Billy Joe Patton

William Joseph Patton (April 19, 1922[1] – January 1, 2011[2]) was an American amateur golfer best known for almost winning the 1954 Masters Tournament.

Billy Joe Patton
Personal information
Full nameWilliam Joseph Patton
Born(1922-04-19)April 19, 1922
Morganton, North Carolina
DiedJanuary 1, 2011(2011-01-01) (aged 88)
Morganton, North Carolina
Nationality United States
Career
StatusAmateur
Professional wins2
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament3rd: 1954
PGA ChampionshipDNP
U.S. OpenT6: 1954
The Open ChampionshipDNP
U.S. AmateurT3: 1962
British AmateurT5: 1955
Achievements and awards
Bob Jones Award1982

Patton was born in Morganton, North Carolina. He graduated from Wake Forest University in 1943.

In 1954, Patton came within one stroke of being in a three-man playoff with Ben Hogan and Sam Snead for the championship. His final round 71 included a hole-in-one on the par-3 6th hole and a double bogey on the par-5 13th hole, when he tried to reach the green in two and put his ball into Rae's Creek.

Patton won several amateur tournaments including the North and South Amateur three times and the Southern Amateur twice. He also won the Carolinas Open twice.

Patton played on five Walker Cup teams; 1955, 1957, 1959, 1963, and 1965 and was captain of the 1969 team. He played on the Eisenhower Trophy team in 1958 and 1962.

Patton was awarded the Bob Jones Award by the United States Golf Association in 1982.

Patton was inducted into several Halls of Fame:

Tournament wins

Results in major championships
Tournament 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament 3 LA T49 T12 CUT 8 LA T8
U.S. Open CUT T36 T54 T6 LA 13 T8 LA CUT
U.S. Amateur R64 R32 R64 R64 R256 R32 R128 R64 R32
The Amateur Championship QF R128
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
Masters Tournament T13 LA CUT CUT 48 T37 CUT CUT
U.S. Open CUT CUT
U.S. Amateur R64 R32 SF R64 R16 T19 T26 T8 CUT T23
The Amateur Championship R256
  Top 10
  Did not play

LA = low amateur
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
R256, R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play

Sources: Masters,[7] U.S. Open, U.S. Amateur,[8] British Amateur: 1955,[9] 1959[10]

U.S. national team appearances

References
  1. William Joseph "Billy Joe" Patton obituary - Winston-Salem Journal
  2. Patton, nearly the 1954 Masters champion, dies
  3. North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame profile Archived November 27, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  4. "Wake Forest University's Sports Hall of Fame members". Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved June 9, 2008.
  5. Southern Golf Association's Hall of Fame profile Archived November 21, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  6. Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame members Archived August 8, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  7. www.masters.com
  8. USGA Championship Database Archived December 21, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  9. "Second Englishman In Final Since War". Glasgow Herald. June 4, 1955. p. 9.
  10. "Two More Walker Cup Players Beaten". Glasgow Herald. May 27, 1959. p. 9.
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