Hall of Fame golfers living in the Hamptons are as rare as holes-in-one, which is one reason why we hope that the legendary Raymond Floyd is not selling his Southampton manse because he is leaving. Another is, you look up “classy competitor” in the dictionary, and there is a picture of Mr. Floyd, who has 65 notches on his belt for each tournament he has won around the world. In any case, via Sotheby’s International Realty, Mr. Floyd’s house has just been put on the market for $25 million.
As Behind the Hedges Daily puts it, “The exterior of this property ought to be in a brochure called Gracious Southampton Living. There are covered porches with wicker furniture, striped awnings, white picket fences, hydrangeas, roses, and rolling green lawns. Of course there’s a lovely pool and a tennis court as well as specimen shade trees, and fruit trees.” All this and more can be found on 3.25 acres on Captains Neck Lane.
The main house—humorously called Mulligan, something Mr. Floyd rarely needed during his career—is 10,000 square feet and contains 5 bedrooms, staff quarters, a fireplace, a sitting room and loft, a gym, laundry room, and a wine cellar. There is a separate 6,000-square-foot guest cottage with 5 bedrooms. The exterior, of course, is beautifully landscaped—but, alas, no putting green.
Now that Mr. Floyd’s competitive days are over—he will turn 75 next month—if he has a mind to he can reflect on one of the great careers in professional golf. The North Carolina native spurned an offer to pitch in the Cleveland Indians organization to pursue golf, first at the University of North Carolina, then on the PGA Tour. Mr. Floyd was only 20 when he won his first tournament, the Petersburg Open Invitational, and 26 when he won his first major, the PGA Championship in 1969. He would go on to win three more majors—the Masters in 1976, another PGA Championship in 1982, and the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills in 1986. It was the latter victory that helped Mr. Floyd and his wife, Maria, fall in love with Southampton and decide to build a home there. (She passed away in 2012.)
Mr. Floyd was successful on the Champions Tour too, winning four majors on the senior circuit, but in addition to his individual achievements he is highly respected for being on 10 U.S. Ryder Cup teams, as both a player, captain, and assistant captain. He is one of the most deserving members of the World Golf Hall of Fame, to which he was elected in 1989.