A Spotlight on the “Original Bubba,” U.S. Amateur legend

The SGS Spotlight is back! With the U.S. Amateur this week, this Friday episode focuses on Bubba Dickerson, who won the U.S. Am during a legendary run in the summer of 2001. Brendan and Andy are joined by Bubba himself, Colin Sheehan, who is the golf coach at Yale and author of The United States Amateur: The History and Personal Recollections of Its Champions, and Steve Paramore, who played against Bubba in the 2001 Amateur. This episode is sponsored by the USGA’s new fan community, the Victory Club. 

The episode traces Bubba’s upbringing in a one-stoplight town in Northeast Florida, his outcast approach to the AJGA, and his career at UF under Buddy Alexander. Then the summer of 2001 is covered in detail, including the Western Am he won after initially trying to pass on it, a motivating Walker Cup snub from a weird scheduling quirk, the mad dash and absurdity of having to qualify for the U.S. Am as the Western champion, and his week fending off “cocky” challengers to take the Havemeryer Trophy. Bubba’s rounds with Tiger at the subsequent Masters are recalled as well as the uphill battle to make it as a pro right as his distance advantage started to evaporate with the introduction of the new ball in late 2001.

Sound Engineering by J Vierck.