Roger Watson

1997

PGA Professional

An NAIA All-American at High Point College, Roger Watson was elected to the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1981.  After graduation in 1966, his first job as a Professional was for Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame member Buck Adams, at the Country Club of North Carolina in Pinehurst.  Later he became the Head Professional and Golf Director at MacGregor Downs Country Club in Cary for ten years.  As a young Club Professional, he won the 1969 North Carolina Open.

Watson’s greatest years as a player came in the mid-1970s.  The first of those years was 1974, when he won the PGA Club Professionals Championship in Pinehurst, making a 90-foot putt on the 72nd hole to tie Sam Snead, then defeating Snead in a playoff.  He successfully defended the title in 1975.  He won the Carolinas PGA Championship in both 1975 and 1976, and was a member of the PGA Cup Team in both of those years.

Since 1985, Watson’s efforts have been focused on developing and managing new golf courses in the Carolinas and Virginia, keeping the game alive for future generations.

Roger Watson was inducted into the Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame in 1981.