Bobby Nichols - Part 1 (The Early Years)

Intro Music 0:06

It went straight down the middle. It went straight down the middle. Then it started.

Mike Gonzalez 0:15

Well, welcome to another episode of FORE the Good of the Game. And Bruce Devlin, our guest this morning, always seemed to be around when the purses got big.

Bruce Devlin 0:24

Yeah, he had a habit of doing that. Yeah, we got a great Aggie with us this morning. Uh man that won 12 times on the PGA tour and captured the 1964 PGA Championship at Columbus Country Club. And it is a pleasure indeed to have Bobby Nichols with us. Bobby, thanks for joining Mike and I. Thanks, Bruce.

Bobby Nichols 0:47

It's been an honor.

Mike Gonzalez 0:48

Great to have you, Bobby. And uh as we've talked about, we're here to tell your story, and obviously that starts at the very beginning. So I'm always interested for guys of your vintage, you and Bruce, uh, what life must have been like growing up as a young man during the war years, because you grew up in uh Louisville, Kentucky, didn't you?

Bobby Nichols 1:07

Correct. Uh um, yes. I wasn't exactly born there, but uh I was born in a little small town called Bumfordville, which is about 90 miles south of Louisville. But uh we came up there and uh went ahead to s the the uh 37 flood or whatever you call it. And so uh yeah, I I grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, more or less.

Mike Gonzalez 1:31

And do you have vivid memories of growing up during the war years as a young man?

Bobby Nichols 1:35

Uh yeah, quite a bit. Uh when I was about uh I used to hang out with g most of the guys I hung out with and played uh ball with and and sports and stuff was uh a little older than me. I was I would remember when I was about nine or maybe ten years old, I started uh I went with them to the golf course that they said uh we can we could uh carry bags and uh make some money. And I said, Well yeah, I'd like to lie, that sounds good. I'll try that. So I followed him over there and uh it we actually hit hike get to the club, which in those days was uh pretty ha uh common. And uh I got there and I I cattied. Uh actually they didn't tell me anything about the game. Actually, nothing, nothing. They just said you come on with us and you can carry a bag around and and they'll pay you. I said, Well that sounds good. So anyway, we we go over there and I I get a j I get a job, I get this little small bag, and I go nine holes with this gentleman, and then at the at the at the end of the ninth hole, I I pick his ball up and hand it to him. He says, What are you doing? I said, I'm I I don't know. Uh am I supposed to do that? He said, No, you don't touch the golf ball like that. I said, Well, God, I'm sorry. Anyway, I put it back down, and uh, and that was my introduction to Caddian. But uh I remember he'd give me a quarter, 25 cents. I thought, well, okay, it means nothing. Beats nothing.

Bruce Devlin 3:25

That wasn't a very big pay in those days.

Bobby Nichols 3:28

It wasn't a big thing. It was nine that was a long time ago.

Mike Gonzalez 3:32

Yeah, it was. Did did you have any courses with sand greens in your area?

Bobby Nichols 3:38

No, actually, we did not. I don't recall any any sand greens, uh uh mostly bluegrass, I guess. And uh common Bermuda, yeah. But yeah, Bermuda, common grass in those days. It was uh quite an education. That's how I got invested into uh the game of golf. And then I started cattying, and and the first thing you know, I I I cattted 18 holes and I got 75 cents. I said, Well, this is great. And we kept going, and finally I got up to a dollar for 18 holes. It was a class, if it was a class A caddy, you got a dollar. If you were a class B, you were 75 cents. So and I got I got up to be at a Class A caddy, and I did that for about three, three and a half, four years, I probably to about 13. Then I w I won the I won the caddie tournament uh when I was 13. And uh we had it uh in in Louisville. I don't know, I just kept playing uh periodically and uh with other sports. I liked other sports. I love I loved playing football with the guys because I wanted to be I wanted to be the next Johnny Unitedist.

Bruce Devlin 5:03

No.

