Pro golfer took swings at ENMU

Where are they nowlink

Editor’s note: Where are they now is a weekly feature updating the lives of Eastern New Mexico University graduates.

Each year, Steve Spray would tell his mother he wanted to quit college and play professional golf. His mother insisted he needed to be the first in the family to graduate from college before giving pro golf a shot.

Mom won out.

In addition to winning back-to-back National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics golf titles while at Eastern New Mexico University, Spray graduated in 1964 with a degree in business administration and marketing.

Spray then played more than a decade on the Professional Golfers Association Tour, winning the San Francisco Open in 1969. He left the tour in 1976 and spent the next 36 years as the club professional at St. Louis Country Club.

The Iowa native lives with his second wife Deanna outside St. Louis and still plays golf once a week.

“Ever since I was 8 or 9 years old, I wanted to play professional golf,” Spray said. “I wasn’t necessarily successful on the tour, but I accomplished my goal.”

Flashback

Most memorable professor? “Dr. Becky Sharp. She was in the administration department. She nursed me along. I remember I wanted to take speech. She said I should take literature. I was worried I wouldn’t pass it and I needed to stay eligible to play golf. I took it. She pushed me all the time.”

What is a skill you developed at ENMU that still serves you well? “The wind blew every day. I really learned how to play in the wind.”

What was your initial impression when you came to Eastern? “I didn’t like Portales. I couldn’t wait to get home to Iowa and I didn’t plan on coming back. By the end of the semester, I didn’t want to go home. I loved it in Portales.”

It doesn’t get any better: The last time Spray played in the Masters, in 1969, he played a practice round with Arnold Palmer. “It was the highlight of my career. He shot a 63. I shot a 70. We played a $2 Nassau. I lost $10.”

By the numbers

43 — Spray’s highest ranking on the PGA Tour money list with $32,000.

— Compiled by Rick White, correspondent

Bio

Year graduated from Eastern New Mexico University: 1964, degree in business administration and marketing

Family: wife, Deann, four children, six grandchildren

Hometown: Indianola, Iowa

Current residence: St. Louis

Current profession: Retired as golf professional at St. Louis Country Club in 2012 after 36 years.