Pristine condition belying it's minting some 81 years ago is the quality of this 1928 USGA Pub Links pin. It features perfect red enamel centering encased in unchipped gold outer circle. A real beauty! Not often do you see a piece that you can attribute to the contestant, in this case Charles "Chuck" Kocsis (January 27, 1913 – May 30, 2006)who was a top American amateur golfer. The Golf Association of Michigan voted Chuck Kocsis the Michigan amateur golfer of the century and he was a member of the first class elected into the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame. Kocsis, better known as Chuck, was introduced to the game as a caddie at the Phoenix Country Club, which is now Rogell Municipal Golf Course. One of fourteen children, he grew up in the Old Redford area of Detroit. Attended Redford High and was victorious at the city and state championship levels. Winner of six Michigan Amateurs [1], three Michigan Opens (1931, 1945, 1946), individual NCAA Champion, member of 3 U.S. Walker Cup teams, member of two NCAA Championship teams at the University of Michigan, low amateur in two Masters, low amateur in two U.S. Opens, runner-up at the 1956 U.S. Amateur, and runner-up at the 1937 Western Amateur. Chuck also found success on the senior level winning several National and International Senior Amateurs.

Over the Next few auctions we will be auctioning off some great collectibles from the estate of Chuck Kocsis. Below is a Bio from his Hall of fame career;
Chuck Kocsis was the most prolific Champion in the history of Michigan golf and set down an amazing American and International Amatuer Golf Record that spanned SEVEN Decades. Chuck was Michigan Junior Champion in 1927 & 1928 and Michigan High School Champion in 1928 & 1929. After qualifying In the first round of the Grand Slam 1930 U.S. Amateur held at Merion Cricket Club, at the age of 17, Chuck Defeated the Great U.S. Open Champion Francis Ouimet. After a sound 3 and 2 defeat Ouimet was quoted in the paper :

“I just lost to a better golfer, that’s all, and I think the boy is all of that. He is just a young he-man out of the West who hits ‘em a mile down the middle of the fairway, is always on with his second and who never takes more than two putts. He is just a great golfer in the making and a fine chap on top of it. I played just as well as I expected to play but this boy played that much better and he is going a long way”.
 
In 1931 Kocsis would amaze the golf world again by beating Tommy Armour by one stroke in an 18 hole playoff for the Michigan Open Championship. Tommy Armour, the Silver Scot, had recently won the 1927 U.S. Open, 1929 Western Open, British Open, 1930 PGA Championship and 1930 Canadian Open and the 1931 British Open !

Chuck Kocsis would go on to play on Three Walker Cup Teams (the 1938 team was captained by Francis Oiumet), Win the Big Ten Championship in 1934 & 1935 and was Crowned NCAA Champion in 1936 (winning the team championship with teammate Johnny Fischer). Charles Kocsis was Low Amateur in the U.S. Open in 1936 at Baltusrol and in 1951 at Oakland Hills Country Club (One of Chucks favorite photos was of him and Hogan sharing handles of the 1951 U.S. Open Championship Trophy),  Chuck played with and beat many of the greats of the Golden Age of Golf. Francis Ouimet, Walter Hagen, Gene Sarazen, Tommy Armour, the list goes on and on. Chuck also played with many of these greats at Augusta National where he was invited to play Eleven times and made the trip Nine times. In 1953 Chuck beat the entire Masters field for the final two rounds and won the low amateur medal.

Michigan Junior Champion 1927, 1928
Michigan High School Champion 1928, 1929
Michigan State Amateur Champion 1930, 33, 34, 37, 48 & 51
Golf Association of Michigan Champion 1932, 1933
Michigan Medal Play Champion 1955, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62
Michigan Open Champion Beat Tommy Armour in playoff 1931 also won in 1945 & 1946
Big Ten Champion 1934, 1935
NCAA Champion 1936
Walker Cup Team THREE Decades in a row : 1938, 1949 & 1957
U.S. Open Low Amateur 1936 and 1951
Masters Low Amateur 1953 beat the field last two rounds Invited 11 times played 9 times
U.S. Amateur Runner Up 1956 Qualified 15 times
U.S. National Open Seniors Champion 1969, 1970, 1979
International Seniors Champion 1970, 1973, 1983 & 1988

In 1999 Chuck was named “Golfer of the Century” in Michigan by the G.A.M.
For more on Chuck’s amazing career see USGA Golf Journal Sept. 1997 and Golfweek Magazine May 2000.
Chuck Kocsis kept scorecards as a meticulous record of many of his Tournament rounds and amassed a major golfing collection over his 93 years including equipment, trophies, medals, programs, photos and associated ephemera.

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