subject: Byron Nelson [print this page] Early life and career Early life and career
Born near Waxahachie, Texas, Byron Nelson was the son of Madge Allen Nelson and John Byron Nelson, Sr. His parents set a precedent for him not only in their long lives Madge Nelson lived to age 98, and her husband to age 77 but also in their religious commitment. Madge, who had grown up Baptist, was baptized in a Church of Christ at age 18, and John Byron Sr., raised Presbyterian, was baptized in a Church of Christ soon after meeting Madge. The senior Byron Nelson went on to serve as an elder in the Roanoke Church of Christ, and the younger Byron Nelson was a committed member of that congregation even performing janitorial services there from time to time long after he became famous he later placed his membership at the Hilltop Church of Christ in Roanoke from 1989 until 2000 when he moved his membership to the Richland Hills Church of Christ in North Richland Hills, Texas in later life.
When Nelson was 11 years old, the family moved to Fort Worth, where he barely survived typhoid fever after losing nearly half his body weight to the disease, which also left him unable to sire children. Soon after his baptism at age 12, he started caddying at Glen Garden Country Club. On his caddying days, Nelson said, "I knew nothing about caddying at first, but it wasn't difficult to learn. The other caddies, though, didn't like to see any new ones, because that might mean they wouldn't get a job sometime." An article on Nelson in Sports Illustrated noted that initially caddies were not permitted to play at the club: "[H]e would often practice in the dark, putting his white handkerchief over the hole so he could find it in the darkness." The club later changed its policy and sponsored the Glen Garden Caddie Tournament, where a 14-year-old Nelson beat fellow caddy and future golf great Ben Hogan by a single stroke after a nine-hole playoff.
In 1934, Nelson was working as a golf pro in Texarkana, Texas, when he met future wife Louise Shofner, to whom he was married 50 years before she died in 1985 after two severe strokes.
Championship heyday
After turning professional in 1932, Nelson waited until 1935 to post his first victory at the New Jersey State Open. He followed this up with a win at the Metropolitan Open the following year. He reportedly won this tournament with "$5 in my pocket". Nelson won his first major event at The Masters in 1937, winning by two shots over Ralph Guldahl. During this tournament he shot a first-round 66, which stood as a record as the lowest first round in the Masters history until Raymond Floyd had 65 in the 1976 event. Nelson would subsequently win four more major tournaments, the U.S. Open in 1939, the PGA Championship in 1940 and 1945, and a second Masters in 1942. Nelson had a blood disorder that caused his blood to clot four times slower than normal, which kept him out of military service during World War II. It has sometimes mistakenly been reported that he had hemophilia; this is not true.
In his career, Nelson won 52 professional events. Nelson won the Vardon Trophy in 1939. He played on the U.S. Ryder Cup teams in 1937 and 1947 and was non-playing captain of the team in 1965. After 1946, Nelson curtailed his schedule although he continued to make regular appearances at The Masters as a competitor, and later as a ceremonial starter for many years.
Record-breaking year
In 1945 Nelson enjoyed a record-breaking year, winning 18 tournaments including 11 in a row. Both records are still yet to be beaten. Nelson however lost many chances at major championships during this year, and previous years, because of the war, and only won the 1945 PGA Championship. There has been debate to how impressive these results are, as it was believed to be a weakened tour due to the war. But in reality many of the leading golfers of that time, including Sam Snead and Ben Hogan still played a full or at least part schedule that year. Both Snead and Hogan won multiple times on the tour in 1945. During this year Nelson finished second another 7 times, set a record for the scoring average that was only recently broken (68.33, broken by Tiger Woods in 2000), a record 18 hole score (62), and a record 72-hole score (259, which beat the previous record set by Ben Hogan earlier that year). This year is now known as the greatest single year by a player on the PGA Tour, as Arnold Palmer said: "I don't think that anyone will ever exceed the things that Byron did by winning 11 tournaments in a row in one year." Even more recently, Tiger Woods referred to the year as "one of the greatest years in the history of the sport."
Cut streak
Nelson's record of 113 consecutive cuts made is second only to Tiger Woods' 142. The PGA Tour defines a "cut" as receiving a paycheck, even if an event has no cut per se. In Nelson's era, only the top 20 in a tournament received a check. In reality, Nelson's "113 consecutive cuts made" are representative of his unequaled 113 consecutive top 20 tournament finishes.
