Historic Profile: Hiskey Brothers
In the 1950s and early 1960s,three brothers from Idaho had a tremendous impact on college golf in the state of Texas, which in turn reverberated throughout the history of the sport. Their story spans the transition from North Texas to Houston as being the dominant program in NCAA golf, but it goes much further than that. Amidst the successes, struggles, and tragedy, the Hiskey brothers left an indelible mark in the record books and eternally changed both the game they loved and people they encountered. This is a long one, so settle in!
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*NOTE: underlined text provides a link to references or sites with more information.
FROM THE DIRT
Peter Marion (Sr) and Valna Hiskey could not have possibly guessed at the legacy they would spearhead when the family moved to southern Idaho in the 1930s. From their granddaughter, Hiskey family historian and golf writer Michelle Hiskey:
After stocks crashed in 1929, the elder Pete Hiskey found employment building golf courses with the Works Progress Administration. He had little knowledge of golf, but did have an intense drive to take care of his growing family. He managed work crews and courses while his family lived on site.
Pete worked on or advised superintendents at many southern Idaho courses, including Blue Lakes Country Club and Riverside Golf Course. He retired as Pocatello’s superintendent of parks, and when he passed away, several Hiskey generations celebrated his life by playing Highland Golf Course.
Pete and wife Valna raised daughter Beverly and sons Peter Marion (Sonny), Jim and Bryant (Babe). From their house on the grounds of Twin Falls “Muni,” the boys played three holes on their way to the school bus.
Michelle would expand on this in a wonderful piece in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about her and her father, Jim:
“Like other kids in Idaho, Dad was a potato picker, let out from school during harvest. He grew up on golf links that his dad helped build as a public works project in the Depression. The course became a refuge for my dad and his brothers during their mom’s long hospitalizations for manic-depression. En route to the school bus stop, Dad played three holes. Rather than just play, he kept score. If Dad had grown up in a canyon, he’d be champion rock climber.”
Golf, it seems, wasn’t bred into the Hiskey trio and Jim, the middle son, wasn’t alone in gradually digging the game out of the same Idaho dirt that stubbornly yielded their potato harvests. From those humble roots came arguably one of the most impactful group of brothers in the history of collegiate golf.
PETER MARION “SONNY” HISKEY (Jr)[North Texas State]
Often referred to as either Marion or “Sonny”, the elder Hiskey son learned the game at a young age and got good enough to win local tournaments as early as age 11. By age 17, Sonny found his ticket to national competition by winning the Idaho State Junior Amateur title in 1949, qualifying him for the bigger International Jaycee Junior Tournament held that year in Houston, Texas. He made a run at both the 1949 and 1950 Jaycee tournament, elevating to national attention by making the Quarterfinals in his last eligible try in 1950, the year it was won by Eddie Merrins. Sonny also had a good showing in the USGA’s US Amateur, making the match play portion but falling in the early rounds.
Sonny entered the University of Idaho, 450 miles north of his hometown, where he spent his freshman year 1949-50 - even winning the annual University tournament just a few months after arriving - however he was soon to make a change which might well have changed the tide of college golf history.
1951
At the time of Sonny’s transfer to North Texas State College - now called the University of North Texas - to begin the 1950-51 schoolyear, NTSC was the reigning two-time NCAA team champs under legendary head coach Fred Cobb. Though technically a sophomore by school standards (assuming everything transferred), Hiskey had four years of eligibility for his golf scholarship - three on the “varsity” team - which he made full use of at NTSC. Whether a freshman or sophomore, Sonny was stuck at home in June 1951 as Coach Cobb led his superstar upperclassmen team of Billy Maxwell, Joe Conrad, Buster Reed, and Don January to a third straight NCAA team championship. That summer, as his 14 year old brother “Jimmy” was making a strong attempt at the State Junior title Sonny had aged out of, Hiskey made his own run at the US Amateur, falling in the second round to teammate and eventual champion, Billy Maxwell.
