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Jerry Pate

American professional golfer (born 1953)

Field	Value
name	Jerry Pate
image	Jerry Pate 1974.jpg
imagesize	255px
caption	Pate after winning the 1974 U.S. Amateur
fullname	Jerome Kendrick Pate
birth_date
birth_place	Macon, Georgia, U.S.
death_date
height
weight	180 lb
nationality
residence	Pensacola, Florida, U.S.
spouse
children	3
college	University of Alabama
yearpro	1975
tour	PGA Tour Champions
extour	PGA Tour
prowins	15
pgawins	8
japwins	2
champwins	2
seneurowins
otherwins	3
majorwins	1
masters	T3: 1982
usopen	Won: 1976
open	T15: 1977
pga	2nd: 1978
wghofid
wghofyear
award1
year1
awardssection
module	{{Infobox person	embed=yes
signature	Jerry_Pate.jpg

Jerome Kendrick Pate (born September 16, 1953) is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour Champions, formerly on the PGA Tour. As a 22-year-old rookie, he won the U.S. Open in 1976.

Early life

Born in Macon, Georgia, he was one of six children in his family. His father and grandfather got him into golf early and the family spent summers in Jacksonville Beach, Florida, playing golf.

At a young age, his family moved to Alabama, where Pate learned the game at Anniston Country Club. In 1967 his family moved to Florida because of Pate's fathers work. Pate grew up in the panhandle of Florida in Pensacola.

Amateur career

Pate attended the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and played on its Crimson Tide golf team.

Pate had a distinguished amateur career with a win at the U.S. Amateur in 1974, and was a member of victorious U.S. teams at the Eisenhower Trophy competition, also winning individually, later that year and at the Walker Cup in May 1975 at St Andrews in Scotland. A few weeks later, he tied Walker Cup teammate Jay Haas of Wake Forest for low amateur at the U.S. Open, finishing in a six-way tie for eighteenth place at Medinah, outside Chicago.

Professional career

In 1975, Pate turned professional. Late in the year he was the medalist at Fall 1975 PGA Tour Qualifying School. During his rookie season he won the 1976 U.S. Open. He also won the Canadian Open that year. Pate closed with a 63 (−7) to defeat runner-up Jack Nicklaus by four strokes.

Six more tour victories followed in ensuing years as well as several other titles around the world. He was a member of the victorious Ryder Cup team in 1981, but shoulder injuries curtailed his career. His final win on the PGA Tour came at age 28. That final victory was at the 1982 Tournament Players Championship, the first held at TPC at Sawgrass. Pate celebrated by throwing course designer Pete Dye and PGA Tour commissioner Deane Beman into the lake adjacent to the 18th green, then jumped in himself. He had also jumped in the water after a victory the previous June, after going nearly three years without a win.

Later career

Pate later served as a golf broadcaster for ABC, CBS, and BBC. He also set up a golf course design practice and a turf and irrigation company. He designed the Kiva Dunes in 1995 and the Ol' Colony Golf Complex in 2000, which is the home course for the Alabama Crimson Tide golf team. In 2006, he earned his first Champions Tour win at the Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am. Pate has been forced by health problems, including arthroscopic left-knee surgery in 2010, to begin limiting his Champions Tour appearances.

Personal life

In the late 1990s, Pate returned to the University of Alabama to complete his bachelor's degree in administrative science. His daughter, Jenni, received her degree at the same graduation ceremony in 2001.

Awards and honors

In 1994, Pate was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.
In 2023, Pate was inducted into the Florida State Golf Association Hall of Fame.
In 2025, Pate was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.

Amateur wins

1974 U.S. Amateur, Florida Amateur

Professional wins (15)

PGA Tour wins (8)

Legend
Major championships (1)
Players Championships (1)
Other PGA Tour (6)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of
victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Jun 20, 1976	U.S. Open	71-69-69-68=277	−3	2 strokes	USA Al Geiberger, USA Tom Weiskopf
2	Jul 25, 1976	Canadian Open	69-67-68-63=267	−13	4 strokes	USA Jack Nicklaus
3	Jan 9, 1977	Phoenix Open	67-67-70-73=277	−7	Playoff	USA Dave Stockton
4	Oct 23, 1977	Southern Open	64-67-69-66=266	−14	7 strokes	USA Phil Hancock, USA Mac McLendon,
USA Johnny Miller, USA Steve Taylor
5	Sep 10, 1978	Southern Open (2)	67-67-66-69=269	−11	1 stroke	USA Phil Hancock
6	Jun 28, 1981	Danny Thomas Memphis Classic	69-70-66-69=274	−14	2 strokes	USA Tom Kite, USA Bruce Lietzke
7	Oct 18, 1981	Pensacola Open	66-69-65-71=271	−17	3 strokes	USA Steve Melnyk
8	Mar 21, 1982	Tournament Players Championship	70-73-70-67=280	−8	2 strokes	USA Brad Bryant, USA Scott Simpson

PGA Tour playoff record (1–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1977	Phoenix Open	USA Dave Stockton	Won with birdie on first extra hole
2	1978	PGA Championship	USA John Mahaffey, USA Tom Watson	Mahaffey won with birdie on second extra hole
3	1980	Sea Pines Heritage	USA Doug Tewell	Lost to par on first extra hole

PGA of Japan Tour wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of
victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Oct 10, 1976	Taiheiyo Club Masters	70-70-68-71=279	−5	2 strokes	JPN Isao Aoki
2	Nov 9, 1980	ABC Japan vs USA Golf Matches	70-69-72-65=276	−12	1 stroke	USA Tom Purtzer, JPN Norio Suzuki

