especially after his death...

[st1800e]

Early In the video Jimmy D. Makes reference to Sam’s miss at the ‘39 US Open at the same course. Sam carded an 8 on the par 5 72nd hole to miss the playoff by 2 shots.  

[cold_war_era_golfer]

On 1/2/2023 at 8:21 PM, bcstones said:

I went and double checked Bob Goalby on the net, trying to see if I could get a line on what putter he might have been using...it surprised me that many articles were headlined w/the phrase "Masters fluke"...He deserved far better than that, especially after his death...

I agree! He seemed like a pretty cool guy.  He was from my State of Illinois so I'm certainly more interested in him now and learned her recently died!

 

I tried to figure what clubs he was playing for that match against Sam.

I think the irons are Spalding.  

Here are two pictures from 1961.

Bob probably had some sort of custom job.  But the ferrules appear to have a distinct white band around them.  '59-60 Top Flites would have had yellow and white bands on the ferrules where as '61-62 would have had white and red.

 

This photo is defiantly a Spalding iron "SEP 7 1961; Pro-Am Winner Shows 'Em How; Bob Goalby of Crystal River, Fla., who won Wednesday's Pro-Am event at Meadow Hills in a preview of the Denver Open, demonstrates an iron shot during a clinic after his sizzling 64 over the par 71 layout. Goalby collected $500 for carding the lowest score among the pros. " 

 

Next year and it looks like he's even got the same hat on!  I'm about 99 percent sure those are '61-62 Spaldings.

 

My 61-62s TFs with the same ferrule

 

 

 

 

Edited January 16, 2023 by cold_war_era_golfer

[bcstones]

5 hours ago, cold_war_era_golfer said:

I agree! He seemed like a pretty cool guy.  He was from my State of Illinois so I'm certainly more interested in him now and learned her recently died!

 

I tried to figure what clubs he was playing for that match against Sam.

I think the irons are Spalding.  

Here are two pictures from 1961.

Bob probably had some sort of custom job.  But the ferrules appear to have a distinct white band around them.  '59-60 Top Flites would have had yellow and white bands on the ferrules where as '61-62 would have had white and red.

 

This photo is defiantly a Spalding iron "SEP 7 1961; Pro-Am Winner Shows 'Em How; Bob Goalby of Crystal River, Fla., who won Wednesday's Pro-Am event at Meadow Hills in a preview of the Denver Open, demonstrates an iron shot during a clinic after his sizzling 64 over the par 71 layout. Goalby collected $500 for carding the lowest score among the pros. " 

 

 

Next year and it looks like he's even got the same hat on!  I'm about 99 percent sure those are '61-62 Spaldings.

 

 

My 61-62s TFs with the same ferrule

 

 

 

 

 

I was trying to figure out his putter....I figure most Pro's might use different maker putters, no matter what irons & woods. Just wondering....

[st1800e]

3 minutes ago, bcstones said:

I was trying to figure out his putter....I figure most Pro's might use different maker putters, no matter what irons & woods. Just wondering....

Looks like a bullseye.  

[cold_war_era_golfer]

1 hour ago, bcstones said:

I was trying to figure out his putter....I figure most Pro's might use different maker putters, no matter what irons & woods. Just wondering....

I can’t figure out the putter.  Best I can do is irons. 

[bcstones]

14 hours ago, st1800e said:

Looks like a bullseye.  

also looks like a flange...come to think on it, that wouldn't rule out a bullseye - didn't Acushnet have a flange model?

 

[st1800e]

1 minute ago, bcstones said:

also looks like a flange...come to think on it, that wouldn't rule out a bullseye - didn't Acushnet have a flange model?

 

Yes, several models as I recall

[cold_war_era_golfer]

On 1/17/2023 at 12:25 PM, bcstones said:

also looks like a flange...come to think on it, that wouldn't rule out a bullseye - didn't Acushnet have a flange model?

 

I think Bullseye started the FL model in 1967.  

From the looks of that very grainy video it looks like a mallet putter to me.  But I could be way off!

[bcstones]

10 hours ago, cold_war_era_golfer said:

I think Bullseye started the FL model in 1967.  

From the looks of that very grainy video it looks like a mallet putter to me.  But I could be way off!

I agree, the grainy vid is difficult to "read"

[DoughBack18]

On 1/19/2023 at 10:45 AM, cold_war_era_golfer said:

I think Bullseye started the FL model in 1967.  

From the looks of that very grainy video it looks like a mallet putter to me.  But I could be way off!

It looks like some sort of heel shafted model with a squared off heel and a slight flange. I just don’t know the equipment of that era well enough to make any educated guesses on the model.