Smiley Quick

Who was Smiley Quick?

Lyman Loren "Smiley" Quick was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s.

Quick was born in Centralia, Illinois, but lived most of his life in southern California in places like Inglewood and Los Angeles. He served as a combat Marine in World War II. His best year as an amateur was 1946 when he won the U.S. Amateur Public Links and was runner-up at the U.S. Amateur after missing a putt from 2¹⁄2 feet at Baltusrol's Lower Course giving Ted Bishop the championship. Quick played on the 1947 Walker Cup team and turned professional in 1948.

As a pro, Quick never lived up to the potential he showed as an amateur; the closest he came to winning on the PGA Tour was when he tied for first with Jack Burke, Jr., Sam Snead and Dave Douglas at the 1950 Bing Crosby Pro-Am.

In his later years, he made a living gambling on the golf course with people like Titanic Thompson. Quick hustled boxing great Joe Louis out of a quarter million dollars — enough to buy an apartment in Los Angeles and a fleet of fast cars.