South American Golf Circuit wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of
victory	Runner-up
1	Nov 23, 1980	Brazil Open	69-70-69-66=274	−10	Playoff	ESP Manuel Piñero
2	Dec 13, 1981	Colombian Open	64-67-66-65=262	−26	21 strokes	COL Luis Arevalo

Other wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par
victory	Runners-up
1	Dec 4, 1977	Pepsi-Cola Mixed Team Championship
(with USA Hollis Stacy)	61-70-69-70=270	−18	1 stroke	USA Nancy Lopez and USA Curtis Strange

Champions Tour wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of
victory	Runners-up
1	Feb 26, 2006	Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am	68-68-66=202	−11	1 stroke	USA Morris Hatalsky, USA Hale Irwin,
ENG Mark James
2	Jan 27, 2008	Turtle Bay Championship	71-70-70=211	−5	2 strokes	ZAF Fulton Allem, USA Jim Thorpe

Champions Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponents	Result
1	2005	Senior PGA Championship	USA Dana Quigley, USA Mike Reid	Reid won with birdie on first extra hole

Major championships

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runners-up
1976	U.S. Open	2 shot deficit	−3 (71-69-69-68=277)	2 strokes	USA Al Geiberger, USA Tom Weiskopf

Results timeline

Tournament	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979
Masters Tournament	37		T14	T18	T41
U.S. Open	T18 LA	1	CUT	T16	T2
The Open Championship		CUT	T15	WD	T26
PGA Championship		T4	5	T2	T5

Tournament	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1989
Masters Tournament	T6	T5	T3
U.S. Open	CUT	T26	CUT	CUT		CUT	WD	CUT
The Open Championship	T16	T19	WD
PGA Championship	T10	T11	T9	T23	CUT

Tournament	1990	1991
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open		CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship	CUT

Tournament	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open Championship
PGA Championship		CUT

Tournament	2010	2011
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open Championship
PGA Championship		CUT

LA = Low amateur

CUT = missed the halfway cut (3rd round cut in 1976 Open Championship)

WD = withdrew

"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Summary

Tournament	Wins	2nd	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	0	0	1	2	3	5	7	7
U.S. Open	1	1	0	2	2	4	13	5
The Open Championship	0	0	0	0	0	3	7	4
PGA Championship	0	1	0	4	6	8	12	8

Most consecutive cuts made – 7 (1980 Open Championship – 1982 Masters)
Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (twice)

The Players Championship

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runners-up
1982	Tournament Players Championship	3 shot deficit	−8 (70-73-70-67=280)	2 strokes	USA Brad Bryant, USA Scott Simpson

Results timeline

Tournament	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992
The Players Championship	T17	T20	CUT	T45	1		CUT	T64				CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT

CUT = missed the halfway cut

"T" indicates a tie for a place.

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur

Eisenhower Trophy: 1974 (team winners and joint individual leader)
Walker Cup: 1975 (winners)

Professional

Ryder Cup: 1981 (winners)
World Cup: 1976

References

McKenzie, Mike. (June 21, 1976). "Soozi sunshine". Tuscaloosa News.
Deason, Lauren. (February 13, 2008). "Love stories from the Tour". PGA Tour.
Jenkins, Dan. (June 28, 1976). "You were great, Jerry Pate".
Husar, John. (June 21, 1976). "Rookie Pate beats odds, wins Open". Chicago Tribune.
Mizell, Hubert. (June 21, 1976). "Pate clinches Open on perfect shot". St. Petersburg Times.
McKenzie, Mike. (June 21, 1976). "Drama got it!". Tuscaloosa News.
"Jerry Pate". PGA Tour.
"Jerry Pate". Florida State Golf Association.
(October 27, 1977). "Pate: something extra in Pensacola". Daytona Beach Morning Journal.
Tomashek, Tom. (September 1, 1974). "Pate defeats Grace in U.S. Amateur". Chicago Tribune.
(September 1, 1974). "Pate rallies by Grace". Sunday Star-News.
(September 1, 1974). "Collegian Jerry Pate wins amateur crown". Spokesman-Review.
(May 30, 1975). "U.S. retains Walker Cup". Chicago Tribune.
Tomashek, Tom. (June 23, 1975). "Graham, Mahaffey in Open playoff". Chicago Tribune.
(June 23, 1975). "Medinah showdown". Tuscaloosa News.
(November 9, 1975). "Golf: PGA Fall Qualifying at Orlando, Fla.". Chicago Tribune.
"PGA Tour career". Jerry Pate's official site.
(July 26, 1976). "Pate shoots 63 to beat Nicklaus". Chicago Tribune.
(July 26, 1976). "Jerry Pate adds another national title". Tuscaloosa News.
"Jerry Pate". PGA Tour.
(March 22, 1982). "Pate charges at end, then takes cool dip". Tuscaloosa News.
Jenkins, Dan. (March 29, 1982). "Last one in is a winner".
(March 22, 1982). "In the swim of things". Chicago Tribune.
(June 29, 1981). "Pate ends drought with Memphis swim". Chicago Tribune.
(June 29, 1981). "The dry spell ends with a splash for Jerry Pate". Eugene Register-Guard.
(June 29, 1981). "Pate takes the plunge". St. Petersburg Times.
"Jerry Pate Golf Course Design".
(18 March 2025). "Former Alabama Golfer Jerry Pate Named to Georgia State Golf Association Hall of Fame". Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.
(18 March 2025). "Former Alabama Golfer Jerry Pate Named to Georgia State Golf Association Hall of Fame". University of Alabama.
"Jerry Pate". Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.

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