The best golfer from every U.S. state

Utah: George Von Elm

If the young big man Tony Finau has anything to say about it, George Von Elm won’t hold the title of the greatest golfer from the state of Utah forever. As things currently stand, however, it belongs to one of the greats of the 1920s and 1930s who was a staple as one of the best amateur players in the world and eventually turned pro.

Born in Salt Lake City, Von Elm began his time in the sport of golf as many on this list have, as a caddie. However, he wasn’t just always out on the course carrying bags or hitting balls. Von Elm was actually a football player for his high school and quite good for the time period. However, his success on the golf course soon began to exceed his triumphs on the gridiron.

When he was just 16 years old, Von Elm was able to capture his first win at the Utah Amateur Championship in 1917. That would be the first of three times that he would capture victories there, doing so again in in 1920 and 1921. What’s more, his 1921 and 1922 wins in the Pacific Northwest Men’s Amateur really started to put him on the map.

Von Elm is perhaps most famous for his battles with Bobby Jones in the U.S. Amateur though, losing twice to him in 1924 and 1925, but then besting him and winning in 1926.

Overall, Von Elm won seven times as a professional, five times coming on the PGA Tour. However, he has more of a place in golf history than that would indicate and is a legend of the sport without question.