Julius Boros

Julius Nicolas Boros (March 3, 1920 – May 28, 1994) was an American professional golfer noted for his effortless-looking swing and strong record on difficult golf courses, particularly at the U.S. Open.^[1][2]

Julius Boros
Boros in a 1949 ad
Personal information
Full name	Julius Nicolas Boros
Nickname	Moose[1]
Born	(1920-03-03)March 3, 1920 Fairfield, Connecticut, U.S.
Died	May 28, 1994(1994-05-28) (aged 74) Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	215 lb (98 kg; 15.4 st)
Sporting nationality	United States
Children	7, including Guy
Career
College	Junior College of Connecticut
Turned professional	1949
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour
Professional wins	25
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	18
Other	4 (regular) 3 (senior)
Best results in major championships (wins: 3)
Masters Tournament	T3: 1963
PGA Championship	Won: 1968
U.S. Open	Won: 1952, 1963
The Open Championship	15th: 1966
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame 1982 (member page) PGA Tour money list winner 1952, 1955 PGA Player of the Year 1952, 1963

Early life and amateur career

Born in Fairfield, Connecticut, Boros was of Hungarian descent, and played varsity baseball in college.^[3] He then worked as an accountant while playing high-standard amateur golf.^[1][2]

Professional career

Boros turned professional in 1949 at age 29.^[1][2] He won 18 PGA Tour events, including three major championships: the 1952 and 1963 U.S. Opens and the 1968 PGA Championship. He won his first by four strokes in the heat at the Northwood Club in Dallas, also his first PGA Tour victory, which interrupted the U.S. Open streak of 36-hole leader Ben Hogan for a year. In the windy 1963 U.S. Open near Boston, Boros defeated Arnold Palmer and Jacky Cupit in a playoff, after all had finished the 72 holes at a post-war record nine over par.

For over a half century, Boros was the oldest player to win a modern major, taking the 1968 PGA Championship in San Antonio by a stroke at age 48. One of the runners-up was Palmer, who never won the PGA Championship to complete his career grand slam. The previous oldest winner of a major was Old Tom Morris, age 46 in the 1867 Open Championship. Boros' mark was surpassed by Phil Mickelson, who won the PGA Championship in 2021 at age fifty.

Boros' best results among the majors were at the U.S. Open, with nine top-five finishes; he contended in that championship as late as 1973 at age 53, and tied for seventh.^[1][2]

Boros was a member of the Ryder Cup team in 1959, 1963, 1965, and 1967. He was PGA Player of the Year in 1952 and 1963, and his total career PGA Tour earnings were $1,004,861. Boros was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1982.^[1][2]

While other players often walked around a hole and studied the green for several minutes before putting – sometimes from their knees, Boros is remembered for not wasting any time on either the greens or the fairways. He would walk up to the ball and "just do it". Noted for his relaxed, nonchalant-looking swing and manner, he is remembered for his catchphrase "swing easy, hit hard." Boros had an exceptional short game.^[1]

Boros was also instrumental in starting the Senior PGA Tour in the late 1970s. The exciting televised playoff victory of Boros and partner Roberto De Vicenzo over Tommy Bolt and Art Wall Jr. at the Legends of Golf tournament in 1979 raised the profile of professional senior golf competition.^[1]

Personal life

Boros' first wife, Buttons Cosgrove, died in childbirth in 1951. Boros and his second wife, Armen, had seven children: four sons and three daughters. His son Guy Boros won on the PGA Tour in 1996, at the Greater Vancouver Open in late August.^[1][2][4]

Boros suffered a fatal heart attack in 1994 on the golf course at the Coral Ridge Country Club in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He was found sitting in a golf cart under a willow tree by two club members near the 16th hole, his favorite spot on the course.^[1][2]

Professional wins (25)

PGA Tour wins (18)

Legend
Major championships (3)
Other PGA Tour (15)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Jun 14, 1952	U.S. Open	71-71-68-71=281	+1	4 strokes	Ed Oliver
2	Aug 11, 1952	World Championship of Golf	68-71-70-67=276	−12	Playoff	Cary Middlecoff
3	May 9, 1954	Ardmore Open	68-69-72-70=279	−1	1 stroke	Jerry Barber
4	Jul 18, 1954	Carling Open	71-70-68-71=280	−8	Playoff	George Fazio
5	Aug 14, 1955	World Championship of Golf (2)	70-72-69-70=281	−7	2 strokes	Fred Haas
6	May 11, 1958	Arlington Hotel Open	70-64-68-71=273	−15	1 stroke	Cary Middlecoff
7	Nov 9, 1958	Carling Open Invitational (2)	74-66-70-74=284	−4	2 strokes	Billy Casper
8	Sep 14, 1959	Dallas Open Invitational	68-66-70-70=274	−10	1 stroke	Dow Finsterwald, Earl Stewart, Bo Wininger
9	May 15, 1960	Colonial National Invitation	70-71-69-70=280	E	1 stroke	Gene Littler, Kel Nagle
10	May 12, 1963	Colonial National Invitation (2)	71-66-71-71=279	−1	4 strokes	Gary Player
11	Jun 9, 1963	Buick Open Invitational	66-71-68-69=274	−14	5 strokes	Dow Finsterwald
12	Jun 23, 1963	U.S. Open (2)	71-74-76-72=293	+9	Playoff	Jacky Cupit, Arnold Palmer
13	Apr 5, 1964	Greater Greensboro Open	68-70-73-66=277	−7	Playoff	Doug Sanders
14	Feb 12, 1967	Phoenix Open Invitational	69-67-69-67=272	−12	1 stroke	Ken Still
15	Mar 12, 1967	Florida Citrus Open Invitational	70-67-67-70=274	−10	1 stroke	George Knudson, Arnold Palmer
16	Jun 11, 1967	Buick Open Invitational (2)	72-72-70-69=283	−5	3 strokes	Bob Goalby, R. H. Sikes, Bert Yancey
17	Jul 21, 1968	PGA Championship	71-71-70-69=281	+1	1 stroke	Bob Charles, Arnold Palmer
18	Aug 18, 1968	Westchester Classic	70-65-69-68=272	−16	1 stroke	Bob Murphy, Jack Nicklaus, Dan Sikes

