Bernays Emery "Buster" Bishop (1920 – November 19, 2004) was an American college

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

coach. Bishop was best known for leading the

Florida Gators men's golf The Florida Gators men's golf team represents the University of Florida in the sport of golf. The Gators compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They play their home ...

team of the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

(NCAA) Division I championships in 1968 and 1973.

Early life and education

Bishop was born in Gainesville, Florida. Former Coach Buster Bishop Passes Away At Age 84
," GatorZone.com (November 21, 2004). Retrieved July 12, 2011. He attended Gainesville High School, graduating in 1939. He then enrolled in the University of Florida, where he earned his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in education in 1944, and his

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in physical education in 1955.

Coaching career

After graduating from the University of Florida, Bishop became the head of the physical education program at Buchholz Junior High School in Gainesville. He later became the head football coach and athletic director at Gainesville High School, before accepting an appointment as a professor of physical education at the University of Florida. Bishop became the head coach of the Florida Gators golf team of the University of Florida in 1964.
Florida Men's Golf 2011 Media Supplement
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 27, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40 (2010). Retrieved July 13, 2011. Under his tutelage, the Gators won the 1968 NCAA national championship; it was the first national championship in any sport for the university's intercollegiate athletics program.Gary Smits,
Florida golf program continues success begun by 1968 team
" ''The Florida Times-Union'' (February 26, 2011). Retrieved July 12, 2011. Five years later, the Gators won a second NCAA national championship in 1973. The Gators were also the runners-up at the NCAA national championship tournament in 1967 and 1974. During Bishop's tenure as head coach, the Gators won four SEC team championships (1968, 1973, 1974, 1975), and only finished worse than third in the ten-team SEC once in his fifteen seasons leading the team. His fellow SEC coaches recognized him three consecutive seasons as the conference's Coach of the Year (1973, 1974, 1975). Starting in 1970, eight of his Gators received sixteen first-team All-SEC honors. Individually, his Gators golfers won three

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

Bob Murphy Robert, Rob, Bob or Bobby Murphy may refer to: Sports Ice hockey *Robert Ronald Murphy or Ron Murphy (1933–2014), Canadian ice hockey player * Bob Murphy (ice hockey) (born 1951), Canadian retired professional ice hockey player * Rob Murphy (ice ...

(1965), Steve Melnyk (1969), and

Fred Ridley Fred Scobie Ridley (born August 16, 1952) is an American amateur golfer and golf administrator who won the U.S. Amateur in 1975, was elected president of the United States Golf Association (USGA) in 2004, and then became chairman of Augusta Nat ...

(1975). Murphy also won the NCAA individual title (1966). Six of his student-athletes won eight individual

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC) titles: Steve Melnyk (1968), Jimmy McQuillan (1971),

Gary Koch Gary D. Koch (born November 21, 1952) is an American professional golfer, sportscaster and golf course designer, who formerly played on the PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour and Champions Tour. Early years Koch was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in ...

(1973, 1974),

Phil Hancock Phillip Ranson Hancock (born October 30, 1953) is an American professional golfer who formerly played on the PGA Tour. Early life Hancock learned to play golf growing up in Greenville, Alabama from his father, a local dentist.Charles Newborn, ...

(1975, 1976), Sam Trahan (1977) and Larry Rinker (1978). Fifteen of Bishop's golfers earned a total of twenty-five All-American honors between 1964 and 1978. Strangely, Bishop had never played golf before becoming the head coach of the Gators golf team. When he started to play following his appointment as coach, he went from novice to breaking 80 on the

University of Florida Golf Course A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

within a month. His players remembered him as a "master motivator." The

Golf Coaches Association of America The Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) is a non-profit organization that is a professional association of men’s collegiate golf coaches. It was founded in 1958, and is located on 1225 West Main Street in Norman, Oklahoma. The GCAA has o ...

(GCAA) inducted him into its Coaches Hall of Fame in 1982. He was also inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as an "honorary letter winner" in 1996.

Death and legacy

Bishop died in Gainesville in 2004; he was 84 years old. He was survived by his wife of forty-eight years, JoAnn O'Donnell Bishop, and their three daughters and son. Following his death, former Gators golfers and fans established an endowed University of Florida athletic scholarship fund in his name.University of Florida Foundation, Endowed Scholarships & Fellowships
Buster Bishop Endowment
Retrieved July 12, 2011.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bishop, Buster 1920 births 2004 deaths Florida Gators men's golf coaches Sportspeople from Gainesville, Florida University of Florida faculty

Early life and education

Coaching career

Death and legacy

See also

References