Photograph by Jay Maisel

"His is the cruel, the ugly and eventually the inspiring story of a defeated man who refused to accept failure. It is the story of a proud and even arrogant man who had to beg to get into tournaments that he had once been begged to play in; a man whose best friend once told him to go home and learn the meaning of the word humble. It is the story of a man who found faith, particularly in himself..."

Text by Alfred Wright
Issue Date: December 21, 1964

In 1964 after going four years without winning a tournament, golfer Ken Venturi launched a comeback by winning the U.S. Open. Despite suffering severe dehydration and heat exhaustion due to the 100-degree heat at the Congressional in Washington, D.C., Venturi shot 66 and 70 in two rounds on the final day to finish four strokes ahead of Tommy Jacobs. Venturi finished the year sixth on the money list, with $65,682.