May 5, 1923: Golfer Bill Campbell Born in Huntington

Golfer Bill Campbell was born in Huntington on May 5, 1923. He would win more than 30 championships over seven decades, establishing him as one of the greatest amateur golfers in history.

  His father introduced him to the game when Bill Campbell was only three. At age 15, he played in his first U.S. Amateur Tournament, where he met Sam Snead. Snead would become first a mentor and then lifelong friend to Campbell.

After serving in Europe during World War II, Campbell returned to Huntington and worked in the insurance business. He also served three years in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

Despite his rare talent, he remained an amateur and played in the U.S. Amateur Championship 37 times, winning it in 1964 at age 41. He won 15 state amateur titles, three West Virginia Opens, two World Amateur Championships, and back-to-back U.S. Senior Amateur titles. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1990 and, along with Snead, became the inaugural inductees into the West Virginia Golf Hall of Fame in 2009. Bill Campbell died in Lewisburg in 2013 at age 90.