Jackson’s Hill Brothers, Mike and Dave, Give Michigan Big Bragging Rights in Pro Tour Golf History

By Terry Moore

It's been said the Hill brothers, Dave and Mike, put their native Jackson on the national golf map. Older than Mike by 19 months, Dave is widely recognized as one of Michigan’s greatest players. Late in his lauded career, he said, “I was probably three shots a week from winning a major.”

Even without a major golf trophy, Hill compiled an illustrious PGA Tour record, winning 13 PGA Tour titles in all, including four of them (’67, ’69, ’70 and ’73) in Memphis, Tenn., now known as the home of the FedEx St. Jude Championship

He did come close to winning the U.S. Open in 1970 when he finished seven shots behind Tony Jacklin at Hazeltine in Chaska, Minn. But Hill’s runner-up finish was overshadowed by his controversial remarks about the course earlier in the week. When asked what the course lacked, the always candid Hill said, “Only 80 acres of corn and a few cows to be a good farm.”

And Dave Hill knew a thing or two about cows and farming. James David Hill was born in 1937 and raised on a small dairy farm in Jackson. Dave’s dad George also ran a machine shop but he took his sons to a nearby golf course to practice.

Later, Dave became a caddie. For the local Jackson newspaper, he recalled that at age 11 he played in his first golf tournament and shot 101. He soon blossomed into a fine player and went on to play collegiately at the University of Detroit.

Turning pro in 1958, Hill won the 1959 Michigan Open. Two years later, he won his first PGA Tour title in Tucson in a playoff against Tommy Bolt and Bud Sullivan. Later that year, he claimed his second title at the Denver Open with a 21-under four-round performance. Winning by six shots, Hill was seen as one of best and brightest stars on the Tour.

He also became widely known as a consummate shotmaker and ball-striker. Hill once told golf writer Tom Cleary, “I felt like I had more shots in my bag than 90% of anybody that played out there. A little old lady 90 years old can putt—I want to see her hit a high cut with a 2-iron.”

In 1969, Hill won the Vardon Trophy for the lowest stroke average on the PGA Tour. He is only one of two Michigan players (the other being Dan Pohl) to have won this coveted recognition. Besides being a member of three Ryder Cup teams, Hill was proud of his consistency during his PGA Tour career. For sixteen straight years (1960-1976) he finished in the Top 60 annual money winners on Tour.

Hill went on to further glory on the Senior Tour, now known as the PGA Tour Champions. He won six times on the lucrative senior circuit, the last coming in 1989.

Although Hill is sometimes associated with remarks about Hazeltine, later in his distinguished career he reflected on them.

“I put up with a lot of heat from that but hell, I said it so I gotta live with it.” Then he added, “They should have waited another 5-6 years for it to mature. That course was very young.” And after visiting a revamped Hazeltine in 1991, he described it as “a fun and demanding golf course.”

A softer side of Hill was exposed when asked by Cleary about his late father. “I would die tomorrow if they let me see him for just 15 minutes today.” George passed away before Dave and his younger brother Mike had their greatest successes on the golf course.

Dave Hill’s golf legacy must be seen in the success of the Jackson community. Ed Mitchell, a Jackson native and founder of the Mitchell Golf Company, was quoted upon learning of Hill’s passing in 2011 saying, “From my perspective, he inspired a lot of people to take up the game.”

Certainly, included in this group is Dave’s brother Mike, whose quiet demeanor and PGA Tour career are somewhat underappreciated due to Dave's personality and more impressive playing record. But Mike was a fine player, winning three times on the PGA Tour and later evolving into a force on the PGA Champions Tour where he won 18 times. 

The eight years prior to joining that Tour at age 50, Mike spent his days farming and running a nine-hole golf course which is still very active today and a fun place to play – Heart of the Hills in Brooklyn (a little north of the MIS Speedway). 

Mike Hill didn't play much competitive golf in that time frame as he was busy still raising children with his wife, Sandy, and running the course. Then in January, 1990 after turning 50, he finished fourth in his debut in the PGA Senior Championship. Later he told the Chicago Tribune, ”It proved to me that I could play and was competitive. If I could do this the first time out, I could make it. No question it was a steppingstone for me."

Twice during a senior circuit season he won five times and became only the second player to win a $1 million in a season (1991) when he was ranked as the Champion Tour's best player. "I learned how to play better on the senior tour," said Mike to a reporter in 1992.  "I didn't think when I was 28-29 years old. I thought golf was a reflex action. Davey was more of a student than I was. Now I have more of an idea how to play.”

One of his closest friends, besides his brother, was Lee Trevino, someone who shared the PGA Tour years of the late '60s. They were both military veterans. Trevino served four years as a Marine while Hill spent nearly four years with the Air Force. Later on the Champions Tour, the duo teamed up to win a record five titles at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf tournament.

Golf Digest once ran a story on the Top 10 two-man teams. Trevino and Hill were ranked seventh and described as follows:

"Trevino couldn’t be any more different than Hill. The ‘Merry Mex’ was outgoing, funny, a real chatterbox -- and a Hall of Fame member. Hill didn’t say much … or do much as a career journeyman on the PGA TOUR, albeit winning three times. When they got to the PGA TOUR Champions Trevino kept on winning…Meanwhile, Hill excelled in the greatest mulligan in sports. Both players finished in the top 20 on the money list for the first 10 years of their second careers. They were ideal complements for each other as a team."

As complementary as the Hill brothers were to Jackson golf and their place in Michigan history.

A member of the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame and the Golf Writers Association of America, Terry Moore lives in Grand Rapids.