Thomas Warren Purtzer (born December 5, 1951) is 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 ...

. Purtzer won a number of tournaments on both 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 ...

and 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 ...

Early life and amateur career

Purtzer was born in

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

. He attended

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...

in Tempe, where he was a member of the school's

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

team. He graduated in 1973.

Professional career

In 1973, he turned pro. Purtzer is often described in golf literature as having the "sweetest swing in golf". He won five tournaments on the PGA Tour in three different decades, and 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

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

Personal life

His brother, Paul Purtzer, was also a professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour. Purtzer and his brother operate ''Purtzer Performance Golf School and Academy'' in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. Purtzer lives in

Scottsdale, Arizona Scottsdale is a city in eastern Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and is part of the Phoenix metropolitan area. Named Scottsdale in 1894 after its founder Winfield Scott (chaplain), Winfield Scott, a retired Chaplain Corps (United States ...

Professional wins (15)

PGA Tour wins (5)

PGA Tour playoff record (2–0)

PGA of Japan Tour wins (1)

Other wins (4)

Other playoff record (0–1)

Champions Tour wins (4)

''*Note: The 2003 SBC Classic was shortened to 36 holes due to rain.'' Champions Tour playoff record (1–1)

Other senior wins (1)

''*Note: The 2005 Titanium Enterprises Australian PGA Seniors Championship was shortened to 54 holes due to rain.''

Results in major championships

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

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1989 Masters – 1996 Open Championship) *Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (three times)

Results in The Players Championship

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

U.S. national team appearances

Four Tours World Championship The Four Tours World Championship was an annual professional golf tournament that was played from 1985 to 1991. It was played between teams representing the four main professional tours: the American PGA Tour, the PGA European Tour, the PGA Tour o ...

: 1991

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Purtzer, Tom American male golfers Arizona State Sun Devils men's golfers PGA Tour golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers Golfers from Iowa Golfers from Scottsdale, Arizona Sportspeople from Des Moines, Iowa 1951 births Living people Sigma Alpha Epsilon members 20th-century American sportsmen