As did many an aspiring golfer in the late 1940s, Dick Whetzle began as a caddie, beginning by carrying South American golfer Bobby Locke’s bag in the 1947 Columbus Invitational. His first caddying job resulted in a crisp $100 bill from Locke for his efforts.
As an athlete at Jesuit, Dick lettered nine times in three years in basketball, football and baseball. After accepting a baseball scholarship to the University of Texas, Dick stayed only one semester before enlisting in the Army. At Camp Rucker in Alabama, he was put in charge of running the golf course and that is when he seriously too up the game. In 1954 he made the golf team as a freshman at North Texas State College and within two years won many events, including all of his Texas Cup matches, including one over Byron Nelson. He won the 1957 Kilgore Invitational by 3 and 2 over Miller Barber (and Miller was under par after completing the 16th hole!). Dick completed his round, posting a 62, a new course record. Dick also won the Southern Inter-Collegiate Golf Tournament in both 1957 and 1958, each time over second place finisher Tommy Aaron. Hi senior year at NTSC Dick captained the golf team and was First Team All-American selection.
Turning professional in at 27, Dick was elected to PGA membership in January 1961. In the 1962 Winter Tour, he finished in the money in eight of eleven tournaments. During the next two decades, he was the PGA professional for various country clubs until 1982 when he returned to Texas as the head PGA professional at Fair Oaks Ranch Golf and Country Club.
In the summer of 1967, Dick was one of three golfers invited by the State Department to tour Europe for three weeks, the trio giving clinics at 12 U.S. Air Force bases throughout Germany and England. Dick, who was inducted as a player and an administrator into the Middle Atlantic PGA Hall of Fame, died in 1985 and was married to Gay Whetzle Williams. Richard passed away 1/23/1985
