Background
Smith was born in Fort Myers, Florida.
Smith was born in Fort Myers, Florida.
He moved to Ann Arbor in 1939, and in his four years at the University of Michigan he finished 3rd, 2nd, and 1st in the Big Ten Championship.
In 1943, Smith was the president of the National Intercollegiate Golf Association and worked with Chick Evans in his caddy scholarship program After he graduated from Michigan, Smith served three and a half years in the United States Navy, and then returned to Detroit. He joined Fife Electric Supply Company in 1946 and became the owner in 1973.
He was also the president of the National Association of Electrical Distributors in 1975-1976.
In 1985, Ben was inducted into the University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor. In 1990, he was inducted into the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame.
Finally, In 1995, he was inducted into the inaugural Fort Myers High School Green Wave Golf Hall of Fame. On July 21, 2009, Smith died at the age of 88 in the Naples Community Hospital in Naples, Florida.