Thomas Daniel Creavy (February 3, 1911 – March 3, 1979) 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 ...

, the winner of the

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. The PGA is one of the four men's major golf champi ...

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

Early life

Creavy was born in Tuckahoe, New York. He learned the game as a

caddie In golf, a caddie (or caddy) is a companion to the player, providing both practical support and strategic guidance on the course. Caddies are responsible for carrying the player’s bag, managing clubs, and assisting with basic course maintena ...

at Siwanoy Country Club.

Professional career

In the late 1920s, Creavy turned professional. He was the club professional at the Albany Country Club and Saratoga Spa. He won the PGA Championship at age 20 in

at Wannamoisett Country Club in Rumford, Rhode Island, defeating Gene Sarazen 5 & 3 in the semifinals and Denny Shute 2 & 1 in the finals. Creavy played in 11 major championships, including the inaugural Masters in

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

. He had an outstanding short game, but his competitive playing career was hampered by recurring back problems and shortened by spinal

meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, intense headache, vomiting and neck stiffness and occasion ...

in 1943.

Death

Creavy died of a heart attack in 1979 at age 68 in

Delray Beach, Florida Delray Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population of Delray Beach as of April 1, 2020, was 66,846 according to the 2020 United States census, 2020 United States Census. Located in the Miami metropolitan area, De ...

Professional wins (4)

PGA Tour wins (4)

*1931 (1)

, Northeastern New York *1932 (1) Northeastern New York PGA *1934 (1) San Francisco National Match Play Open Source:

Major championships

Wins (1)

''Note: The PGA Championship was

match play Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 h ...

until

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...

Results timeline

''Note: Creavy 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 th ...

.''
NYF = tournament not yet founded
DNQ = did not qualify for match play portion
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place

References

External links

Albany golfer an almost-forgotten winner of 1931 PGA ChampionshipCreavy golfing family
{{DEFAULTSORT:Creavy, Tom American male golfers PGA Tour golfers Winners of men's major golf championships People from Tuckahoe, Westchester County, New York Sportspeople from Eastchester, New York Golfers from Westchester County, New York 1911 births 1979 deaths 20th-century American sportsmen