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Dan Sikes
Personal information
Full nameDaniel David Sikes, Jr.
Nickname"The Golfing Lawyer"
Born(1929-12-07)December 7, 1929
Wildwood, Florida
DiedDecember 20, 1987(1987-12-20) (aged 58)
Jacksonville, Florida
Sporting nationality United States
Career
CollegeUniversity of Florida
Turned professional1960
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins9
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour6
PGA Tour Champions3
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament5th: 1965
PGA ChampionshipT3: 1967
U.S. Open10th: 1963
The Open ChampionshipDNP

Daniel David Sikes, Jr. (December 7, 1929 – December 20, 1987) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and Champions Tour. Sikes won nine tournaments as a pro, including six PGA Tour events. He was influential as the chairman of the tournament players committee in the late 1960s, prior to the formation of the PGA Tour.

Early life

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Sikes was born in Wildwood, Florida and was raised in Jacksonville. He attended Andrew Jackson High School.[1]

Amateur career

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Sikes enrolled at the University of Florida in Gainesville, where he played for the Florida Gators' golf team in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) competition from 1951 to 1953.[2] He was recognized as an All-American in 1952—the University of Florida's first All-American golfer.[1][3] Sikes graduated from Florida with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1953.

Although he later earned a law degree from the university's College of Law and was known as the "golfing lawyer," he never actually practiced law. He was the chairman and spokesman of the controversial tournament players' committee prior to the formation of the "Tournament Players Division" in late 1968, which was later renamed the PGA Tour.[4]

Sikes won the U.S. Amateur Public Links championship in 1958 while in law school.

Professional career

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Sikes turned professional in 1960 and won six tournaments on the PGA Tour, half in his home state of Florida. Sikes' career year was 1967, when he won two events and was fifth on the money list. He was also the 54-hole leader at the PGA Championship[4][5] and finished one shot out of the playoff, in a tie for third with Jack Nicklaus.[1] Due to disputes with the PGA of America, the championship was nearly boycotted by the top tournament players.[6] Sikes played on the Ryder Cup team in 1969 at Royal Birkdale.

Sikes later represented caddies on tour in 1970[7] and was instrumental in helping organize the Senior PGA Tour, later renamed the Champions Tour. He won three times on the senior tour, the first at the rain-shortened Hilton Head Seniors International in 1982, which Sikes and Miller Barber were leading when play was stopped.[1]

Personal life

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Sikes died in Jacksonville at age 58 in late 1987.[8]

Awards and honors

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Sikes was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great."[9]

Sikes was posthumously inducted into the Jacksonville Sports Hall of Fame in 1988.[1]

Professional wins (9)

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PGA Tour wins (6)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory 		Runner-up
1 Mar 24, 1963 Doral C.C. Open Invitational 76-70-67-70=283 −5 1 stroke United States Sam Snead
2 Jun 13, 1965 Cleveland Open Invitational 68-70-68-66=272 −12 1 stroke United States Tony Lema
3 Mar 19, 1967 Jacksonville Open 67-69-70-73=279 −9 1 stroke United States Bill Collins
4 Sep 17, 1967 Philadelphia Golf Classic 71-68-69-68=276 −12 2 strokes United States George Archer
5 Mar 17, 1968 Florida Citrus Open Invitational 71-67-70-66=274 −14 1 stroke United States Tom Weiskopf
6 Jul 28, 1968 Minnesota Golf Classic 71-66-71-64=272 −12 1 stroke United States Ken Still

PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 1962 Houston Classic United States Bobby Nichols, United States Jack Nicklaus Nichols won with eagle on first extra hole after 18-hole playoff;
Nichols: +1 (71),
Sikes: +1 (71),
Nicklaus: +6 (76)
2 1973 Byron Nelson Golf Classic United States Lanny Wadkins Lost to par on first extra hole

Senior PGA Tour wins (3)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory 		Runner-up
1 Oct 24, 1982 Hilton Head Seniors International 69-69=138* −6 Shared title with United States Miller Barber
2 Jun 3, 1984 Gatlin Brothers Seniors Golf Classic 69-73-68=210 −6 1 stroke United States Rod Funseth
3 Sep 9, 1984 United Virginia Bank Seniors 67-69-71=207 −9 1 stroke United States Lee Elder

*Note: The 1982 Hilton Head Seniors International was shortened to 36 holes due to weather.

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

No. Year Tournament Opponents Result
1 1984 Daytona Beach Seniors Golf Classic United States Orville Moody, United States Arnold Palmer Moody won with birdie on second extra hole
2 1985 Citizens Union Senior Golf Classic United States Lee Elder, United States Orville Moody,
United States Walt Zembriski 		Elder won with birdie on third extra hole
Moody eliminated by birdie on second hole

Results in major championships

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Tournament 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975
Masters Tournament T15 T13 5 T36 T35 12 T36 CUT T15 CUT
U.S. Open T36 10 T44 T36 15 T38 T27
PGA Championship T47 T45 T28 T3 T8 T25 T18 T46 T13 T6 T74

Note: Sikes never played in The Open Championship.

  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

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Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 0 0 1 1 5 10 8
U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 1 2 7 7
The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PGA Championship 0 0 1 1 3 6 11 11
Totals 0 0 1 2 5 13 28 26
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 21 (1962 U.S. Open – 1970 PGA)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (five times)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Athletes of the Century: Dan Sikes". Retrieved March 18, 2011.
  2. ^ Florida Men's Golf 2011 Media Supplement Archived April 2, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 39 & 42 (2010). Retrieved July 11, 2011.
  3. ^ 2008–09 Florida Gators Men's Golf Media Guide Archived 2012-03-22 at the Wayback Machine, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 36 (2008). Retrieved July 14, 2011.
  4. ^ a b "PGA rebel grabs lead". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. July 23, 1967. p. 1B.
  5. ^ "Dan Sikes hold two stroke lead". Star-News. Wilmington, North Carolina. UPI. July 23, 1967. p. 1C.
  6. ^ "Pro golfers settle odds with PGA". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. July 6, 1967. p. 1C.
  7. ^ Green, Bob (March 21, 1970). "Dan Sikes will represent golf's angry tour caddies". Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. p. 4.
  8. ^ Golf
  9. ^ F Club, Hall of Fame, Gator Greats. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
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