Born 1942 in Fort Bragg, North Carolina
When Tom Watson picked Raymond Floyd as one of his wildcards in the 1993 Ryder Cup from the ranks of the PGA senior tour he raised a few eyebrows. Shortly before his fiftieth birthday, Floyd would be the oldest competitor to ever take part in the event.
Floyd won three points and led the USA to a famous victory.
Floyd learned to win under pressure even before he joined the PGA tour as a nineteen-year-old in 1961.
Ray Floyd developed his game and swing on the driving range of his teaching professional father L.B. Floyd.
The young Floyd didn`t mind a gamble and developed a taste for playing for money long before turning professional. It could be said he was a golf-playing professional in heart, even while he was still carrying books to school.
The swing of the 30-year-old Ray Floyd was no different from his junior golf swing. It would be the swing that Floyd would make for his entire golfing life. Only the inevitability of age would break it down.
Winning four majors in the era of Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Lee Trevino prove what a great player Floyd was. Yet another great quality he possessed was not so obvious, endurance.
At the end of 1992, Floyd was ranked 14th on the Official World Golf Ranking at the age of 50, one of the highest positions ever attained by a player of that age.
In mid-May at The Boeing Championship at Sandestin, he nearly became the Champions Tour's oldest winner. Floyd matched his age for the first time with a final-round, 8-under 63, one-off his Champions Tour career-low, on The Raven Course at Sandestin.
Whether it is mental, physical, or a combination of both that allows a sportsperson to remain at the top of their game for longer than others is an interesting question. Maybe a deeper knowledge of your own swing is also a helpful aspect.
Marlene Floyd- sister of Raymond. Marlene was also brought up on the driving range of her father and was a member of the LPGA tour for more than a decade before opening a successful teaching school. She also worked as a commentator for the NBC television network. Her swing can be found on the Forum.
Wonderful rhythm and as you say eloquently, he found HIS swing with his father who was intelligent enough to leave well alone, and never deviated from it; just imagine if he turned up for a lesson with someone else apart from his father, '...you're under plane, over plane, etc..' and would have been ruined by a well-meaning teaching pro. I well remember the days when a good looking swing was primordial, instead of an effective one.