David Barclay (July 5, 1920 – October 28, 2009) was an American amateur

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 wi ...

er in the 1940s. He played for the

Michigan Wolverines The Michigan Wolverines comprise 29 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except women's water polo, which competes in the NCAA inter-divisio ...

golf team and won the 50th annual NCAA intercollegiate golf championship held in

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County, Michigan, Washtenaw County. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851. It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor ...

, in June 1947.

Early years

Barclay was a native of

Rockford, Illinois Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, located in the far northern part of the state. Situated on the banks of the Rock River, Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County (a small portion of the city is located in Ogle County). ...

. In 1938, he helped lead Rockford High School's golf team to a tie for third place in Illinois. In 1941, he enlisted in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

and flew 54 combat missions as a bomber navigator during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

University of Michigan

After being discharged from the military, Barclay enrolled at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. While attending Michigan, he played on the

golf team. He finished tied for eighth place in the 1946 NCAA tournament. The following year, the NCAA's intercollegiate golf tournament was held at the University of Michigan Golf Course in

. He defeated LSU's Jack Coyle in the championship match to become the 1947 NCAA golf champion. Barclay was the third Michigan Wolverines golfer to win the NCAA championship, following

Johnny Fischer John W. Fischer (March 10, 1912 – May 25, 1984) was an American amateur golfer in the 1930s. Fischer was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He won the 1932 NCAA individual golf championship and the Big Ten Conference individual championship in 1932 ...

(1932) and

Chuck Kocsis Charles R. Kocsis (January 27, 1913 – May 30, 2006) was an American amateur golfer. Kocsis was introduced to the game as a caddie at the Phoenix Country Club, which is now Rogell Municipal Golf Course. One of fourteen children, he grew up in the ...

(1936). No Michigan golfer has achieved the feat since then. Barclay was inducted into the

University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor The University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor, founded in 1978, recognizes University of Michigan athletes, coaches, and administrators who have made significant contributions to the university's athletic programs.

in 1987.

Later years

Barclay moved to

Mayfield, Kentucky Mayfield is a home rule–class city and the county seat of Graves County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 10,017 as of the 2020 United States Census. History 19th century Mayfield is in the center of the Jackson Purchase, an eig ...

, in 1951. He lived there until his death in 2009. For more than 30 years, he was an employee of

Union Carbide Union Carbide Corporation is an American chemical corporation wholly owned subsidiary (since February 6, 2001) by Dow Chemical Company. Union Carbide produces chemicals and polymers that undergo one or more further conversions by customers befor ...

at the

Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) is a facility located in McCracken County, Kentucky, near Paducah, Kentucky that produced enriched uranium from 1952 to 2013. It is owned by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The PGDP was the only op ...

, producing enriched uranium to fuel nuclear reactors and for use in nuclear weapons. He became the head of the finance and materials division. He retired in 1983 and died in 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barclay, Dave American male golfers Amateur golfers Michigan Wolverines men's golfers Golfers from Illinois United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Military personnel from Illinois Sportspeople from Rockford, Illinois People from Mayfield, Kentucky 1920 births 2009 deaths