It was a rare privilege and a splendid experience to see Ben Hogan and Sam Snead in head-to-head competition, however that’s what occurred at the Houston Country Club in 1964.

For the first time in over 30 years, watching these titans of the game is now possible for golf fans with the video release of the classic Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf match between Ben Hogan and Sam Snead.

Staged in May 1964 at the Houston Country Club, it originally aired on February 21, 1965. This was a big match, even by Shell standards. The sponsor didn’t invite reporters to cover the matches, but this one was so big, they made an exception.

Famed New York sportswriter Red Smith was among the estimated 5,000 who showed up, according to producer Fred Raphael. The city of Houston rises from topography as flat as a skillet.

The pancake-flat terrain of the Houston Country Club had been molded and shaped into dipping swales, doglegs, and elevated greens by the individualistic endeavors of its designer, Robert Trent Jones.

The holes are extremely long, the greens mammoth. Hitting these greens was one thing; getting close to the hole is another. Hogan defeated Snead, 69 to 72, hitting every fairway and every green.

Raphael recalls that Hogan never faced a putt of longer than 20 feet. Many believe that the 18 holes Hogan played during this Shell match was one of the greatest rounds of his life.

It was an exhibition of perfection and a display of brilliance from both men not soon to be forgotten. Shell's Wonderful World Of Golf . . . classic golf matches from around the world.