Tim Norris (born November 20, 1957) is a current college head
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...
coach and a former
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 ...
who played on the
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...
in the 1980s.
Early life
Norris was born and raised in
Fresno, California
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...
. He started his collegiate career at
Fresno City College
Fresno City College (FCC or "Fresno City") is a public community college in Fresno, California. It is part of the State Center Community College District within the California Community Colleges system. Fresno City College operates on a semester ...
before transferring to
Fresno State University
California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bac ...
. In 1979, he was a second-team All-American, helped lead Fresno State to the Big West Championship, and was the winner of the Sun Bowl Golf Classic. In 1980, he was a first-team All-American, shared Big West ''Athlete-of-the-Year'' honors with
Jay Don Blake, helped lead Fresno State to its second Big West Championship in as many years, and was Fresno State's ''Athlete-of-the-Year''.
Professional career
Norris had 11 top-10 finishes in
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...
events including a win at the 1982
Sammy Davis Jr.-Greater Hartford Open. Norris established the tournament record at 259 (25-under), which stood until it was eclipsed in 2009 by
Kenny Perry
James Kenneth Perry (born August 10, 1960) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He won 14 PGA Tour events and has won nine PGA Tour Champions events including four senior major championships: the 20 ...
. He was only one of two players to go wire-to-wire without sharing the lead. He defeated
Raymond Floyd
Raymond Loran Floyd (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired golfer who has won numerous tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Senior PGA Tour, including four majors and four senior majors. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame i ...
and
Hubert Green by six strokes. His best finish in a
major was T-40 at the 1985
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...
.
In the 1990s, Norris switch careers from touring professional to college coach. He was men's head golf coach at
University of Texas-El Paso
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stude ...
from 1990–1997. Since August 1, 1997, he has been the men's head golf coach at
Kansas State University
Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public insti ...
in
Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city and county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County, Kansas, Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue ...
. When he arrived at K-State, he inherited a program that had finished dead last in the
Big Eight Conference
The Big Eight Conference was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored football. It was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Associat ...
for 14 straight years from 1978–1991. Norris has made steady progress transforming the Wildcat's into winners; they appeared in the NCAA Regionals in 2003, 2004 and 2005. During the 2003-2004 season, the Wildcats won the Purina Classic in
St. Charles, Missouri, and finished T-4 in the final
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...
standings.
''Bio from Kansas State University Sports''
/ref>
Norris is married to the former Shelley Kerr. They have two children, Ashley and Tyler, and live in Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city and county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County, Kansas, Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue ...
.
Professional wins (4)
PGA Tour wins (1)
Other wins (3)
*1980 California State Open The California State Open is the California state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Southern California section of the PGA of America. It was first played in 1900 and has been played at a var ...
*1986 Spalding Invitational
*1992 Sun Country PGA Championship
Results in major championships
''Note: Norris never played in The 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 t ...
.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
See also
*Fall 1980 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
This is a list of the Fall 1980 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates.
Tournament summary
Peter Teravainen, who played on the PGA Tour the previous season, missed qualifying by one shot. The European Tour then gave membership to the top 15 play ...
*1986 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
This is a list of the 1986 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates. 53 players earned their 1987 PGA Tour card through Q-School in 1986. This was the first year that playing privileges went out to the top 50 and, in addition, those that tied for the ...
*1987 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
This is a list of the 1987 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates. 54 players earned their 1988 PGA Tour card through Q-School in 1987. The tournament was played over 108 holes at Pine Lakes Golf Club and Matanzas Golf Club, in Palm Coast, Florida. T ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norris, Tim
American male golfers
Fresno State Bulldogs men's golfers
PGA Tour golfers
College golf coaches in the United States
Golfers from California
Golfers from Kansas
Fresno City College alumni
University of Texas at El Paso people
Kansas State University people
Sportspeople from Fresno, California
Sportspeople from Manhattan, Kansas
1957 births
Living people