Death and legacy
Nelson died Tuesday, September 26, 2006. According to a family friend, Nelson died at his Roanoke, Texas home around noon. He was survived by Peggy, his wife of nearly 20 years, sister Margaret Ellen Sherman, and brother Charles, a professor emeritus at Abilene Christian University, where Byron Nelson had been a trustee and benefactor. Nelson met his second wife, the former Peggy Simmons, when she volunteered at the Bogie Busters celebrity golf tournament in Dayton, Ohio in 1985.
Nelson was often referred to as "Lord Byron," after the English poet by that name, in recognition of his reputation for gentlemanly conduct, a nickname given him by Atlanta sports journalist O. B. Keeler. Many of his obituaries referenced this reputation.
He has several successful years as a television golf commentator. Nelson had a significant role in the development of Tom Watson as a world-class player in the mid-1970s.
Nelson was ranked as the fifth greatest golfer of all time by Golf Digest magazine in 2000. On this list, Jack Nicklaus was first, Nelson's longtime rivals Ben Hogan and Sam Snead were second and third respectively, and Bobby Jones was fourth.
Several of the obituary columns mentioned Nelson's Christian beliefs, and one widely quoted column by PGA.com's Grant Boone drew a direct connection between these beliefs and Nelson's positive reputation: "Byron Nelson wasn't randomly respectable, not generically good. He was a follower of Christ, and his discipleship dictated his decency, demeanor, decision-making, and the way he dealt with people. ... But Nelson never brandished his faith as a weapon, choosing instead to extend an empty and open hand in friendship to all comers. And did they ever come. Wherever the debate over which golfer is the best of all time ends, Byron Nelson was the game's finest man, hands down."
Posthumous honors
State Highway 114 Business through Roanoke, Texas is named Byron Nelson Boulevard, in honor of Nelson's residence; the street he lived on was recently changed to Eleven Straight Lane in honor of his 1945 record. In Irving, Texas a street immediately adjacent to the Four Seasons Resort and Club, where the HP Byron Nelson Championship is played each year, is named Byron Nelson Lane. A street in Southlake, Texas, Byron Nelson Parkway, was named in his honor, as was a street in a residential neighborhood in McAllen, Texas.
On October 16, 2006, President George W. Bush approved H.R. 4902 awarding Byron Nelson the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest award that can be bestowed by the Legislative Branch of the United States government. The resolution cites Mr. Nelson's "significant contributions to the game of golf as a player, a teacher, and a commentator." Representative Michael C. Burgess (R-TX) sponsored the resolution, originally proposed March 8, 2006, well before Nelson's death. Senate Resolution 602 memorialized Nelson on September 29, 2006.
On April 23, 2007 the Northwest Independent School District named their second high school Byron Nelson High School. This is the first high school named in honor of Byron Nelson, and is expected to open in 2009. The school will be located in Trophy Club, Texas, near Nelson's hometown of Roanoke.
Orange County Choppers built three choppers in dedication which were auctioned off.
PGA Tour wins (52)
1935 (1) New Jersey State Open
1936 (1) Metropolitan Open
1937 (2) The Masters, Belmont Country Club Match Play
1938 (2) Thomasville Open, Hollywood Open
1939 (4) Phoenix Open, North and South Open, U.S. Open, Western Open
1940 (3) Texas Open, Miami Open, PGA Championship
1941 (3) Greater Greensboro Open, Tam O'Shanter Open, Miami Open
1942 (3) Oakland Open, The Masters, Tam O'Shanter Open
1944 (8) San Francisco Victory Open, Knoxville War Bond Tournament, New York Red Cross Tourney, Minneapolis Four-Ball (with Harold "Jug" McSpaden), Tam O'Shanter Open, Nashville Open, Texas Victory Open, San Francisco Open
1945 (18) Phoenix Open, Corpus Christi Open, New Orleans Open, Miami International Four-Ball (with Harold "Jug" McSpaden), Charlotte Open, Greater Greensboro Open, Durham Open, Atlanta Open, Montreal Open, Philadelphia Inquirer Open, Chicago Victory National Open, PGA Championship, Tam O'Shanter Open, Canadian Open, Knoxville Invitational, Esmeralda Open, Seattle Open, Glen Garden Open
1946 (6) Los Angeles Open, San Francisco Open, New Orleans Open, Houston Open, Columbus Invitational, Chicago Victory National Open
1951 (1) Bing Crosby Pro-Am
Major championships are shown in bold.
