Robert Henry "Skee" Riegel (November 25, 1914 – February 22, 2009) was an American professional golfer. Riegel attended

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

, Hobart College, and

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after General Laf ...

where he played football and baseball but not golf. He took up golf at the age of 23. During World War II, he was a flying instructor for the US Army Air Corp in

Arkadelphia, Arkansas Arkadelphia is a city in Clark County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 10,714. The city is the county seat of Clark County. It is situated at the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Two universities, Hender ...

. Riegel won the 1947

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 ...

over Johnny Dawson at the

Pebble Beach Golf Links Pebble Beach Golf Links is a public golf course on the west coast of the United States, located in Pebble Beach, California. Regarded by ''Travel and Leisure'' blog as one of the most beautiful courses in the world, it hugs the rugged coastlin ...

, 2 and 1. He played on the

Walker Cup The Walker Cup is a golf trophy contested in odd-numbered years by leading male amateur golfers in two teams: United States, and Great Britain and Ireland. The official name is the Walker Cup Match (not "Matches" as in Ryder Cup Matches). It is ...

teams of 1947 and 1949 under captain as

Francis Ouimet Francis DeSales Ouimet () (May 8, 1893 – September 2, 1967) was an American amateur golfer who is frequently referred to as the "father of amateur golf" in the United States. He won the U.S. Open in 1913 and was the first non-Briton elected ...

. He went undefeated in his four Walker Cup matches. Riegel was the low amateur (T13) in the 1948 Masters Tournament Riegel turned professional in 1950 and played in 11 straight Masters Tournaments from 1947 to 1957. In the

1951 Masters Tournament The 1951 Masters Tournament was the 15th Masters Tournament, held April 5–8 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. Ben Hogan, age 38, won the first of his two Masters titles, two strokes ahead of runner-up Skee Riegel. It was the fift ...

, he was tied with

Sam Snead Samuel Jackson Snead (pronounced English_phonology">sni:d.html" ;"title="English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d">English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an ...

after three rounds and finished second to

Ben Hogan William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory an ...

by two strokes. Riegel finished second to

Ted Kroll Ted J. Kroll (August 4, 1919 – April 23, 2002) was an American professional golfer. Kroll was born in New Hartford, New York. Kroll served in the United States Army during World War II and earned three Purple Hearts after being wounded four ti ...

in the 1952 Insurance City Open. Riegel stopped playing full-time in 1952-1953. He served as head pro at Radnor Valley Country Club from 1954 to 1961 and then became involved in the ownership of York Road Country Club in

Bucks County, Pennsylvania Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...

. Riegel was the Pro Emeritus at the Cape May National Golf Club in

Cape May, New Jersey Cape May is a city located at the southern tip of Cape May Peninsula in Cape May County, New Jersey, United States, where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the country's oldest vacation resort destinations, and part of ...

. He was often found walking the grounds with his poodle John Paul. Cape May National holds a large amount of history, with a number of articles about "Skee" on the walls of its clubhouse, as well a number of plaques located on the 18th tee.

Amateur wins

*1942 Florida State Amateur *1943 Southern Oregon Amateur *1946 Trans-Mississippi Amateur *1947 Monroe Invitational,

*1948 Trans-Mississippi Amateur,

Western Amateur The Western Amateur is a leading annual golf tournament in the United States for male amateur golfers. It is organized by the Western Golf Association. The Western Amateur features an international field of top-ranked amateur golfers. It was first ...

Professional wins

''this list may be incomplete'' *1957

Pennsylvania Open Championship The Pennsylvania Open Championship is the Pennsylvania state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Pennsylvania Golf Association. It has been played annually since 1912 (except for war years) at ...

*1959

, Yorktown Open *1960

Philadelphia Open Championship The Philadelphia Open Championship is an annual golf tournament played in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area. It is organized by the Golf Association of Philadelphia. It has been played annually since 1903 (except for war years & 2020) at member c ...

, Genesee (Genny) Open *1967 Salsbury Open *1968 Salsbury Open

Major championships

Amateur wins (1)

Results timeline

Amateur Professional ''Note: Riegel never played in

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later t ...

.''
M = medalist
LA = low amateur
NT = no tournament
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1962 PGA Championship)
"T" indicates a tie for a place
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in match play Sources: Masters, U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur, PGA Championship, 1947 British Amateur

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur *

: 1947 (winners), 1949 (winners)

References

External links

Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riegel, Skee American male golfers Golfers from Pennsylvania United States Military Academy alumni Military personnel from Pennsylvania Hobart and William Smith Colleges alumni Lafayette Leopards baseball players Lafayette Leopards football players Players of American football from Pennsylvania People from Perry County, Pennsylvania 1914 births 2009 deaths