Widely regarded as the top horseshoe pitcher to ever come out Muskegon, Smith won 13 Michigan Horseshoe Pitchers Association state titles between 1962 and 1982. He competed in 25 state tournaments and placed in the top three on 21 occasions.
Smith was known for his consistency and mental toughness, posting an amazing 80 percent ringer average during the 1977 state tournament, a record that still stands today.  His best finish in the National Horseshoe Pitchers Association tournament was fifth place in 1969. Smith also won Class B world titles in 1968 and 1979. He was inducted into the Michigan Horseshoe Pitchers Association Hall of Fame in 1972 and joins his wife, Dorothy, as the only two members in that hall of honor from Muskegon.

A lifelong resident of Muskegon, Smith worked at Teledyne Continental Motors Corporation for many years and organized many local horseshoe competitions for the city’s recreation department before his passing in 1989 at the age of 67.