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Ben Hogan: Golf

William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) is one of the giants of golf history. Born within six months of two other famous golfers of the 20th century – Sam Snead and Byron Nelson, he was a hardworking and determined perfectionist on the golf course whose career included an extraordinary comeback from a horrendous car accident in 1949.



Hogan started caddying at the age of 11 at the Glen Garden Country Club and one of his fellow caddies was Byron Nelson. Nelson and Hogan tied for the lead during the club’s annual Christmas caddy tournament when they were both 15. Ben Hogan dropped out of school to become a professional golfer in 1930. His first PGA Tour was the 1932 Los Angeles Open and finished 38th. Before winning his first major tournament (the 1946 PGA Championship), he won 30 tournaments prior – a record he holds for most wins proceeding to a first major.

Greatest Sporting Achievements

Why Was He So Good?

Ben Hogan is well known for his intense control on golf swing theory and his famous ball-striking skills. He practiced more than any other golfer during his reign and is said to have “invented practice”. There have been theories about his nearly automatic swing, saying he had a special wrist movement known as “cupping under”. Years later, he admitted that the secret involved cupping the left wrist at the top of the back swing and using a weaker left hand grip (thumb more on top of the grip as opposed to on the right side).

What You May Not Know



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Golf is a popular recreational game around the world. There are many ways to play golf. It is played by legends of the sport at the Olympics and the Majors. You can use Psychology, Physics, Technology, and Equipment to improve your game. Fitness and Fitness Testing can fine-tune your performance, Nutrition to fine-tune your body.

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There are profiles of past athlete champions from a large range of sports. See also profiles of Olympic athletes and pages about sporting heroes.

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