Jack Fleck
| Jack Fleck | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Born | November 7, 1921 Bettendorf, Iowa |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 167 lb (76 kg; 11.9 st) |
| Nationality |  United States |
| Residence | Fort Smith, Arkansas |
| Spouse | Carmen Fleck |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 1939 |
| Former tour(s) | PGA Tour Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 7 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 3 |
| Other | 2 (regular) 2 (senior) |
| Best results in Major Championships (Wins: 1) |
|
| Masters Tournament | T11: 1962 |
| U.S. Open | Won: 1955 |
| The Open Championship | DNP |
| PGA Championship | T7: 1962 |
Jack Fleck (born November 7, 1921) is an American professional golfer best known for winning the 1955 U.S. Open. He is the oldest living U.S. Open champion.
Fleck was born and raised in Bettendorf, Iowa.[1] His parents were poor farmers who had lost their land in the 1920s. Fleck attended Davenport High School in Davenport, Iowa where he played on the golf team. He started as a caddy for a local dentist in the mid-1930s. He turned professional in 1939[2] and worked as an assistant golf pro before World War II. During the war, Fleck served in the Navy and participated in the D-Day invasion from a British rocket-firing ship off Utah Beach. Within two weeks after separation from the Navy, Fleck was on the PGA's winter golf tour with pro friends trying to qualify for PGA Tour events.
After a few years of competing in local and PGA Tour events, Fleck decided to play full-time on the Tour for two years. Within six months, Fleck had his first win — on the biggest stage in men's professional golf — at the 1955 U.S. Open. Fleck won an 18-hole playoff by three strokes over his idol, Ben Hogan, at the Olympic Club in San Francisco.[3] Fleck's first round deficit of nine strokes (behind Tommy Bolt), was the largest overcome by a U.S. Open winner.[4]
Fleck came close to winning the 1960 U.S. Open, but would ultimately settle for only two more trophies on the PGA Tour in the early 1960s. He also won the 1979 PGA Seniors' Championship just prior to the formation of the Senior PGA Tour.[5]
Fleck was inducted into the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame in 1990.[6]
In 1993, needing money to salvage a little golf course he owned in rural Arkansas that had been damaged by flooding, a place he called Li'l Bit of Heaven, he sold his 1955 U.S. Open gold medal.[5] He makes his home in Fort Smith, Arkansas with his wife Carmen Fleck.[7]
Contents |
[edit] Professional wins (7)
[edit] PGA Tour wins (3)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning Score | Margin of Victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jun 19 1955 | U.S. Open | +3 (76-69-75-67=287) | Playoff | Ben Hogan |
| 2 | Feb 15, 1960 | Phoenix Open Invitational | -11 (68-68-71-66=273) | Playoff | Bill Collins |
| 3 | Oct 1, 1961 | Bakersfield Open | -12 (71-71-69-65=276) | Playoff | Bob Rosburg |
PGA Tour playoff record (3–2)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1955 | U.S. Open | Ben Hogan |
Won 18-hole playoff (Fleck:69, Hogan:72) |
| 2 | 1960 | Phoenix Open Invitational | Bill Collins |
Won 18-hole playoff (Fleck:68, Collins:71) |
| 3 | 1960 | St. Petersburg Open Invitational | George Bayer |
Lost to birdie on first extra hole |
| 4 | 1960 | Insurance City Open | Bill Collins, Arnold Palmer |
Palmer won with birdie on third extra hole Collins eliminated with birdie on first hole |
| 5 | 1961 | Bakersfield Open | Bob Rosburg |
Won with birdie on first extra hole |
Major championship shown in bold
[edit] Other wins (2)
[edit] Senior wins (2)
- 1979 PGA Seniors' Championship
- 1995 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Demaret Division (with Tommy Bolt)
[edit] Major championships
[edit] Wins (1)
| Year | Championship | 54 Holes | Winning Score | Margin | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | U.S. Open | 3 shot deficit | +7 (76-69-75-67=287) | Playoff 1 | Ben Hogan |
1 Defeated Ben Hogan in an 18-hole playoff - Fleck 69 (-1), Hogan 72 (+2).
[edit] Results timeline
| Tournament | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T43 | T26 | T39 | T18 |
| U.S. Open | CUT | DNP | DNP | T52 | DNP | 1 | CUT | T26 | CUT | T19 |
| PGA Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | R64 | DNP | R16 | R32 | R64 | WD | DNP |
| Tournament | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | T34 | WD | T11 | 42 | CUT | DQ | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| U.S. Open | T3 | T27 | DNP | CUT | DNP | DNP | CUT | CUT | DNP | DNP |
| PGA Championship | CUT | T19 | T7 | WD | DNP | T20 | T49 | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| Tournament | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| U.S. Open | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT |
| PGA Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
Note: Fleck never played The Open Championship.
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
DQ = Disqualified
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10
[edit] References
- ^ "Sports Pudit". Jack Fleck. http://www.sportspundit.com/athlete/7566/. Retrieved 2010-12-07.
- ^ Jack Fleck, Davenport, 1972
- ^ "Biographical information from Jack Fleck Golf". http://www.jackfleckgolf.com/about.html. Retrieved 2006-06-15.
- ^ U.S. Open Records - Best Comeback by Winner, Final 54 Holes
- ^ a b "Jack Fleck's visit to Valhalla". Golf Digest. http://www.golfdigest.com/newsandtour/index.ssf?/newsandtour/gw20040604fields.html. Retrieved 2006-06-15.[dead link]
- ^ "JACK FLECK, Davenport". Iowa Golf Association. http://www.iowagolf.org/HTML/Hall_of_Fame/1990/JackFleck.html. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
- ^ "Be a Golf Tour Champion" by Jack Fleck
[edit] External links
- Google Books Bettendorf Iowa's Exciting City published 2000
- Jack Fleck at the PGA Tour official site