Bobby Nichols 5:04

Why not? That's right. Uh I'm sure you guys remember him. He was uh all pro and all all Hall of Fame with the Baltimore Colts. And he was a quite a golfer, he loved to play golf, so occasionally I'd find him on a golf course or something and that sort of thing. And another guy I used to catty for all the time at uh Louisville, Kentucky, his name was Pee Wee Reese. Pee-wee was uh he was the uh captain of the Brooklyn Dodgers back in those days. And uh he's the he was a member of the Ottoman, came home during the offseason, played, had a one-handicap, and he he always asked for me to catty for him, so I got to caddy for him quite a few times. And uh that was quite an education just to be around Hall of Fame guys, stuff like that.

Mike Gonzalez 6:00

You know, Bobby, uh you you mentioned Pee Ree Reese, and I got to throw this in because obviously there was a Louisville connection with him. Uh, and I'll mention a good friend of mine, Jim Little. Uh Jim was a rep for Louisville Slugger, the Hill and Bradsby people for years and years on the baseball side. And his job during the World Series and the All-Star Game for many, many years was to escort Pee-Wee Reese around. So I got to meet Pee-wee when I was a younger man. I wish I would have better appreciated the history there uh between him and and uh and Jackie Robinson in those early days.

Bobby Nichols 6:34

Yeah, he was he was kind of the binner for for Jackie Robinson. I mean, it it it's uh it's well, it's in the history books, it's pretty well known, that he kind of took uh Jackie Robinson under his under his arms wing and and got him around the the league and showed a friendship to him.

Bruce Devlin 6:55

And uh that meant a lot to him, I'm sure. So, Bobby, talking about H and B, uh you've had a little re you had some relationship with them uh throughout your professional career as well, right? You were you weren't a Louisville slugger man, but you you slugged that ball off the tee with an H B driver, right?

Bobby Nichols 7:17

Yeah, we had well that's right. Everybody had a wood, would uh actually had H H and B was the premier wood wood club in those days. That's all there were. There weren't any metal woods and that sort of thing. So uh but uh Farmville uh with the wood for the bats, they got into the uh uh making golf golf clubs and they did a heck of a good job for a long time. We had Miller Barber, we had uh Fuzzies Holler, we had uh course Gabe Brewer. And uh everybody we uh had quite a quite a staff, small staff, but it was uh pretty effective in those days.

Bruce Devlin 8:06

So Bobby, let's go back let's go back to the early days when uh who who was the one guy that influenced you most as far as you know getting really interested in the game and and learning how to play it properly?

Bobby Nichols 8:22

Well that that's that's it's hard to pick out just one. Well maybe three. When I worked uh when I got to uh I was caddy until I was about thirteen. And then uh got a job in a golf shop, cleaning clubs and stuff, and and the job I got was because of a pro an old old Scottish pro named Bobby Craig's. And in fact, my oldest son is named Craig. Craig after uh Bobby Craigs, who's an old Scotsman and and was really he hired hired me to c uh work in a shop and clean clubs. And I remember my pay was twenty dollars for the week. And uh and let's see, uh tax was a dollar and a quarter for it. So I got I took home 1975 uh every week, but it was it was a lot of money back, actually for for me back then, anything. But I learned a lot how to clean clubs, how to uh how to operate a in a golf shop, how you're supposed to take care of golf clubs and and things. And he uh he gave me my first job and uh and I stayed there for about uh three or four years working working for him. He was very influenc influential, and of course I uh uh ran into uh an uh a pro named Henry Ransom. Now Henry was well known on the on the regular tour, a good player, and and won a few uh tournaments back to those days. And he was uh living in uh college station, Texas, which is right next to Texas AIM. And we go go play and he he played with us, and he was quite a quite a help to uh to us then during during the uh uh years.

Mike Gonzalez 10:26

Yeah. Well you were a pretty good high school player. I I I think you won the individual state championship when you were at uh St. Xavier and uh in Louisville. When did you when did you have that accident? Was that uh sometime during your high school years?

