Billy Graham Trivia: Which Celebrity Used Billy Graham’s Golf Shot As a Punchline?

By   •   May 16, 2021

Billy Graham and Bob Hope
Billy Graham and Bob Hope shared many laughs — and rounds of golf, including here at a Byron Nelson Golf Classic event on May 4, 1971. Their friendship began at the 1949 Los Angeles Crusade.

Q: Which celebrity used Billy Graham’s golf shot as a punchline?

A: Comedian, actor and television host Bob Hope.

Billy Graham and Bob Hope were friends, and both had a passion for golf.

T.W. Wilson, one of Billy Graham’s associates, remembered walking along with them on the golf course. Both men had hit bad drives, and their golf balls were over the edge of the woods. Bob Hope hollered, “Hey, Billy, help! I’m in trouble!”

Mr. Wilson tells what happened next: “I’m not exaggerating a bit. Billy, whose ball was over in the edge of the woods, hit the ball, and it wasn’t a good hit. And it hit the water, and bounced off, and went right on the green about four to five feet from the hole, and of course Billy won the hole.”

That night Bob Hope said to an audience, “I played golf with Billy Graham today, and he really taught me a lesson. His golf ball walked on water.”

—From Leading with Billy Graham: The Leadership Principles and Life of T.W. Wilson by Jay Dennis