Ed Oliver (golfer)

American professional golfer (1915–1961)

Edward Stewart "Porky" Oliver, Jr. (September 6, 1915 – September 21, 1961) was a professional golfer from the United States. He played on what is now known as the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s.

Born in Wilmington, Delaware, Oliver started as a caddie at age 11 at the Dupont Country Club. He was later recruited to Wilmington Country Club where he led his team to the Philadelphia caddie championship title. He turned pro at the age of 19. At his weight ranged from 215 to during his career. Oliver won eight times on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s. He was well known for finishing second in several major championships, but not letting it get him down. He lost to Ben Hogan in the finals of the 1946 PGA Championship, was runner up to Julius Boros in the 1952 U. S. Open, and to Hogan at the 1953 Masters. He seemed to have a knack of playing his best golf against the greatest players. He defeated Ben Hogan in San Francisco and Phoenix in 1940 and at the 1941 Western Open. He defeated Hogan again in late 1945 at the Durham Jaycee Open but suffered high profile losses to him in later years. Not long after expressing his concern over playing with Hogan in the 1951 Colonial National Invitation Tournament, which ended badly for him, he faced him in the final group at the 1952 U. S. Open. It turned out to be one of Oliver's greatest performances as he came from five behind golf's leading man over the final 36 holes in the Texas heat. Unfortunately he could not overcome the lead of Julius Boros who took the title, while Oliver finished second. Oliver had a couple big wins against Byron Nelson including their 36 hole quarterfinal match in the 1946 PGA after which Nelson went into retirement. He also defeated Sam Snead to win the 1956 White Sulfur Springs Open. When South African Bobby Locke dominated the US tour in 1947, he defeated Oliver in a playoff at the All American Open and passed him for the win at the Canadian Open after Oliver broke the tournament scoring record. They finished in a tie for third at the 1946 US Open. Before being sidelined with cancer Oliver collected 145 top ten finishes, including 22 seconds and 17 thirds. In 1940 Oliver finished in a tie with Lawson Little and Gene Sarazen at the 1940 U. S. Open, but in a highly controversial decision was disqualified for teeing off 30 minutes early over weather concerns (under current rules, tournament directors reserve the rule to advance round start times, group players in three, and using both the first and tenth tees in case of approaching weather). Bobby Jones called it, "the most unfortunate golfing occasion of which I have ever heard." Later that same year, Oliver played a series of exhibitions with Gene Sarazen sponsored by Golf Magazine. He was the medalist in the stroke play qualifier of the PGA Championship in 1954, but lost in the third round to eventual champion Chick Harbert. Because of his positive attitude, Oliver was a popular player on tour. Oliver played on three Ryder Cup teams (1947, 1951, and 1953). In the 1953 matches at Wentworth, England, he teamed with his boyhood friend Dave Douglas (the only other golfer from Delaware to win on the PGA Tour) to defeat Peter Allis and Harry Weetman. That single point would prove the margin of victory for the US team. Oliver lost four and a half years during his prime (age 25 30) while serving in the U. S. Army during World War II. He was also involved in several serious car accidents, including one that took the life of a fellow passenger when they were returning from the Tucson Open. The driver was Oliver's friend and 1952 PGA champion, Jim Turnesa. On the way to the LA Open in 1949 his car was rear ended by a lumber truck in Oregon. He suffered from the after effects of his injuries for much of the balance of his career. To spend more time with his family and gain a regular paycheck, he held head professional positions at Hornell, New York, Kenmore, Washington, and at Blue Hill Country Club in Canton, Massachusetts. These positions also greatly restricted his time on the tour.

Two weeks after finishing ninth in the 1960 Houston Open, Oliver was diagnosed with cancer and had part of a lung removed in late May in Denver. Remarkably, he played a tour event that September in Utah, but missed the cut by two strokes. Oliver was an advocate for cancer research, traveling the banquet circuit while battling the disease. The course of the Wilmington Country Club where he caddied as a teenager has been redesigned and is now the Ed Oliver Golf Club. During the 2022 BMW Championship in Wilmington, Delaware Oliver was inducted by the Western Golf Association into the Caddie Hall of Fame. He and his wife Clara (1915–2010) are buried in All Saints Cemetery in Wilmington; they had three sons and a daughter.