Bobby Nichols 10:40

Yeah, that was by going into my junior year, and uh we were just horsing around and driving and and uh first thing you know, one thing led to another. We took chances, I guess. Anyway, we uh did uh I was riding, I was riding at a passenger side, and uh Jimmy was driving, my friend. And we all we all played played different sports together and hang hung out and so forth and whatever. And uh it was just one of those evenings where we hadn't have anything to do, but he had a he had a he was the only uh guy on our squad that had wheels, as we call it. So he he took us around and and that sort of thing. And unfortunately we we were going too fast, and we realize it now, but that's here now there, but it was an I will bear, of course. And luckily, when I had an accident, I uh of course uh I was out for th 13 days. I really I was playing ball, and I was uh I get I gotta be a like I said, quarterback. I was gonna be another Johnny Nines. And uh I I love I love playing ball because uh back in those days, you know, most boy even today kids play uh sports because of uh there's more than one. And golf, golf, you're kind of a loner sometimes, and you and you don't really practice or play as often as you maybe you should, right? And keep your game up and keep your feel going and so forth in your hands and stuff like that. So you you you pick up a golf club whenever you had a chance and not necessarily uh uh something that was uh your daily routine, or you might say. Anyway, golf was I was kind of a loner and some, but then we had four or five other boys and play uh started playing golf and uh and for singing on. Yeah, I I I won a state uh state high school in my junior and senior year. But before we had let me back up when I had an accident, uh of course I didn't know all this how about when I was laying there, what was going on. I was just hoping, well, not knowing that, but I was hoping I'd just stay alive, whatever. Uh but uh the word wasn't very good that they told my mom that I never walk again. Uh cause I had paralysis in my legs. Yeah, and my legs and my spine. So it was uh touch and go type of thing back in those days, and and so they they put me on a stretcher, and what they would do with this stretcher, uh they wouldn't try to come in and turn me over physically. They'd strap me to this uh to this thing, and then it it had a well you you can just flip it. And so they flip it one way, and I'd I'd be on my stomach half a day, and then uh they'd flip it and I'd be on my back the other half. Yeah. It was like uh and and that's how they would uh work with me. They wouldn't they wouldn't dare move my spine or or try to uh do anything else those days. You're lucky.

Bruce Devlin 14:19

I was lucky, you're right, you're right. Lucky to be alive, man.

Bobby Nichols 14:24

Anyways, it was uh Yeah, and things worked out where I came around and uh I got to where I physically uh I mean terminal injuries kind of healed and everything kind of fell into place with the prayers of the people that are filling for me. I really uh was really uh well I don't know what to say. I was I was out of it, didn't know anything about it, but uh I know I realized that what happened was a blessing. A big time. But anyways, after this, uh I wouldn't uh of course actually when we were riding, I was gonna be in by nine o'clock, and when I woke up after 13 days after the accident, I said, Mama, uh football practice started yet? And she said she just kind of looks at me and said, That's uh I don't recall her answer, but it wasn't uh what I was hoping to hear. Anyway, how bad it wasn't. She uh so uh we went through uh that so of course that was uh end of any any contact, any contact sports. Plus I had a break accusation and uh other things. Anyways, and I broke his spine, I mean I broke his hip and stuff like that. Anyways, one thing led to another, and physic physically uh or luckily I uh got to where I could uh heal pretty much ever all my injuries for some reason or another. They being young, I guess, was help helpful, but uh it was it was something. It uh anyway uh after that uh I kind of stuck to golf and started playing pretty regularly and and pretty uh uh as much as I possibly could. And uh after I I got to where I could walk, that was uh was was a blessing in itself. I couldn't well I didn't believe I could even walk at all. But then after about 96 days, I think it was, that I s I was staying that stretcher and then I started uh doing a small amount of exercise with the legs. And the first thing you know it was uh it came back. My sp my spine kind of uh uh healed, healed it and healed the rest like it should have. And uh therefore I was able to walk normal pretty much, not long, but just to stay small distance. Just to be able to get to stand up and walk was a blessing. So anyways, one thing to let him know, I and uh stayed that way until got to where I could uh play golf and stuff with the golf and and uh got to playing pretty good. I played uh I was uh really working at it pretty hard. And like I say, I won the state high school my j junior year 57 and and and also in 58 won the state high school championship.

Bruce Devlin 17:43

After high school, tell us how how you got to go to Texas AM. I think that's a very interesting story about you know, you were a good player in high school, and then uh all of a sudden you ended up at Texas AM.