1952
Not content to remain on the second/third team, Hiskey earned his spot on the stacked varsity team in his second season. Shortly before the NCAA championship in late June, NTSC participated in the first ever National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) golf championship which they won easily as a team; Sonny Hiskey taking the individual title followed closely by teammates Don January and Buster Reed who tied for 2nd. Hiskey replaced Reed in the lineup for the NCAA championship at Purdue’s home course where the team rolled to a fourth team title in a row. In the individual match play portion that followed, Hiskey downed his roommate Joe Conrad to make the Semifinals, but fell to Jim Vickers [Oklahoma] in a grueling match that went two extra holes. That summer, Hiskey went on a tear, winning both the Idaho and Utah State Amateur titles.
1953
We’ve previously written about the events which led to the entire NTSC team, including Sonny, briefly losing their amateur status in the Spring of 1953, however the short version is this: the USGA rules forbade both golf-specific scholarships and players getting compensated for acting as a golf teaching pro, both of which the NTSC players were said to have violated multiple times; after public outcry - including from friend-of-the-program Byron Nelson - the USGA eventually reinstated the team in time for the NCAA championship. Given everything going on, it’s not hard to imagine the team faltering in their attempt at their fifth straight team title. Even still, NTSC finished a respectable 5th, just 5 strokes behind champion Stanford. Sonny once again made the Semifinals in the individual match play portion, this time falling to William Williamson [UNC] on the 18th hole. Things were all but back to normal by the summer as Hiskey repeated as the Idaho State Amateur winner.
1954
Sonny’s senior season started off promising, but tragedy struck with the unexpected death of Coach Cobb in March of a heart attach at the age of 55. Hiskey and his teammates served as the pallbearers for their coach and preceded to honor his memory by playing as well as possible for the rest of the season. Sonny again captured individual medalist honors at the NAIA championship as the team took the title back from Hardin-Simmons.
In one of those small ironies of life, the 1954 NCAA championship was co-hosted by Houston and held at the famous Brae Burn CC just 15 miles from campus. Hiskey and his NTSC teammates came close to living out the ultimate sports movie ending, however SMU’s Stewart Carrell dashed their hopes in the closing holes and the Eagles finished runner-up by a single stroke. For the first time, Sonny failed to make even the individual Quarterfinals, falling in the second round to Fred Brown [Stanford] 5&4. Despite the letdown, Hiskey, along with his new bride Mary Beth, was looking at a bright future in pro golf after serving out his military obligations.
UNTIMELY DEATH [1956]
After college, Sonny joined the Air Force to become a pilot and by early 1956 had gained the rank of 1st Lieutenant. In the evening hours of March 21st, 1956, Sonny (acting as co-pilot) and five others were participating in a common night-time training exercise when their B25 plane went missing. By morning, the wreckage had been found about 50 miles outside of the Connally AFB (near Waco, TX) and all 6 crew had been declared deceased. 1st LT Marion “Sonny” Hiskey was just 23 years old.
Sonny’s death rocked the college golf world. His brother Jimmy - a sophomore member of the Houston Cougar golf team, newly added to the “varsity” team - was in the middle of competing in a match against Texas Tech some 6 hours away in Odessa, TX when Coach Williams relayed the devastating news. Jimmy finished his round, shooting a 69 he hardly remembers. After conversations with his family, Jimmy decided to stay the weekend to compete in the West Texas Relays tournament as planned because “[Sonny] would have wanted me to.” He shot 69-74 to help lead the Cougars to the tournament victory then left for home.
AAII MARION HISKEY TROPHY
Within just a few days of the news breaking, the Houston Post announced it would dedicate one of the trophies awarded at the University of Houston’s infamous All-American Intercollegiate Invitational (AAII) - then known as the Southwestern Intercollegiate Invitational - to Hiskey’s memory. From then on, the Marion Hiskey Trophy was awarded to the lowest scoring 4-man team. Fittingly, the Cougars won the trophy thanks in part to the steady play from Jim Hiskey who had flown back from attending his brother’s funeral just in time for the tournament. This wouldn’t be the last time a Hiskey brother captured this incredibly meaningful trophy.
