Julius Boros, whose easy-going style belied the competitive fire that made him one of golf's top players, died Saturday of heart attack while riding a cart on one of his favorite courses. The two-time U.S. Open and PGA champion was 74.
Boros, who always had a toothpick or piece of grass perched on his lip while playing, managed to elbow his way into the elite of his era alongside such giants as Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus. He was PGA player of the year in 1952, when Hogan and Snead were the biggest names, and in 1963, when Palmer, Nicklaus and Player were the game's celebrated "Big Three."Boros won the U.S. Open in 1952, ending Hogan's bid for a third straight national title, and 1963, in an 18-hole playoff with Palmer and Jacky Cupit. He won the PGA in 1968, relegating Palmer to second in the only major tournament he never won.