Bobby Nichols 17:57

I know it was uh that was really a total surprise. Actually, one day I was just sitting around and and uh I was talking to my coach, my high school coach, and uh at the time Coach Bryant was in the process of of uh leaving Kentucky, maybe, and go to University of our brother Texas AM. And uh they were after him pretty big, I mean pretty hot. They wanted him really, really bad. So finally, after so many uh visits, he finally uh the story goes, I remember uh his uh that uh he was uh telling uh his assistant he finally just took the job because he he was telling his assistant to take the job at AM that he didn't want to leave Kentucky, but he he just said they just offered him too much money. So he he went he went to Texas AM. And when he did, my high school coach, uh Johnny Myhouse, he was a he played for Barrett, University of Kentucky. And he said, uh, where are you going to go to school? I said, well, uh coach, I don't know if I can even get in anywhere. Now I've I'm not uh golfy, he can't have half scholarship, maybe, but there's no such thing as a full ride to Spring Sports. And he said, Well, that's true, but he said, let me, let me let me, let me talk, let me uh uh house around here. So you he went back to Coach Bryant and he told him about me what I wanted to do and so forth. He said, Well, bring him on, I'll put him on a football scholarship. Well, I I couldn't believe my ears when I heard that. How about that, huh? Yeah, how about it? Anyway, uh anyway, he uh he put me on a football scholarship, and at the time he had ninety-seven on scholarship football players. Back then you could have as many as you wanted. Yeah, but I've been so well you all know that you all know the story. He's a pretty good recruiter, wasn't he? Oh, yeah. Everybody wanted to play for him, right? Uh there it was a kind of a love-hate relationship that hated his practices, but they loved uh who he was.

Bruce Devlin 20:32

Yeah.

Bobby Nichols 20:33

And uh, anyways, I said, Well, I'd love to go to Texas AM. He said, Well, let me see what I can do for you. So he came back about a week later, he said, You're all set. You registered, they registered you at Texas AM. I said, What? So, anyways, just get just pack your bags and go. So I did, and uh, and that's how I got to Texas AM. But uh and uh I remember Coach, Coach go down when I arrived there, he he he brought me in the office. He he first thing he knew, he kind of contacted me and brought me in the office. He said, uh, I'm glad you accept my offer come to Texas AM because uh he's a he was also the not only the football coach, but also the athletic director. Right. So he ran the entire program, and therefore he could do anything he wanted to spring sports or whatever sport. And uh that's how he gave me a f a full football scholarship. And so anyway, uh he brought me in the elbows, he said, he said, he thanked me thank thanked me for accepting his offer. And so I said, Well, coach, thank you so much, it's it's it's really a blessing. I'm looking forward to this. He said, Well, I want you to do is hit the books. Hit the books. That was it, that was the end of the uh end of the uh meeting. And uh therefore it was just uh I would just hang out with he said, I wouldn't like for you to, whenever you get some free time, hang out with the boys at the at the uh practice field, they'd like to see you. I said, Okay, so I would have to go out there. Kind of funny, it was kind of funny of a story that I'll be I'd be standing there and they'd gonna be going by, be looking at me, and they're they're all hot, bot uh sweaty, got their clothes on, and I'm standing there and not a drip, uh no no clean clothes all clean everything. They looked at me and a couple of them stopped and said, but I won't tell you repeat what he said, what they said, but it was funny. I had some great, great time with the guy, so I really did. And uh that was that was some of the best times of my life in college.

Mike Gonzalez 23:03

I think, Bobby, for our listeners, I just want to take them back uh to a couple things you mentioned. First of all, uh just to reinforce uh what you said uh because it sounded like maybe you were sleeping for 13 days, but with that accident, uh unconscious for 13 days, in the hospital, you mentioned being on that stretcher for 96 days. Uh you certainly weren't going to play any football after that at Texas AL, even though you you went down there initially on a football scholarship. But one thing I want to come back to and Bruce can chime in too. Bruce and I have heard from many, many, many of the players we've talked to about how important team play was as a young man, but also how they enjoyed the solitary aspects of the game of golf.

