A member of the 1959 and 1961 Ryder Cup teams, Jay Hebert was captain of the 1971 Ryder Cup team. He also served as Chairman of PGA Tournament Committee in 1957, 1958, 1963 and 1964. Hebert was a teammate of Gardner Dickinson of the 1947 NCAA championship team at LSU - they were runners-up to San Jose in 1948. A Marine Corps lieutenant and artillery officer at Iwo Jima, Jay caught a Japanese sniper’s bullet in the left leg and was evacuated to U.S. Hebert first moved to Houston from Lafayette in 1948 because of the big city opportunities.

He worked as a trainee for an oil –related business and detested it because his golf was limited to the weekends. In 1949, Herbert wiped out Frank Stranahan in the Houston Invitational 6 and 5 when Stranahan was ranked #1 amateur in the land. Jack Burke, an established tour professional, was so impressed that he took Herbert under his wing. Burke got Herbert a club job at Oakmont (PA), serving under Lew Worsham.

Thereafter, Hebert was a golfing nomad. He finally established his roots in Houston in 1966 and moved into a cottage at Champions. He married Barbara Henny, a former Miss Texas in 1969 and had two sons.

He won seven times on the PGA Tour including the 1960 PGA Championship. Mr. Hebert was the captain of the 1971 United States Ryder Cup team and played in two other Ryder Cup championships.

Birthplace: Lafayette, Louisiana

Born: February 14, 1923

Died: May 25, 1997