AIR FORCE SWC MARION HISKEY TROPHY
Even military service had not kept Sonny away from competitive golf. A year before his death, he had represented Reese Air Force Base (AFB) in a series of tournaments against other airmen from bases across the Southwest, beating them all including old friend Don January (Lackland AFB).
Because of his success in the tournament prior to his death, the SW Air Force competition named two trophies in honor of the late LT. Marion Hiskey. The first of those - an individual award - was presented to LSU’s 1955 team captain William “Tommy” Morrow for his victory in 1956. Incredibly, this was not the only college golf connection fighting for this trophy as 1954 NCAA individual winner Hillman Robbins [Memphis State] was the runner-up while representing the host Lackland AFB team. Lieutenant Robbins would famously win the next year’s US Amateur while on leave from the Air Force, defeating Houston’s Rex Baxter in the semifinals.
JIM “JIMMY” HISKEY [Houston]
Jimmy grew up idolizing and doing his best to imitate his big brother. In many ways he certainly did, taking up the mantle from Sonny in winning the Idaho State Junior Amateur in 1952 and then the men’s State Amateur in 1954. By repeating as state am champion in 1955, Jimmy became the second person after Sonny to hold both the Idaho and Utah State Amateur titles at the same time.
As you might expect, Jimmy was prepared to enter North Texas State in the Fall of 1954, however a combination of events ultimately persuaded him to choose Houston. First and foremost was the charismatic head coach of Houston, Dave Williams, who proved to be an incredible recruiter. Coach Williams had spoken with Coach Cobb of NTSC many times over the years and had seen Sonny Hiskey up close in that Spring’s NCAA championship. Secondly was Coach Williams’s successful recruitment of Rex Baxter (Amarillo, TX) who was already known in amateur circles as the next up and coming star. Finally - and to be clear this is speculation on this author’s part - Coach Cobb’s untimely death in the Spring likely caused a sudden sinkhole of uncertainty to open regarding the future of NTSC’s golf program. In any case, Jimmy (or “Jim” as we’ll refer to him from here on out) became a Houston Cougar for the 1954-55 season - and as a freshman wasn’t eligible to play at the NCAA championship - and once again a Hiskey was directly involved in the making of college golf history.
"You should come to the home of the next national champions. Houston will dominate the collegiate golf world for years to come."
-Coach Williams’ recruiting pitch in 1954 as recalled by Jim Hiskey
Coach Williams Credits Hiskeys for Houston Success
**Below is an incredible 1984 interview of Coach Williams where he mentions the importance of Jim and Marion Hiskey to the early success of the Houston golf program. The pertinent section, which begins around the 15:50 mark from the full interview, is provided below:
1956
That 1956 team championship Coach Williams mentioned - the first of Houston’s eventual 16 team titles spanning 1956-1985 - was the culmination of an incredibly emotional sophomore season for Jim Hiskey as we covered above. Demonstrating a gift of prose which he would utilize later in life (and pass down to his daughter), Jim wrote about this championship for an article published in Golf Digest a decade later (excerpt):
We were in shock. Coach was trembling. The rest of us were just plain numb. Baxter appeared calm enough on the outside, but I'm sure he was like jelly inside.
The date was June, 1956, the tournament the National Collegiate Athletic Ass'n championship, and the place the Scarlet Course at Ohio State. University of Houston Coach Dave Williams, along with players Frank Wharton, Richard Parvino and myself, watched nervously as Rex Baxter lined up a 60-foot putt on the last hole. If he could two-putt, Houston would tie for the NCAA title.
"Bax" looked over the putt briefly, took a couple of practice swings and putted. His stroke was solid. We knew it would be close. In the last three feet, the ball slid beautifully to the right and disappeared into the cup. It wasn't a tie! We had won!
