William Hugh Royer Jr. (August 19, 1936 – September 12, 2014) was an American

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who played on the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also known as the PGA Tour, the PGA Tour Champion ...

in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Royer was born in

Eastman, Georgia Eastman is a city in Dodge County, Georgia, United States. The population was 5,658 at the 2020 census, up from 4,962 at the 2010 census. The city was named after William Pitt Eastman, a native of Massachusetts who purchased a large tract of l ...

. During his youth, his family moved to

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee ...

, where he learned the game of

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

from

Fred Haskins Fred or FRED may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Freder ...

and Charlie Harper at the Columbus Country Club. He attended the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

where his love for the sport of golf was further nurtured by the legendary coach

Howell Hollis Howell T. Hollis (March 18, 1903 – March 11, 1991) was a football player, football and golf coach and administrator at the University of Georgia. As the men's golf coach from 1946 – 1970 his teams won 13 Southeastern Conference champio ...

. While a student at

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, Royer was a standout basketball player and captain of the golf team. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

in Education (B.S.Ed.) degree in 1959. In 1958, he won the Georgia State Amateur and the

Southern Amateur The Southern Amateur is an amateur golf tournament. It has been played since 1902 and is organized by the Southern Golf Association. From 1902 to 1963, it was played at match play. Since 1964, it has been played at stroke play. In December 2021, t ...

tournaments. He turned pro in 1959 and won the St. Charles Open in his first pro event. Royer won one PGA Tour event, the biggest win of his career, at the 1970

Western Open The Western Open was a professional golf tournament in the United States, for most of its history an event on the PGA Tour. The tournament's founding in 1899 actually pre-dated the start of the Tour, which is generally dated from 1916, the ye ...

, then considered to be one of the most prestigious non-major tournaments in men's professional golf. His best finish in a

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

was T-22 at the 1968 U.S. Open. He spent 14 years playing on the PGA Tour. Like most professional golfers of his generation, Royer earned his living primarily as a club pro as very few could afford the

Tour Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...

full-time. He was head pro at

Callaway Gardens Callaway Resort & Gardens is a resort complex located near Pine Mountain, Harris County, Georgia, Pine Mountain in Harris County, Georgia, from LaGrange, Georgia. The world's largest azalea garden, this destination draws over 750,000 visitors a ...

from 1960 to 1966. Later, he was head pro at Bull Creek Golf Club in

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, the capital city of the U.S. state of Ohio * Columbus, Georgia, a city i ...

. Royer served as president of the Georgia PGA and was honored as Georgia Golf Professional of the Year in 1983. He was inducted into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame in January 1989. Royer also coached golf at

Columbus State University Columbus State University is a public university in Columbus, Georgia, United States. Founded as Columbus College in 1958, the university was established and is administered by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. History ...

. During his tenure as Associate Coach, the Cougars of Columbus State won five NCAA Division II titles. Royer lived in Columbus, Georgia. His son,

Hugh Royer III Hugh Royer III (born February 13, 1964) is an American professional golfer and golf instructor. Early life Royer was born in Columbus, Georgia. He is the son of the professional golfer Hugh Royer Jr., who played on the PGA Tour for 14 years and ...

, is a professional golfer with multiple wins on the

Nike Tour Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine given ...

Amateur wins

*1958 Georgia State Amateur,

Professional wins (7)

PGA Tour wins (1)

Other wins (6)

*1959 St. Charles Open *1963 Georgia PGA Championship *1964 Georgia PGA Championship *1968 Georgia Open *1983 Atlanta Open *1989 Georgia Senior Open

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Royer, Hugh Jr. American male golfers Georgia Bulldogs men's golfers PGA Tour golfers College golf coaches in the United States Golfers from Georgia (U.S. state) People from Eastman, Georgia Sportspeople from Columbus, Georgia 1936 births 2014 deaths 20th-century American sportsmen