John Lee Lewis (July 18, 1960 – December 31, 2019) was an American

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

. He won twice on the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also known as the PGA Tour, the PGA Tour Champion ...

: the

John Deere Classic The John Deere Classic is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in July, usually the week before The Open Championship, at TPC Deere Run in the Quad Cities community of Silvis, Illinois. History The tournament bega ...

in 1999, and the

84 Lumber Classic The Pennsylvania Classic was a golf tournament on the PGA Tour, held from 2000 through 2006 at three different Pennsylvania courses. The event's final title sponsor was lumber company 84 Lumber. The host course from 2003 to 2006 was Mystic Rock ...

in 2003. In 1999 he won the Honda Invitational in

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. In 2010, Lewis earned a spot on the

Champions Tour PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, open to golfers age 50 and over, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour. History and format The Senior PGA Championship, f ...

after placing well on the tour's Q School.

Life and career

Lewis was born and raised in

Emporia, Kansas Emporia is a city in and the county seat of Lyon County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 24,139. Emporia lies between Topeka, Kansas, Topeka and Wichita, Kansas, Wichita ...

. His parents, John and Donna Lewis, taught in Emporia schools for thirty years. His athletic ability was evident from an early age: he played Little League Baseball from 1967 to 1973, and was a winning pitcher with multiple no-hitters. Lewis began playing golf at the age of seven at Emporia Country Club, where he won at the ECC Men's Club Championship twice before graduating from high school. He lettered in football, basketball, and golf at Emporia High School. In 1978, he was named to the all-state high school basketball team, and was awarded a golf scholarship to

Emporia State University Emporia State University (Emporia State or ESU) is a public university in Emporia, Kansas, United States. Established in March 1863 as the Kansas State Normal School, Emporia State is the third-oldest public university in the state of Kansas. E ...

. After his sophomore year at Emporia State, Lewis transferred to Southwest Texas State University (now

Texas State University–San Marcos Texas State University (TXST) is a public research university with its main campus in San Marcos, Texas, United States, and another campus in Round Rock. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to be one of the largest univer ...

). While at Texas State, his team won the 1983 Division II golf championship, and he received First Team All American honors for finishing second individually. He graduated from Texas State with a Bachelor of Science in education with a major in business education and a minor in English. He has been inducted into the Emporia High School Hall of Fame (2001) and the Texas State University Hall of Honor (2002). From 1982 to 1987, Lewis participated in the

PGA of America The Professional Golfers' Association of America (PGA of America) is an American organization of golf professionals that was founded in 1916. Consisting of nearly 29,000 members, the PGA of America's undertaking is to establish and elevate t ...

apprentice program, and he became a professional golfer in 1984. During these years he was an assistant golf pro at The Hills of Lakeway Golf & Country Club (Live Oak and Yaupon golf courses) in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. In 1988, Lewis became an assistant golf pro at the

Las Vegas Country Club The Las Vegas Country Club is a private membership club located in the Winchester area of metropolitan Las Vegas, Nevada. History It was built on the site of a 1950s horse and automobile racetrack named Las Vegas Park and later the Las Vegas Pa ...

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, where he earned his PGA Class A membership. In December 1988, he qualified for the PGA Tour, and competed in 21 tour events during 1989. He was named 1988 Player of the Year, Southwest Section PGA (Las Vegas Chapter). From 1990 to 1993, Lewis was the golf pro at Forest Creek Golf Club in

Round Rock, Texas Round Rock is a city in Williamson and Travis County, Texas, United States, part of the Greater Austin metropolitan area. Its population is 119,468 according to the 2020 census. The city straddles the Balcones Escarpment, Texas State Histor ...

. As a PGA Club Professional, he won numerous events and was a three-time sectional player of the year, twice in the PGA South Texas Section, and once in the PGA Southwest Section. In 1994, Lewis was a member of the

PGA Cup The PGA Cup is a men's golf competition for club professionals played between a Great Britain and Ireland team and a United States team. The winning team is presented with the Llandudno Trophy. The competition is run by the British PGA and the P ...

team; he led the Americans to a victory over the Europeans by making a 50-foot putt on the last hole of the competition. He rejoined the PGA Tour in 1995. Lewis had an interest in writing, specifically about golf instruction, for which he has penned more than 1,000 golf tips. He published a book, the "Pocket Pro" edition of "Golf Tips from the Tour" in 2009.J.L. Lewis - Golf Tips From The Tour
/ref> Lewis retired from competitive golf in 2012.

2007 and 2008 PGA Tour seasons

After his comeback from a strained

medial collateral ligament The medial collateral ligament (MCL), also called the superficial medial collateral ligament (sMCL) or tibial collateral ligament (TCL), is one of the major ligaments of the knee. It is on the medial (inner) side of the knee joint and occurs in ...

in his left knee suffered in May 2006, Lewis played in four events during the 2007 PGA Tour season. Because he also had a lingering elbow injury, he was granted a major medical extension carryover for the 2008 season. Lewis's best finishes during 2008 were in the

Shell Houston Open The Texas Children's Houston Open is a professional golf tournament in Texas on the PGA Tour, played in March. As a part of a restructuring of the schedule, the event moved to the fall in 2019. Because the tour year starts the previous fall, the ...

(T47), in the

Verizon Heritage The RBC Heritage, known for much of its history as the Heritage Classic or simply The Heritage, is a PGA Tour event in South Carolina, first played in 1969. It is currently played in mid-April, the week after The Masters in Augusta, Georgia. T ...

(T64), and in the

Valero Texas Open The Texas Open, known as the Valero Texas Open for sponsorship reasons, is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, played near San Antonio, Texas. It dates back years to 1922, when it was first called the Texas Open; San Antonio-based Va ...

(T73).

Family

In August 1982, Lewis married Dawn Marie Delavan, who grew up in Emporia, Kansas, and graduated from Emporia High School in 1978. Dawn, who played golf and participated in track and field and gymnastics, competed on the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

gymnastics team beginning in the fall of 1978. She managed her husband's golf career and business operations through J.L. Sports, LLC. Lewis died in December 2019 of

multiple myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibody, antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone ...

Professional wins (5)

PGA Tour wins (2)

PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)

Other wins (3)

*1992

Southern Texas PGA Championship The Southern Texas PGA Championship is a golf tournament that is the championship of the Southern Texas section of the PGA of America. The Southern Texas section was formed in 1968, and the tournament has been played annually since that time. Tommy ...

*1993

*1999 Honda Invitational (Mexico)

Results in major championships

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

Results in The Players Championship

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

Results in World Golf Championships

"T" = Tied

U.S. national team appearances

: 1994 (winners)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, J. L. American male golfers PGA Tour golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers Korn Ferry Tour graduates Golfers from Kansas Emporia State Hornets athletes Texas State Bobcats athletes Emporia High School alumni Sportspeople from Emporia, Kansas Golfers from Austin, Texas Deaths from multiple myeloma in the United States 1960 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American sportsmen