Barbara Nicklaus to be honored with USGA Bob Jones Award

Image: Jim Mandeville/Nicklaus Companies; USGA Illustration/Kim Barney

Barbara Nicklaus has been selected by the United States Golf Association (USGA) as the 2015 Bob Jones Award winner.

The Bob Jones Award, the USGA’s highest honor, has been present since 1955 and recognizes an individual that shares Jones’ spirit, personal character and respect for the game. Mrs. Nicklaus has demonstrated these attributes during the last almost 55 years generating attention for youth-related charitable causes and volunteerism through her influence as the wife of 18-time major champion Jack Nicklaus.

“Her dedication to support players and spouses, and advocacy for multiple causes, are worthy of our highest honor,” says USGA President Thomas J. O’Toole Jr. “We are proud to bestow this award upon her to recognize her lasting contribution to the game.”

Her influences on the game include the creation of the Barbara and Jack Nicklaus Junior Golf Endowment Fund, started to encourage youth participation by supporting junior golf programs across the country. She is the chairman of the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation — the leading charity at the Memorial Tournament, a PGA Tour event founded by the Nicklauses in 1976. Mrs. Nicklaus was the co-chairperson of the charity that organizes The PGA Tour’s The Honda Classic.

“Wow! What a truly humbling honor!” she said when informed of the award. “The USGA has been a part of our lives since Jack and I were teenagers, and we have always respected and appreciated their contributions and impact on the great game of golf. To receive this honor from them, one that bears the name of a man who had such a deep impact on our family, is one of the most meaningful recognitions I have been blessed to receive.”

She joins her husband, the 1975 winner, as the first married couple to receive the award. The Bob Jones Award will be presented at a ceremony during the week of the 115th U.S. Open, which takes place June 15-21, 2015, at Chambers Bay in University Place, Wash.