Source: (Barkow 1989, pp.263)
Other wins (12)
1937 Central Pennsylvania Open
1939 Massachusetts Open
1940 Ohio Open
1941 Ohio Open, Seminole Pro-Am
1942 Toledo Open, Ohio Open
1943 Kentucky Open
1944 New York Open, Beverly Hills Open
1948 Texas PGA Championship
1955 French Open
Major Championships
Wins (5)
Year
Championship
54 Holes
Winning Score
Margin
Runner(s)-up
1937
The Masters
4 shot deficit
-5 (66-72-75-70=283)
2 strokes
Ralph Guldahl
1939
U.S. Open
5 shot deficit
+8 (72-73-71-68=284)
Playoff 1
Denny Shute, Craig Wood
1940
PGA Championship
n/a
1 up
n/a
Sam Snead
1942
The Masters (2)
2 shot lead
-6 (68-67-72-73=280)
Playoff 2
Ben Hogan
1945
PGA Championship (2)
n/a
4 & 3
n/a
Sammy Byrd
Note: The PGA Championship was match play until 1958
1 Defeated Craig Wood and Denny Shute in a 36-hole playoff - Nelson (68-70=138), Wood (68-73=141), Shute (76) (eliminated after first 18)
2 Defeated Ben Hogan in an 18-hole playoff - Nelson (69), Hogan (70)
Results timeline
Tournament
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
The Masters
DNP
T9
T13
1
5
7
U.S. Open
CUT
T32
CUT
T20
T5
1
The Open Championship
DNP
DNP
DNP
5
DNP
DNP
PGA Championship
DNP
DNP
DNP
QF
QF
2
Tournament
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
The Masters
3
2
1
NT
NT
NT
T7
T2
T8
T8
U.S. Open
T5
T17
NT
NT
NT
NT
T2
DNP
DNP
CUT
The Open Championship
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
PGA Championship
1
2
SF
NT
2
1
QF
DNP
DNP
DNP
Tournament
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
The Masters
T4
T8
T24
T29
T12
T10
39
T16
T20
WD
U.S. Open
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
T28
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
The Open Championship
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
T32
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
PGA Championship
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
Tournament
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
The Masters
CUT
T32
T33
CUT
CUT
T15
CUT
U.S. Open
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
The Open Championship
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
PGA Championship
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
DNP
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
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
Green background for wins. Yellow background for Top 10.
Awards
PGA Tour Money Winner: 1944, 1945
Vardon Trophy: 1939
Bob Jones Award: 1974
World Golf Hall of Fame: 1974
Old Tom Morris Award: 1994
PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award: 1997
Payne Stewart Award: 2000
Congressional Gold Medal: 2006
See also
Golf portal
Golfers with most PGA Tour wins
Golfers with most major championship wins
Most PGA Tour wins in a year
Longest PGA Tour win streaks
Byron Nelson Award
Harold "Jug" McSpaden
Notes
^ Kelley, Brent. "Biography of golfer Ben Hogan". http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/ben_hogan.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
^ Kelley, Brent. "Biography of golfer Sam Snead". http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/sam_snead.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
^ a b "World Golf Hall of Fame Profile: Byron Nelson". http://www.wgv.com/hof/member.php?member=1085. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
^ a b c d Legendary golfer Byron Nelson, a faithful church member, dies at 94, by Bobby Ross, Jr., The Christian Chronicle
^ The Gigantic Book of Golf Quotations, ed. Jim Apfelbaum. 2007.
^ a b Grace, style and morality: Nelson will be known as 'legend who will never fade', obituary by Art Stricklin, Sports Illustrated, September 26, 2006 (retrieved November 2, 2006)
^ Kessler, Peter. "Golf's great gentleman looks back -- and ahead" (interview). Golf Magazine. http://www.golfonline.com/golfonline/features/kessler/columnist/0,17742,545269-3,00.html. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
^ Townsend, Brad. "A course for success" (Timeline). The Dallas Morning News. http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/golf/stories/092706dnnewnelsonchrono.321c420.html. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
^ Nelson, Byron; Palmer, Arnold (1993). How I Played the Game. Taylor Trade Publishing. ISBN 0-8783-3819-5.
^ a b c d e "About Golf: Biography of Golfer Byron Nelson". http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/byron_nelson.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-18.
^ a b c d Kelley, Brent. "Top 10 Individual Seasons in Men's Golf History". http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/a/menstop10years_3.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-21.
