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Bo Wininger

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Bo Wininger
Personal information
Full nameFrancis G. Wininger
NicknameBo
Born(1922-11-16)November 16, 1922
Chico, California
DiedDecember 7, 1967(1967-12-07) (aged 45)
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Sporting nationality United States
Career
CollegeOklahoma A&M
Turned professional1952
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Professional wins7
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour6
Other1
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament8th: 1963
PGA Championship4th: 1965
U.S. OpenT17: 1962
The Open ChampionshipDNP

Francis G. "Bo" Wininger (November 16, 1922 – December 7, 1967) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s.

Wininger played on the same high school football and baseball teams in Commerce, Oklahoma as future Yankee great Mickey Mantle, albeit a few years before Mantle came along.[1] He attended Oklahoma State University.

Wininger served in the United States Naval Air Corps during World War II. He turned pro in 1952 and joined the PGA Tour in 1953. After winning three times in the mid-1950s, he quit playing the tour full-time in 1959 to take a job in public relations. He returned to his winning ways in the early 1960s, winning the Greater New Orleans Open Invitational in 1962 and 1963 and the Carling Open Invitational in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1962.

Wininger had several runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour in addition to his six wins; these include a 2nd or T-2 finish at the 1957 and 1959 Canadian Open, the 1959 and 1960 Dallas Open Invitational, and the 1959 San Diego Open Invitational. He was the first back-to-back winner in the modern history of the New Orleans tournament. His best finish in a major was 4th place at the 1965 PGA Championship.[2]

He died in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma at the age of 45 after suffering a stroke which left him paralyzed on his right side.

Professional wins (7)

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PGA Tour wins (6)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 Mar 7, 1955 Baton Rouge Open −10 (70-70-67-71=278) Playoff United States Jimmy Clark, United States Billy Maxwell
2 May 15, 1955 Hot Springs Open −18 (67-67-68-68=270) 5 strokes United States Doug Ford, United States Cary Middlecoff
3 May 20, 1956 Kansas City Open −15 (64-69-70-70=273) 1 stroke United States Fred Hawkins, United States Bob Rosburg
4 Feb 25, 1962 Greater New Orleans Open Invitational −7 (69-71-73-68=281) 2 strokes United States Bob Rosburg
5 Nov 25, 1962 Carling Open Invitational −10 (71-71-65-67=274) 1 stroke United States Bert Weaver
6 Mar 4, 1963 Greater New Orleans Open Invitational (2) –9 (68-70-72-69=279) 3 strokes United States Tony Lema, United States Bob Rosburg

PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponents Result
1 1955 Baton Rouge Open United States Jimmy Clark, United States Billy Maxwell Won 18-hole playoff;
Wininger: −6 (66),
Clark: −2 (70),
Maxwell: −1 (71)
2 1960 Dallas Open Invitational United States Ted Kroll, United States Johnny Pott Pott won with birdie on third extra hole
Wininger eliminated by par on first hole

Other wins (1)

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See also

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Esoterica

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Wininger appeared as himself in an episode of The Lucy Show titled "Lucy Takes Up Golf." Fellow golf pro Jimmy Demaret also appeared in that same episode which first aired on January 27, 1964.

References

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  1. ^ Povich, Shirley (June 19, 1995). "Mantle's Critics Swing, Miss". The Washington Post. p. C01.
  2. ^ "Golf Major Championships".