Parvino catapulted himself four feet into the air. I headed for Baxter but caught Parvino on his way down. Coach sprang onto the green like a hungry bear and gave Baxter a wrestler's hug. It took us three hours to calm down enough to make any kind of sense.
No wonder. This was Houston's first NCAA golf championship, the No. 1 prize in collegiate golf. For Coach Dave Williams, it was a dream fulfilled.
Proving life is often much cooler than fiction, there’s an added link between Sonny Hiskey and this championship. You see, Jim gifted Rex his brother’s putter - the same one from the 1950 picture above - not long after Sonny’s death in March. First, Baxter used the putter to lift the Cougars to the Missouri Valley Conference team title while taking the individual title by 13 strokes. Just a few months later Baxter used this same club to sink that improbable NCAA championship-winning putt! It nearly led him to an individual title in the match play portion, finishing as runner-up to Rick Jones - who had put out Jim Hiskey in the Quarterfinals - on the Ohio State grad’s home course. The story goes (relayed from Baxter himself) that he kept that putter nearly seven decades until it was stolen out of his bag one miserable afternoon in the early 2020s.
1957
Jim’s junior campaign was even more successful. He was the individual medalist at the AAII tournament - after shooting a tournament record 67 in the first round - and helped lead the team to a second straight Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) championship.
Hiskey himself recalled the 1957 NCAA championship - held at the famous Broadmoor GC in Colorado Springs, CO - as being the site of one of the best shots of his life. Playing in the anchor position - and who happened to be the last man on the course that could affect the team championship - Jim was approached by his coach on the 14th hole and told that he needed to par out for Houston to win their second title. Hiskey scrambled for that first par, but found himself on hard-pan trapped behind a tree after an errant tee shot on the 15th hole. That low running 2-iron that faded against his natural draw and ended perfectly on the center of the green still stands out in Jim Hiskey’s mind nearly seven decades later. His clutch play resulted in the pars the Cougars needed, including the two-putt on the 18th that secured the repeat victory.
On the individual side, Hiskey fell in the Quarterfinals again, this time to Stanley Hobart [Arizona State]. In the photo below you see Rex Baxter, standing next to Jim, holding the Chick Evans Bowl which he earned as the Individual Champion, again using the very same putter gifted to him the year before.
That summer, Jim once again won the Idaho State Am, his third title and the sixth in a row for a Hiskey as younger brother Babe won in 1956 (covered in a later section).
1958
Jim’s senior season, Houston went undefeated in the regular season and three-peated at the MVC. They traveled to Williamstown, Massachusetts where Williams College was hosting the NCAA championship, looking for another kind of three-peat. There was no dramatic finish this time as Houston secured the team title by 12 strokes over Oklahoma State, setting the new NCAA 36-hole team scoring record in the process. Hiskey finished T6 just three shots behind teammate Phil Rodgers who shared co-medalist honors with Don Justice [Ok St]. Unfortunately, Jim fell in the second round of the individual match play portion to Tom Black [Oklahoma] 2up. While the individual component was important to the players, Coach Williams made special mention of the team spirit displayed by Hiskey and teammate Bob Pratt in his book How to Coach and Play Championship Golf:
Altogether, it was a fitting end to an incredible collegiate career that helped kick off the most dominant team run in NCAA golf history. Hiskey became just the 5th player in NCAA history (since 1939) to contribute a score towards three team championships1. On top of everything else, Hiskey became a member of the first ever All-American selections when he was named to the Second Team squad.
BRYANT “BABE” HISKEY [Houston]
Even the earliest newspaper clippings involving the youngest Hiskey brother refer to him as “Babe,” and they made clear he wasn’t just tagging along with his two older siblings at the course. Already by the age of 11 in 1950 he was besting local players up to 6 times his age and adding to the impressive family trophy collection. At 13, Babe finished just a couple places behind Jimmy in the State Junior Am and earned a trip to Eugene, Oregon for the National Jaycee Tournament. He was 17 at the time of Sonny’s death in 1956,and his win at that summer’s Idaho State Amateur was an emotional one as he kept the 5-year streak going of a Hiskey taking the title.