Bobby Nichols 23:52

Yep. It uh well I like I say, when I sort of took up the game of golf, there weren't very many players. It wasn't as popular, of course, like it is today. There were a few guys playing and and you kind of wanted to play play with them and and and you it was uh it was quite a nice uh education to to be able to play with part and be team up and play matches and stuff. It was it was a lot of fun.

Bruce Devlin 24:24

So Bobby, you wanted to be uh another Johnny Unitus, and I wanted to be an Olympian in field hockey.

Bobby Nichols 24:34

Oh really?

Bruce Devlin 24:35

Yeah, in field hockey. See, I come from a little town where we had three Olympians that played field hockey for Australia. So that was my that was what I was gonna do. I was gonna be an Olympian playing hockey. Oh my gosh. So, you know, and that again, what like what uh Mike just said, m most of our guys, particularly in our era, we you know, we weren't we weren't sent to college to play golf and have you know psycho people helping us and all. It was, you know, team sport was big for us in the early days. Right.

Bobby Nichols 25:11

It was really it was it was fun playing a team sport, but uh hey Bobby, say hello to say hello to Gloria.

Mike Gonzalez 25:17

Gloria, get in the camera. Tell her to get in the camera, Bruce.

Bobby Nichols 25:19

Well, hi Gloria. Get in the camera so we can see you. Oh my goodness, how are you doing? Gloria. Good to see you, Gloria. You look good as ever.

Bruce Devlin 25:35

Look, yo. Good looking. So that's there you go, Bobby. See, we can do anything on this podcast. We can take a break like that. That's great. Yeah, she wanted to come and say hi to you before she you guys have sound like you have a lot of fun doing your work, which is which is pretty darn special. Yeah, well, it's special having you with us, pal. I can tell you that.

Mike Gonzalez 25:59

Bobby, you had a you had a pretty good friend uh back in the AM days, and a guy named John David Crow. He was a pretty decent football player. Man.

Bobby Nichols 26:10

What a what a player. He he was uh and he he he got to he got to wanting to play golf a lot when he got to that to AM. And uh he was he was a special ball player. He was out of Spring Hill, Louisiana. And uh Bear, he was going to LSU, and the Bear got involved in the recruiting, and that was all it took. So he came to AM and uh he was quite a quite a quite a ball player. In fact, uh Bear back in the you know uh to be a Heisman Award winner, you're supposed to be, or you should be, the best all-around player in college. The Heisman Award was given to the best player all around. He could do everything back in those days. You played both ways, defense and and offense, and you were good runners and you grew and you had to be a good tackler. You had to be a good defensive man. The bear said if there ever was a Heisman board winner that's deserving, it would be John David Crow. Because he was back when he played at the AM, he was down the way an excellent runner, but people would would not want to get tackled by John David. He looked like he'd been chiseled out of stone. And uh he weed about 210 and could run pretty darn fast for the back in those days. And uh he was just uh excellent ball player. He played three or four years for the 49ers, uh but then he blew his knee out. That that kind of hurt those days, and they couldn't repair him like he could today. But still, when you blow your knee out, it's pretty hard to come back. John David, he was he was a special guy, and he took a liking to me, I think, and uh I took a liking to him, of course, for college and uh hung out, and we we really had a a wonderful time of the years over there at the ANL.

Bruce Devlin 28:30

So Bobby, what what convinced you after going to college and playing college uh golf to turn pro? Well, I mean, did somebody have a big influence on sort of leading you that way or not? I I'm like you, Bruce.

Bobby Nichols 28:47

I I don't know uh what else I could have done. I thought I'd try golf and s and try to see if I can make some money at it. I really didn't wasn't interested in doing any other any other uh j job uh of it, so I s I try to stick with golf and hopefully I could make enough money in golf to to stay in it and and kind of pursue it and see how far I could go with it.

Bruce Devlin 29:16

So how did you how did you get started, Bobby?