^ a b "Byron Nelson: The Sand Trap". http://thesandtrap.com/columns/profiles/byron_nelson. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
^ a b Byron Nelson, Golf Champion, Is Dead at 94, by Richard Goldstein, The New York Times, September 26, 2006 (retrieved November 1, 2006)
^ Nelson obituary in the Dayton Daily News
^ Legendary memories: Byron Nelson was larger than life, and I was lucky to call him a friend, Jeff Rude, "Our Take" (column), Golf Week
^ Death of Nelson shuts door on greatest era: ord Byron embodied the essence of the game like no one else, by Mike Celizic (column), MSNBC.com, October 3, 2006 (retrieved November 2, 2006)
^ Yocom, Guy (July 2000). "50 Greatest Golfers of All Time: And What They Taught Us". Golf Digest. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HFI/is_7_51/ai_63015233. Retrieved 2007-12-05.
^ Full Nelson ("Grant Me This" column), Grant Boone, PGA.com, September 27, 2006 (retrieved November 2, 2006)
^ H.R. 4902: Byron Nelson Congressional Gold Medal Act
^ "A Look at Northwest ISD's Second High School". http://www.nisdtx.org/12071042616198250/blank/browse.asp?a=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&c=64446. Retrieved 2007-05-19.
References
Barkow, Al (1989), The History of the PGA TOUR, Doubleday, ISBN 0-385-26145-4
External links
Memorial Page for Byron Nelson, Hilltop Church of Christ, Roanoke, Texas (includes biographical sketch, quotations, photographs, and links to obituaries)
Byron Nelson profile
Byron Nelson profile at Golf Legends
Byron Nelson's Congressional Medal
Tribute to Byron Nelson
EDS Byron Nelson Championship Web site - golf tournament named after Byron Nelson
2006 EDS Byron Nelson Championship Media Guide - contains biographical information
Golf legend Nelson dies, Dallas Morning News, 26 Sep 2006
American Golf Legend Nelson Dies BBC Sport, 26 Sep 2006
Precededby
Gunder Hgg
Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year
1944, 1945
Succeededby
Glenn Davis
Byron Nelson in the major championships
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The Masters champions
1934 Horton Smith 1935 Gene Sarazen 1936 Horton Smith 1937 Byron Nelson 1938 Henry Picard 1939 Ralph Guldahl 1940 Jimmy Demaret 1941 Craig Wood 1942 Byron Nelson 1943-45 Cancelled due to World War II 1946 Herman Keiser 1947 Jimmy Demaret 1948 Claude Harmon 1949 Sam Snead 1950 Jimmy Demaret 1951 Ben Hogan 1952 Sam Snead 1953 Ben Hogan 1954 Sam Snead 1955 Cary Middlecoff 1956 Jack Burke, Jr. 1957 Doug Ford 1958 Arnold Palmer 1959 Art Wall, Jr. 1960 Arnold Palmer 1961 Gary Player 1962 Arnold Palmer 1963 Jack Nicklaus 1964 Arnold Palmer 1965 Jack Nicklaus 1966 Jack Nicklaus 1967 Gay Brewer 1968 Bob Goalby 1969 George Archer 1970 Billy Casper 1971 Charles Coody 1972 Jack Nicklaus 1973 Tommy Aaron 1974 Gary Player 1975 Jack Nicklaus 1976 Raymond Floyd 1977 Tom Watson 1978 Gary Player 1979 Fuzzy Zoeller 1980 Severiano Ballesteros 1981 Tom Watson 1982 Craig Stadler 1983 Severiano Ballesteros 1984 Ben Crenshaw 1985 Bernhard Langer 1986 Jack Nicklaus 1987 Larry Mize 1988 Sandy Lyle 1989 Nick Faldo 1990 Nick Faldo 1991 Ian Woosnam 1992 Fred Couples 1993 Bernhard Langer 1994 Jos Mara Olazbal 1995 Ben Crenshaw 1996 Nick Faldo 1997 Tiger Woods 1998 Mark O'Meara 1999 Jos Mara Olazbal 2000 Vijay Singh 2001 Tiger Woods 2002 Tiger Woods 2003 Mike Weir 2004 Phil Mickelson 2005 Tiger Woods 2006 Phil Mickelson 2007 Zach Johnson 2008 Trevor Immelman 2009 ngel Cabrera
vde
U.S. Open champions
1895 Horace Rawlins 1896 James Foulis 1897 Joe Lloyd 1898 Fred Herd 1899 Willie Smith 1900 Harry Vardon 1901 Willie Anderson 1902 Laurie Auchterlonie 1903 Willie Anderson 1904 Willie Anderson 1905 Willie Anderson 1906 Alex Smith 1907 Alec Ross 1908 Fred McLeod