1957-1958
The next year Babe won something his brothers never did, becoming the first champion at the Texas Oklahoma Junior Golf Tournament. That Fall, he made the not-so-difficult choice to enroll at Houston. Freshmen were still 10 years away from the NCAA decision that would allow them to play on the “varsity” team of their respective sport(s), but Babe showed out on the Houston Cougars freshman (“Kitten”) golf team several times including a special dual meet with Texas A&M where he and Jim both logged victories.
1960-1961
It took a few years for Babe to break fully into the varsity lineup, however, he was a constant presence throughout the regular season in both 1960 and 1961, just missing the lineup for the team that would secure Houston’s fifth straight NCAA team title in 1960.
He fared better in the 1961 season, joining Homero Blancas, Joel Goldstrand, and two-time defending NCAA individual champion Richard Crawford in winning the AAII team title. At the NCAA tournament, Crawford struggled in his attempt at a three-peat and Houston stumbled to an 11th place finish as Babe was again left home. Proving he was in peak play, Hiskey won his third Idaho State Amateur title (1956 & 1960), not only joining his brother Jim in reaching that number of victories, but also matching the accomplishment of both older brothers in winning back-to-back titles.
1962
Babe’s senior season started out incredibly well. He defeated teammate Homero Blancas in a playoff for medalist honors at the Fall 1961 William H. Tucker Intercollegiate, after scoring an ace in the first round. Hiskey contributed several more times throughout the 1961-62 season as the Cougars went undefeated. He finished as co-medalist (lost playoff) in the Border Olympics early in the Spring of 1962, and a month later played a crucial role in earning the AAII trophy bearing his brother’s name.
Ultimately, Babe was not chosen as one of the five players to represent UH at the 1962 NCAA championships where Houston won its 6th team title in 7 years, and his close friend and teammate Kermit Zarley won the individual title. If it hadn’t been for a broken promise by Coach Williams to bring Babe to that championship held at Duke, there very likely would have been three different Hiskey names etched onto the (currently missing) Maxwell Cup seen in those 1956-57-58 Houston team championship photos above. Despite his relatively quiet collegiate career compared to his brothers’ lofty bar, there’s no doubt Babe Hiskey played a major role in Houston’s continued success into the early 1960s and he would go on to have an incredibly fruitful pro career.
ENDURING LEGACY
Jim Hiskey
Following his time at Houston, Jim Hiskey became a teaching pro and eventually a life member of the PGA of America. According to his author biography in several of his later publications:
“He has given golf lessons to members of Congress and heads of state, including the secretary general of China and the president of Bangladesh. He has also instructed many pros on the PGA and Senior PGA Tour. While competing on the PGA Tour, Jim coauthored the book Golf How? with former U.S. Open champion Orville Moody, and for eighteen years, he served as editor of Links Letter.”
Babe Hiskey on Tour with PING
After winning the Utah State Amateur in 1962 - again joining his brothers in the accomplishment - Babe turned his sights on the pro game. Over the next several decades, Hiskey competed at the highest levels on the PGA Tour and later Champions Tour, winning three times, competing in two Masters, and making more that 200 cuts. His first win came at the 1965 Cajun Classic over Jack Nicklaus.
There is a great story about his win at the 1970 Sahara Invitational (well, two) which not only was important for Babe and his family, but also for a fledgling PING golf company. Given the success of the PING EYE 2 irons, it’s hard to believe there was a time when the pros actively distrusted the company’s products. The famous Anser putter was launched in 1966 and the first set of irons - the K1s - came three years later. Babe and Zarley were one of the first pros sponsored by the company, and Hiskey’s win in 1970 was the first by a professional using the irons.
