Lon Hinkle

Lon Hinkle (born July 17, 1949) is an American professional golfer who has played on both the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.

Lon Hinkle
Personal information
Born (1949-07-17) July 17, 1949
Flint, Michigan
Nationality United States
Career
CollegeSan Diego State University
Turned professional1972
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins5
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour3
Korn Ferry Tour1
Other1
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT28: 1981
PGA ChampionshipT3: 1980
U.S. OpenT3: 1980
The Open ChampionshipT19: 1975

Hinkle was born in Flint, Michigan. He attended Santana High School in Santee, California, graduating in 1967. He then attended San Diego State University, where he was a member of the golf team. He turned pro and joined the PGA Tour in 1972.

Hinkle won three tournaments in his career on the PGA Tour, all of which came in the late 1970s. In 1979, he earned $247,693, finished 3rd on the money list, and won two Tour events, including the World Series of Golf. That year in the first round of the U.S. Open at Inverness Club he took a shortcut, cutting the dogleg on the par-5 8th hole by hitting onto the 17th fairway. Overnight, USGA officials planted a tree (known ever afterwards as The Hinkle Tree) to block the shortcut.[1] His best finish in a major was a T-3 at both the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship in 1980.[2] During his career on the PGA Tour, he had more than 50 top-10 finishes. He also played on the European Tour occasionally. Though he never won he finished runner-up at the 1975 German Open and 1980 European Open.

In 1981, Hinkle won the World Long Drive Championship.

After turning 50 in 1999, Hinkle joined the Champions Tour. His best finish at that level is a T-12 in the 2000 Audi Senior Classic.

Hinkle lives in Bigfork, Montana in the northwest corner of the state.

Professional wins (5)

PGA Tour wins (3)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runners-up
1 Apr 30, 1978 First NBC New Orleans Open −17 (74-67-64-66=271) 1 stroke Gibby Gilbert, Fuzzy Zoeller
2 Feb 4, 1979 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am −4 (70-68-69-77=284) Playoff Andy Bean, Mark Hayes
3 Sep 30, 1979 World Series of Golf −8 (67-67-71-67=272) 1 stroke Larry Nelson, Bill Rogers,
Lee Trevino

PGA Tour playoff record (1-2)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1977 Tallahassee Open Ed Sneed Lost to birdie on first extra hole
2 1979 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am Andy Bean, Mark Hayes Hinkle won with birdie on third extra hole
Bean eliminated with par on second hole
3 1986 Walt Disney World/Oldsmobile Classic Raymond Floyd, Mike Sullivan Floyd won with par on first extra hole

Ben Hogan Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runners-up
1 Jun 2, 1991 Ben Hogan Quicksilver Open −6 (70-68-72=210) 2 strokes Andy Morse, Rick Pearson,
Joey Rassett

Other wins (1)

Results in major championships

Tournament 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Masters Tournament CUT WD T28 CUT
U.S. Open T38 CUT T53 T3 T6 T45
The Open Championship T19 CUT CUT
PGA Championship T31 63 T65 T3 T39 T9 T47 70 T51 73
  Top 10
  Did not play

WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament00000041
U.S. Open00112265
The Open Championship00000131
PGA Championship0011221010
Totals0022452317
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 6 (1982 U.S. Open – 1987 PGA)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (four times)

Results in The Players Championship

Tournament 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990
The Players Championship CUT 3 CUT T39 CUT T56 CUT T7 CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

See also

References

  1. The Hinkle Tree
  2. "Golf Major Championships". Retrieved January 25, 2008.
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