Tom Purtzer

Thomas Warren Purtzer (born December 5, 1951) is an American professional golfer who has won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.

Tom Purtzer
Personal information
Full nameThomas Warren Purtzer
Born (1951-12-05) December 5, 1951
Des Moines, Iowa
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight210 lb (95 kg; 15 st)
Nationality United States
ResidenceScottsdale, Arizona
Career
CollegeArizona State University
Turned professional1973
Current tour(s)Champions Tour
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Professional wins15
Highest ranking28 (January 19, 1992)[1]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour5
Japan Golf Tour1
PGA Tour Champions4
Other5
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT24: 1989
PGA ChampionshipT16: 1982
U.S. Open4th: 1977
The Open ChampionshipT4: 1982

Purtzer was born in Des Moines, Iowa. He attended Arizona State University in Tempe, where he was a member of the school's golf team. He graduated in 1973 and turned pro. He followed in the footsteps of his older brother, Paul, who also played golf for Arizona State and played on the PGA Tour in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Purtzer is often described in golf literature as having the "sweetest swing in golf".[2] He won five tournaments on the PGA Tour in three different decades, and has thus far won four times on the Champions Tour. His best finishes in major championships were 4th at the 1977 U.S. Open and T4 at the 1982 British Open.[3]

Purtzer is a close friend of Major League Baseball Hall-of-Famer Robin Yount and country music star Vince Gill. He enjoys sports, music and auto racing in his spare time. Purtzer and his brother Paul operate Purtzer Performance Golf School and Academy in Phoenix, Arizona. He lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Professional wins (15)

PGA Tour wins (5)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-up
1 Feb 20, 1977 Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open −11 (68-67-66-72=273) 1 stroke Lanny Wadkins
2 Jan 22, 1984 Phoenix Open −16 (68-67-68-65=268) 1 stroke Corey Pavin
3 Oct 9, 1988 Gatlin Brothers-Southwest Golf Classic −19 (64-72-69-64=269) Playoff Mark Brooks
4 May 26, 1991 Southwestern Bell Colonial −13 (70-66-67-64=267) 3 strokes David Edwards, Scott Hoch,
Bob Lohr
5 Aug 25, 1991 NEC World Series of Golf −1 (72-69-67-71=279) Playoff Jim Gallagher Jr., Davis Love III

PGA Tour playoff record (2–0)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1988 Gatlin Brothers-Southwest Golf Classic Mark Brooks Won with par on first extra hole
2 1991 NEC World Series of Golf Jim Gallagher Jr., Davis Love III Won with par on second extra hole

Japan Golf Tour wins (1)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1 Nov 11, 1979 ABC Japan vs USA Golf Matches −12 (69-67-68-72=276) 10 strokes Bill Rogers

Other wins (4)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runners-up
1 Jul 7, 1981 Jerry Ford Invitational −10 (69-63=132) 1 stroke John Cook, Craig Stadler,
Curtis Strange
2 Dec 7, 1986 JCPenney Classic
(with Juli Inkster)		 −23 (61-69-66-69=265) 2 strokes Mike Hulbert and Val Skinner
3 Nov 24, 1991 Shark Shootout
(with Lanny Wadkins)		 −27 (61-65-63=189) 4 strokes Jack Nicklaus and Greg Norman
4 Aug 24, 1993 Fred Meyer Challenge
(with Steve Elkington)		 −16 (63-63=128) 1 stroke Fred Couples and Davis Love III,
Brad Faxon and Rick Fehr,
Jim Gallagher Jr. and Bruce Lietzke

Other playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentsResult
1 1985 Chrysler Team Championship
(with Jim Colbert)		 Charles Bolling and Brad Fabel,
Raymond Floyd and Hal Sutton,
Jon Fought and Pat McGowan,
Gary Hallberg and Scott Hoch		 Floyd/Sutton won with birdie on first extra hole

Champions Tour wins (4)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-up
1 May 16, 2003 SBC Classic −9 (67-68=135) 1 stroke Gil Morgan
2 Mar 21, 2004 Toshiba Senior Classic −15 (60-71-67=198) 1 stroke Morris Hatalsky
3 Aug 7, 2005 3M Championship −15 (63-69-69=201) 1 stroke Lonnie Nielsen, Craig Stadler
4 Mar 18, 2007 AT&T Champions Classic −10 (69-69-68=206) Playoff Loren Roberts

Champions Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2005 Bank of America Championship Mark McNulty, Don Pooley McNulty won with birdie on second extra hole
2 2007 AT&T Champions Classic Loren Roberts Won with birdie on fourth extra hole

Other senior wins (1)
  • 2005 Australian PGA Seniors

Results in major championships
Tournament1976197719781979
Masters Tournament CUT T37
U.S. Open T44 4 T24 8
The Open Championship
PGA Championship CUT T54 CUT
Tournament1980198119821983198419851986198719881989
Masters Tournament 32 T25 CUT T24
U.S. Open CUT CUT CUT T16 T68
The Open Championship T4 CUT
PGA Championship CUT T19 T16 CUT CUT CUT T47 CUT T53
Tournament 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
Masters Tournament T45 T61
U.S. Open T37 T33 T32
The Open Championship T22 T70 T62
PGA Championship T31 T32 T21 CUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

Summary
TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament00000286
U.S. Open000124129
The Open Championship00011254
PGA Championship000003168
Totals00023114127
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1989 Masters – 1996 Open Championship)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (three times)

Results in The Players Championship
Tournament 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
The Players Championship T59 CUT CUT CUT T19 CUT T19 T41 T40 T48 T9 T45 T55
Tournament 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001
The Players Championship T3 CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT T62 T24 CUT CUT CUT CUT
  Top 10

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

U.S. national team appearances

See also

References
  1. "Week 3 1992 Ending 19 Jan 1992" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  2. "Sweet-Swinging Purtzer Works on Putting". The Golf Channel. March 8, 2005. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007.
  3. "Golf Major Championships – Tom Purtzer". Retrieved October 23, 2013.
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