PGA Tour Bible Study & College Golf Fellowship
Arguably one of the most impactful contributions from the Hiskey brothers is their dedication to sharing their Christian faith. After dedicating their lives to Jesus when they were at the University of Houston, Jim and Babe - along with Kermit Zarley - helped organize Bible studies that developed into regular fellowships for the PGA Tour, Champions Tour, and even one for college golfers. Each of those have thrived in the decades since their founding, and the College Golf Fellowship now shares the gospel message year-round through retreats, team visits, banquets, Bible studies, mission trips, and now even a highly-rated podcast.
In 1980, the PGA Tour Fellowship hosted a retreat for college golfers at the Western Open. A couple years later the Gospel was shared during an outreach banquet at the NCAA Championship in Fresno, CA. The impact from these events led to a vision for a ministry to college golfers that eventually became known as CGF. In 2002, Brad Payne, Stephen Bunn, and Steve Burdick, the current executive team, launched a new vision to grow our relational presence throughout the world of college and professional golf. - CGF Vision Packet
Jim’s mixture of golf and ministry has taken him all over the globe to speak on the intersection of both topics. The drive to share the gospel with others has been a central part of his and Babe’s lives, which has continued to have an impact both inside and outside the world of golf. There’s no telling how many lives they have touched, and only God can measure the full impact.
The Next Generations
The Hiskey family name not only lives on, but continues to intersect with the world of golf in meaningful ways. There are of course many wonderful family members not mentioned here, however this being a post focused on college golf, there are a few I’d like to highlight.
Jim and Lorraine Hiskey, long-time schoolmates in Twin Falls, Idaho, married in 1958. They named their oldest son Peter Marion, and he says that even today he is inspired by his uncle and namesake. Before his coaching and ministry work days, Pete earned a scholarship to play golf at James Madison. Paul came along and also attended college on a golf scholarship, playing for the University of Maryland before turning pro. Michelle, who took lessons from the great Peggy Kirk Bell, earned her scholarship to Duke and competed on Coach Dan Brooks’ early teams. Along with golf, Michelle shares her father’s gift of words and it is because of her pursuit in writing that we have a wealth of published and preserved family history to help tell this story. We’ve linked several of the wonderful articles written by Michelle Hiskey throughout this post, but you can find more HERE and HERE (and several others behind the Atlanta Journal-Constitution paywall).
Below is a video interview with Peter Marion Hiskey who discusses his experience with stress from a high-paced career in the golf industry and in ministry:
Bryant “Babe” Hiskey and his wife Eunice had three children: D’Anne (who worked for PING for many years), Bryant David, and Suzie. After Coach Dave William’s retirement in 1987, his former 3x All-American player, Keith Fergus, stepped in as the new head coach of the Houston Cougars. In his second season at the helm, Coach Fergus added a freshman recruit named Bryant David Hiskey. Bryant would go on to letter at UH 1989-91. In 2021, a third generation Hiskey joined the annals of Houston golf history with the signing of Bryant’s son, Bryant David Hiskey II.
It’s incredible to see how all these decades later, the Hiskey name and legacy continues to have a direct impact on college golf!
Thanks for reading! This has been an incredibly rewarding deep-dive into one of the great college golf families which, in this author’s opinion, has not garnered enough attention for their place in the sport’s history. I truly cannot thank the Hiskey family enough for their willingness to share their story, nor can I repay them for their support of this project to document and archive college golf’s somewhat-forgotten-but-always-appreciated past!
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Jim Hiskey won a team title in all three of the NCAA championships he participated in. Even after 1968 when freshmen were allowed to compete and the restriction on 3 chances was raised to 4+, there still have only been 10 total players to achieve this since 1939 and they came from just two schools:
Billy Maxwell, Don January, and Joe Conrad all of NTSC were the first trio to accomplish this with titles in 1950-51-52
Jim Hiskey and Frank Wharton of Houston matched it with titles in 1956-57-58
Bob Pratt [Houston] quickly followed: 1957-58-59
Jacky Cupit [Houston] was next: 1958-59-60
Jim Grant & Marty Fleckman [Houston] followed: 1964-65-66
Billy Ray Brown [Houston] was the last and the only one to do it in non-consecutive years: 1982-84-85
Great article David .