Bobby Nichols 29:19

Actually I got started while I was at ANM. I I uh my good friend Marcelino Moreno, who's uh uh my roommate there, he l he lived in Midland, Texas, and uh back in those days that that still is the all more or less the all capital of the world, uh the Permian Basin. And it's got more oil than than uh Saudi Arabia, they say. I mean it's just anyways, it's a a oil capital of Texas, pretty much. Anyway, he uh took me out there, and one thing led to another, I was playing golf with some members, and they said, You get out of school, come back out here, and we'll see. We'll just uh see what we can do. So I did after I left school, after I got out of college in 1958, I uh did my duty as a uh RLTC man. I would I took RLTC in college, so I had to fulfill my obligations there. But fortunately, back in our day, they ran short of money, so they let RLTC guys who graduated from college go on a six-month active duty rather than a two-year deal. I was forced to I hit that just right. And so I just went, I says, give me the sixth month and the rest in reserve. Yeah. So that's what that's how I got to go to uh to uh get out on a golf circuit in fifth in 60. And uh and uh and uh one thing led to another and and uh back in those days, I don't know exactly how I got my card, other than you had to do sa you had to do performances.

Bruce Devlin 31:11

Bruce probably knows more about this than I do, uh, about the performances we had to go through to You had to play for six months uh before you could take any prize money, yeah.

Bobby Nichols 31:23

Right, exactly.

Bruce Devlin 31:24

I forgot that.

Bobby Nichols 31:25

You're right, Bruce. Exactly right.

Mike Gonzalez 31:27

Bobby, by this time, by this time, uh there's a gentleman by the name of Ben Hogan that had been in and out of your life a couple times, right? I mean, let's take take your take our listeners back to uh his kind gesture when you were recovering from your accident.

Bobby Nichols 31:43

Okay, well, what I was laying in my way laying in my bed, uh laying in the bed, uh recruitering from the accident, my high school uh uh teacher, one of them, wrote Mr. Hogan a letter and explained to him my situation, and the first thing you know, here comes a letter back. And I got the letter and read the letter, and it was very, very expiring because I was always admired him. And uh while I was out at Midland, by the way, there go through uh grade school and high school, uh or rather college, I got the chance to play with Mr. Hogan. And uh so it was it was uh I had known known him a little bit. So anyways, one thing led to another when I got that letter from him, it really, it really perked me up. I I couldn't believe it. And when uh and then I when I when I got out of college, I uh uh course like I say, I would uh get on a tour and and I'd whenever I'd known Mr. Hogan was gonna play, I would kind of make myself available. I'd always get in his way or somewhere, he'd look up and see who it was, and he'd say, Go get you a partner. That's all he'd say. And that and of course he always had Jackie Burke and him playing together. And when they played together, I mean you had to be, as Bruce, Bruce would tell you, uh, when you when you put Mr. Hogan and Jackie Burke together, you got a pretty well uh pr almost an unbeatable team. Anyway, we they they would always play together and and and we would uh play with them. And a couple a couple of times we did that. And uh one thing led to another, that was in 1961, two, and then in three uh rather four, uh I was fortunate enough to play with him in a f in a PGA final round. And uh he was in in my group in the last group uh that on that uh that day in in Columbus. Uh anyways, I played with him and uh I I won fortunately with him. He was an inspiration all the way. And anyways, we got through playing and uh I didn't see him till maybe uh well maybe a month or two later. Then we had what they call the World Open at Oakland Hills in Birmingham, Michigan, which was a was a Carling World Open. Right. And it was uh it it was the first tournament that we invited the the world players, in other words, England and Spain, wherever players would come over and play in what they call the World Open. It was at Oakland Hills, which is world famous for majors. And uh I was fortunate enough to play with him there again. And so we were checking out, and I was living in California, happened to be in 6345, and and uh was walking down the stairways, uh and there he is at the club checkout counter. And he's and I wait behind him to check out, and he turns around, he sees me standing there, and he says, You ought to pay me to play with you. I said, Mr. Hogan, I don't think I have enough to money to do that. Anyway, he was uh he he was always good to me. I mean he he never he was like anybody else, he never talked a lot, but boy, he was whenever he said words, they weren't wasted.

Mike Gonzalez 35:50

Thank you for listening to another episode of For the Good of the Game. And please, wherever you listen to your podcast on Apple and Spotify, if you like what you hear, please subscribe, spread the word, but tell your friends until we tee it up again for the good of the game.

Intro Music 36:08

So long, everybody fairway, it went smack down the fairway. Okay, stay in the middle.