Murray Irwin “Moe” Norman (July 10, 1929 – September 4, 2004) was a Canadian professional golfer.
Born in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, Norman played briefly in the PGA Tour but due to shyness and a preference to stay in Canada, he stayed in Ontario rather than travel.
Norman’s play, along with his way of dressing, were both described as unconventional. He devised what is known as “The Norman Swing”—very short backswing and very short follow-through which produced an amazingly accurate ball placement. He played extremely fast, sometimes not even slowing to line up his putts. He was inducted into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame in 1995. He never took a golfing lesson. It is even said that on one hole his caddy told him he could get to the green with a driver and a nine iron. Naturally, he hit off the tee with his nine iron and then onto the green with his driver.
Norman’s skills as a ball striker are legendary. Sam Snead, himself a great golfer, once described Norman as the greatest striker of the ball. In January 2005, Tiger Woods told Golf Digest’s Jamie Diaz that only two golfers in history “owned their swing”: Moe Norman and Ben Hogan. Stated Woods, “I want to own mine.”
Norman died in a Kitchener hospital from congestive heart failure. He had suffered from congestive heart failure since having heart bypass surgery six years earlier. He also had a heart attack two years before his death.
