After Liston was released from prison on October 31, 1952, he had a brief amateur career that spanned less than a year. Liston captured the Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions on March 6, 1953, with a victory over 1952 Olympic Heavyweight Champion Ed Sanders. He then outpointed Julius Griffin, winner of the New York Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions, to capture the Intercity Golden Gloves Championship on March 26 (representing Chicago). Liston was knocked down in the first round, but came back to control the next two rounds and had Griffin hanging on at the end.