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Mike Austin (golfer)
Michael Hoke Austin (February 17, 1910 – November 23, 2005) was an American golf professional and kinesiology expert, specializing in long drives.
He was credited by Guinness World Records with hitting the longest drive in tournament play (471 m/515 yd) in 1974 at Winterwood Golf Course (now called Desert Rose Golf Course) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Austin was born in Guernsey. By the time he was four years-old, he had moved with his family to London and then Scotland. They later emigrated to the United States, where they settled firstly in Florida and finally Georgia. Social Security records refute these biographical entries.[according to whom?] They reflect that Michael Hoke Austin was born on February 17, 1910, and died (aged 95) on November 23, 2005. His father was born in Alabama and there are no records reflecting English or Scottish claims.[citation needed]
During the Depression, Austin ran a local golf shop in Atlanta during the summer. In the winter he frequented the courses farther south in Florida playing big money games against vacationing gangsters from Chicago. After the first year, they would not bet against him so he found a set of left-handed clubs and played with that handicap. The next year he played one-handed. It is also said he won a $5,000 bet by making par by hitting the ball with a Coke bottle. Through these hustles he acquired the moniker of "The Golfing Bandit."
Austin also traveled across the country performing trick shots and challenging anyone to try to outdrive him. He said he could hit a variety of shots with an ordinary set of golf clubs. He told a biographer that he "lived like a maharaja" during that time. Austin's biographer, Philip Reed, wrote that when Sam Snead first received a set of steel shafted clubs he promptly gave them to Austin saying, "You're the only one who swings fast enough to hit these."
In the late 1930s, Austin moved to Los Angeles to become a professional at the Wilshire Country Club. When he arrived, the job fell through so he worked at other golf courses, teaching and competing. His roommate was Errol Flynn. Austin also auditioned for roles in films and eventually appeared in a number of motion pictures. However, his golfing and acting were put on hold when he joined the service. Having never completed U.S. citizenship, he went to Canada and joined the R.A.F.
Austin established a name for himself as a golf teacher and was eventually sought out by Howard Hughes for lessons. Austin eventually established a gym in Hollywood where he taught boxing, tennis, baseball and golf. The walls of the gym were covered with mirrors which he said sped up the learning process. Austin appeared in the 1983 Michael Douglas film The Star Chamber as Judge Lang. Austin also spoke several languages.
For years Austin was well known by professional golfers for his length off the tee. But it was one drive in 1974 that secured his name in history. While playing in the U.S. National Seniors Tournament, at the Winterwood Golf Course (now the Desert Rose) Austin played alongside PGA Champion Chandler Harper. After hitting several 400-yard drives, Harper said, "Mike, let's see you really let one go." Austin drove the green on the 450-yard par 4. It carried to the edge of the green, bounced over and rolled past the pin and off the back edge. In a 2003 interview, Harper said he found a ball on the next tee box and called to Austin, "This is impossible, but there is a ball over here." They identified the ball as Austin's and stepped off the distance back to the center of the green. The drive was 515 yards. The Guinness World Records no longer recognizes the world's longest drive in their book.[citation needed]
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Mike Austin (golfer)
Michael Hoke Austin (February 17, 1910 – November 23, 2005) was an American golf professional and kinesiology expert, specializing in long drives.
He was credited by Guinness World Records with hitting the longest drive in tournament play (471 m/515 yd) in 1974 at Winterwood Golf Course (now called Desert Rose Golf Course) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Austin was born in Guernsey. By the time he was four years-old, he had moved with his family to London and then Scotland. They later emigrated to the United States, where they settled firstly in Florida and finally Georgia. Social Security records refute these biographical entries.[according to whom?] They reflect that Michael Hoke Austin was born on February 17, 1910, and died (aged 95) on November 23, 2005. His father was born in Alabama and there are no records reflecting English or Scottish claims.[citation needed]
During the Depression, Austin ran a local golf shop in Atlanta during the summer. In the winter he frequented the courses farther south in Florida playing big money games against vacationing gangsters from Chicago. After the first year, they would not bet against him so he found a set of left-handed clubs and played with that handicap. The next year he played one-handed. It is also said he won a $5,000 bet by making par by hitting the ball with a Coke bottle. Through these hustles he acquired the moniker of "The Golfing Bandit."
Austin also traveled across the country performing trick shots and challenging anyone to try to outdrive him. He said he could hit a variety of shots with an ordinary set of golf clubs. He told a biographer that he "lived like a maharaja" during that time. Austin's biographer, Philip Reed, wrote that when Sam Snead first received a set of steel shafted clubs he promptly gave them to Austin saying, "You're the only one who swings fast enough to hit these."
In the late 1930s, Austin moved to Los Angeles to become a professional at the Wilshire Country Club. When he arrived, the job fell through so he worked at other golf courses, teaching and competing. His roommate was Errol Flynn. Austin also auditioned for roles in films and eventually appeared in a number of motion pictures. However, his golfing and acting were put on hold when he joined the service. Having never completed U.S. citizenship, he went to Canada and joined the R.A.F.
Austin established a name for himself as a golf teacher and was eventually sought out by Howard Hughes for lessons. Austin eventually established a gym in Hollywood where he taught boxing, tennis, baseball and golf. The walls of the gym were covered with mirrors which he said sped up the learning process. Austin appeared in the 1983 Michael Douglas film The Star Chamber as Judge Lang. Austin also spoke several languages.
For years Austin was well known by professional golfers for his length off the tee. But it was one drive in 1974 that secured his name in history. While playing in the U.S. National Seniors Tournament, at the Winterwood Golf Course (now the Desert Rose) Austin played alongside PGA Champion Chandler Harper. After hitting several 400-yard drives, Harper said, "Mike, let's see you really let one go." Austin drove the green on the 450-yard par 4. It carried to the edge of the green, bounced over and rolled past the pin and off the back edge. In a 2003 interview, Harper said he found a ball on the next tee box and called to Austin, "This is impossible, but there is a ball over here." They identified the ball as Austin's and stepped off the distance back to the center of the green. The drive was 515 yards. The Guinness World Records no longer recognizes the world's longest drive in their book.[citation needed]