Jim Moreno sent me the following link on Longhorn great Morris Williams . His input is appreciated by all who read this link. There is no question that Morris Williams has shaped the present and empowered the future of Longhorn golf.
An Austin native, Williams became the city's youngest junior champion at age 13 and dominated the local golf scene for the next several years. He starred on the Longhorns' teams from 1947-50 under coach Harvey Penick. Morris led Texas to Southwest Conference championships in 1947, 1948 and 1950. In his final year (1950), Williams was runner-up in the NCAA Championship as UT finished second in the team competition.
He is the only golfer to win the Texas State Amateur, State Junior, and Texas PGA in the same season. Longhorn Golf Coach Hannon said Williams had no fear playing against Golf greats such as Byron Nelson.
After graduating from Texas, Williams joined the Air Force and was a member of the Air Force golf team. That branch of the service got bragging rights as Williams was undefeated in tournament play and won the Worldwide Air Force Championship golf tournament playing against future golf stars like Arnold Palmer.
On September 16, 1953 at 24 years of age Morris Williams was killed on a training flight in a Lockheed F-80. The golf world was devastated by the news. It was Coach Harvey Penick who told Morris’s dad that his son had been killed in a plane crash. Harvey recalls it was “the toughest day of his life..” Years late Harvey Penick shared some memories and said that of all the players he coached “ Ed White, Morris Williams, Tom Kite, and Ben Crenshaw (in that order) were his best students”. However, as far as I know,Harvey Penick has never shared the name of the best golfer he ever coached.
In 1964 the Morris William Golf Course was built in his memory. The University of Texas hosts the annual Morris Williams Intercollegiate, a 54-hole stroke event in his memory. Former medalists at the Morris Williams Intercollegiate golf tournament include Fred Couples, Ben Crenshaw, Brad Elder, Bob Estes, Justin Leonard, Phil Mickelson and Payne Stewart.
Hole #3 at the UT Texas Golf Club is named after Morris Williams