William Ben Hogan August 13, β July 25, was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. Hogan's nine career professional major championships tie him with Gary Player for fourth all-time, trailing only Jack Nicklaus 18 , Tiger Woods 15 and Walter Hagen He is one of only five players to have won all four majors: the Masters Tournament , The Open Championship despite only playing once , the U.
Open , and the PGA Championship. Hogan's first major win came at age His father was a blacksmith and the family lived ten miles 16 km southwest in Dublin until , when they moved seventy miles km northeast to Fort Worth. When Hogan was nine years old in , Chester committed suicide by gunshot at the family home.
By some accounts, Chester committed suicide in front of him, which some including Hogan biographer James Dodson have cited as the cause of his introverted personality in later years.
The family incurred financial difficulties after his father's suicide, and the children took jobs to help their seamstress mother make ends meet. Older brother Royal quit school at age 14 to deliver office supplies by bicycle, and nine-year-old Ben sold newspapers after school at the nearby train station. A tip from a friend led him to caddying at age eleven at Glen Garden Country Club, a nine-hole course located three miles out of town. The two would tie for the lead at the annual Christmas caddie tournament in December , when both were fifteen.
Nelson sank a foot 9 m putt to tie on the ninth and final hole. Instead of sudden death , they played another nine holes; Nelson sank another substantial putt on the final green to win by a stroke. The following spring, Nelson was granted the only junior membership offered by the members of Glen Garden. Club rules did not allow caddies age 16 and older, so after August , Hogan took his game to three scrubby daily-fee courses: Katy Lake, Worth Hills, and Z-Boaz.
