District Remembers Golf Legend Ray Savoy

A legend on the green and throughout the District, Raymond A. Savoy, founder of the Langston Junior Boys and Girls Golf Club, has died. He was 83. 

A native Washingtonian, Savoy was known as an icon at the Langston Golf Course in Northeast D.C., and is being remembered for his legendary contributions to the District. 

“I have known Ray Savoy since I was a kid. He was our coach, our friend and our big brother. I called him Uncle Ray because he paved the way for us,” the Rev. Anthony Motley told The Washington Informer. 

From early childhood Savoy, who grew up in a large sports-loving family of four boys and four girls, thrived in athletics— from football, baseball, basketball and golf.

In high school, Savoy enrolled in Epiphany High School-College in Newburgh, New York, before coming back to D.C., where he graduated from Mackin High School, an all-boys Catholic high school, and then Minor Teachers College, which eventually evolved into University of the District of the Columbia.

A young Savoy excelled in baseball as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates; a semi-pro football player in the Northern Amateur Football League; and a sandlot football athlete with the Saints and Stonewalls 1967-1969 and later professionally with the Baltimore Broncos for five years. He also played basketball, competing against the likes of John Thompson, Dave Bing and other local legends.

Savoy’s success in golf came at a time when many doors were closed to people of color. Further, his love for the sport became a way to uplift others, educating hundreds of youth on the green.

Recognized by the U.S. Golf Teachers Federation (USGTF) Hall of Fame since 1995, Savoy often could be found at Langston, either teaching his students the game or holding court with the regulars that frequent the clubhouse, talking about his life and career, such as his desire at one time to become a Catholic priest.

“I always kept God first,” Savoy once said in a podcast interview.  

Inspiring Youth Through Golf

For 32 years, Savoy worked for the  D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation where he retired as director of city youth sports programs. 

He once said in an interview that one of his goals was to teach young people how to perform under pressure and stress.  

“We teach them about dealing with stress,” he said. “We teach them that all of the time they are not winners but they are winners through participation.”

He also served as a certified clinician for the National Alliance for Youth Sports and 20-year volunteer at the NBC 4 “Health & Fitness Expo,” helping with golf programming.

With Langston Junior Boys and Girls Golf Club, a nonprofit group that was originally established in 1989 under the umbrella of the national “Hook-A-Kid on Golf ” program, Savoy made a major mark, teaching students the importance of discipline, determination, and organization to improve their golf game and chances of success. 

Operating from the historic Langston Golf Course, one of the three D.C. area courses owned by the National Park Service, young golfers were encouraged to adopt and uphold the organization’s core values, particularly to respect one’s self and others.

Through the Langston Junior Summer Program, more than 200 boys and girls participated for six weeks every year in free golf instruction.

The athletic visionary also founded Senior Swingers, for golfers ages 55-70, in 1994.

“He was a special guy to so many,” Tom Brown, one of the managers at Langston, told The Informer. 

Honors Over the Years, Savoy’s Daughter Remembers Her ‘Hero‘

A USGTF Hall of Fame inductee in 2014, Savoy received many awards over the years.

Some of his honors include: a Humanitarian Award from the Lion’s Club; multiple Outstanding Service Awards from the D.C. Department of Recreation and Parks; the 2014 Man of Excellence by Strong Black Coffee Group, in Newport News, Virginia; and was inducted into the District of Columbia State Athletic Association (DCSAA) Hall of Fame along with John Thompson. He was named a “Living Legend” by the Pig Skin Club of Washington, D.C. and one of “Washington’s 50 Influencers,” by Washington Informer Charities. 

In addition, Savoy was among a group of men from around the country invited to The White House for a special Father’s Day celebration in 2013, hosted by President Barack Obama.

Savoy has been married to Paulette Granison Savoy for 31 years, with five children between them, eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

“My earthly hero has laid down his cape, yet l’m grateful knowing he suffers no more,” said his daughter Jacquin K. Savoy. “The Lord has been kind and faithful to my dad, Ray Savoy, for over 83 years, and for that I’m truly thankful. Even though we all know this day will come, I don’t believe anyone is ever fully prepared for the passing of a parent.”