PGA Tour playoff record (4–6)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1952	World Championship of Golf	Cary Middlecoff	Won 18-hole playoff; Boros: −4 (68), Middlecoff: −2 (70)
2	1954	Miami Beach International Four-Ball (with Dutch Harrison)	Tommy Bolt and Dick Mayer	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
3	1954	Carling Open	George Fazio	Won with par on first extra hole
4	1958	Dallas Open Invitational	John McMullin, Gary Player, Sam Snead	Snead won with birdie on first extra hole
5	1959	Houston Classic	Jack Burke Jr.	Lost 18-hole playoff; Burke: −8 (64), Boros: −3 (69)
6	1963	U.S. Open	Jacky Cupit, Arnold Palmer	Won 18-hole playoff; Boros: −1 (70), Cupit: + 2 (73), Palmer: +5 (76)
7	1963	Western Open	Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer	Palmer won 18-hole playoff; Palmer: −1 (70), Boros: E (71), Nicklaus: +2 (73)
8	1964	Greater Greensboro Open	Doug Sanders	Won with par on first extra hole
9	1969	Greater Greensboro Open	Gene Littler, Orville Moody, Tom Weiskopf	Littler won with birdie on fifth extra hole Weiskopf eliminated by par on first hole
10	1975	Westchester Classic	Gene Littler	Lost to par on first extra hole

Other wins (4)

This list may be incomplete

• 1951 Massachusetts Open
• 1956 Carolinas PGA Championship
• 1964 Carolinas PGA Championship
• 1979 South Florida PGA Championship

Senior wins (3)

• 1971 PGA Seniors' Championship
• 1977 PGA Seniors' Championship
• 1979 Legends of Golf (with Roberto De Vicenzo)

Major championships

Wins (3)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner(s)-up
1952	U.S. Open	2 shot lead	[phone]=281)	4 strokes	Ed Oliver
1963	U.S. Open (2)	3 shot deficit	[phone]=293)	Playoff1	Jacky Cupit, Arnold Palmer
1968	PGA Championship	2 shot deficit	[phone]=281)	1 stroke	Bob Charles, Arnold Palmer

¹Defeated Jacky Cupit and Arnold Palmer in an 18-hole playoff - Boros 70 (-1), Cupit 73 (+2), Palmer 76 (+5).

Results timeline

Tournament	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
Masters Tournament	T35	17	T7	T10	T16	T4	T24	CUT	T39	T8
U.S. Open	9	T4	1	T17	T23	T5	T2	T4	3	T28
The Open Championship
PGA Championship									T5	T44

Tournament	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969
Masters Tournament	5	CUT	T11	T3	CUT	CUT	T28	5	T16	T33
U.S. Open	T3	CUT		1	CUT	T4	T17	WD	T16	T13
The Open Championship							15
PGA Championship	T24	CUT	T11	T13	T21	T17	T6	T5	1	T25

Tournament	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980
Masters Tournament	T23	CUT	CUT	CUT	T26
U.S. Open	T12	T42	T29	T7	WD	T38		CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship	T26	T34	WD	CUT		T40	CUT	T58	CUT	CUT	CUT

  Win

  Top 10

  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" = tied

Summary

Tournament	Wins	2nd	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	0	0	1	4	7	13	25	18
U.S. Open	2	1	2	9	11	17	26	21
The Open Championship	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1
PGA Championship	1	0	0	3	4	10	22	15
Totals	3	1	3	16	22	41	74	55

• Most consecutive cuts made – 14 (1950 Masters – 1956 U.S. Open)
• Longest streak of top-10s – 4 (1951 U.S. Open – 1953 Masters)

U.S. national team appearances

Professional

• Ryder Cup: 1959 (winners), 1963 (winners), 1965 (winners), 1967 (winners)
• World Cup: 1953, 1968
• Hopkins Trophy: 1952 (winners), 1953 (winners)

See also

• Biography portal

• List of golfers with most PGA Tour wins
• List of men's major championships winning golfers