REX BAXTER JR. - INDUCTEE #43
hall of fame fast fact:
Rex Baxter Jr. started playing golf at age 9 when his uncle and aunt, George and Mildred McGrath, introduced him to the game. Bobby Sanders and Jimmy Russell were two of his boyhood buddies. "We were in Kids Inc. and played a lot of sports together," Baxter said. "One summer we just started playing some golf." He didn't own his first set of golf clubs until he was 12, but by 14 he was a scratch player.
Rex Baxter Jr.
Rex Baxter Jr. sank a 45-foot putt to give his University of Houston team its first NCAA golf championship in 1956.
Baxter started playing golf at 9 years old and went on to play professionally.
Fresh from leading Amarillo High to a state tournament runner-up spot, and two straight years as district medalist, Baxter received a golf scholarship at the University of Houston. The Houston Cougars captured NCAA titles in 1956 and 1957; Baxter won the individual crown in 1957. UH went on to win three more consecutive titles.
Houston has won 16 NCAA golf titles and produced numerous PGA standouts; it all began with Baxter. He won the 1957 Trans-Mississippi and was named to the Walker Cup team in 1957.
Baxter turned professional in 1958 and played on the PGA Tour from 1961 through 1968. He played in 12 U.S. Opens, 10 PGAs, and six Masters tournaments.
After his touring days, he became a club pro, then an instructor.
