Horton Smith

Horton Smith
Walter Hagen and Smith (right) in 1929
Personal information
Nickname	The Joplin Ghost
Born	(1908-05-22)May 22, 1908 Springfield, Missouri
Died	October 15, 1963(1963-10-15) (aged 55) Detroit, Michigan
Nationality	United States
Career
College	Southwest Missouri State
Turned professional	1926
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour
Professional wins	36
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	32
Other	4
Best results in major championships (wins: 2)
Masters Tournament	Won: 1934, 1936
U.S. Open	3rd: 1930, 1940
The Open Championship	T4: 1930
PGA Championship	T3: 1928
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame	1990 (member page)
PGA Tour leading money winner	1936
Bob Jones Award	1962

Horton Smith (May 22, 1908 – October 15, 1963) was an American professional golfer, best known as the winner of the first and third Masters Tournaments.

Born in Springfield, Missouri, Smith turned professional in 1926 and won his first tournament, the Oklahoma City Open in 1928. In 1929 he won eight titles. This was an era of expansion and reorganization for professional golf. The PGA Tour was founded in 1934, and Smith was one of the leading players of the early years of the tour, topping the money list in 1936. He accumulated 32 PGA Tour titles in total, the last of them in 1941, and his two major championships came at the Masters, at the inaugural tournament in 1934 and again in 1936.

Smith was a member of five Ryder Cup teams: 1929, 1931, 1933, 1935, and 1937. His career Ryder Cup record was 3–0–1, his only blemish a halved singles match against Bill Cox in 1935 at Ridgewood Country Club in New Jersey. Smith was the only golfer to defeat Bobby Jones during the latter's Grand Slam year of 1930, at the stroke play Savannah Open in February. He played in every Masters through 1963, the year of his death.

Smith served in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II, served in the special services division coordinating athletics, and was discharged as a captain.