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John Mahaffey

American professional golfer (born 1948)

Field	Value
name	John Mahaffey
imagesize
fullname	John Drayton Mahaffey Jr.
birth_date
birth_place	Kerrville, Texas, U.S.
death_date
height
weight	160 lb
nationality
residence	The Woodlands, Texas, U.S.
college	University of Houston
yearpro	1971
retired
extour	PGA Tour
Champions Tour
prowins	16
pgawins	10
champwins	1
otherwins	5
majorwins	1
masters	T8: 1981
usopen	2nd: 1975
open	T10: 1975
pga	Won: 1978
wghofid
wghofyear
award1
year1
awardssection

Champions Tour John Drayton Mahaffey Jr. (born May 9, 1948) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments including 10 PGA Tour events.

Early life

Mahaffey was born in Kerrville, Texas. He attended the University of Houston in Houston, Texas. Mahaffey graduated in 1970 with a degree in psychology.

Professional career

In 1971, Mahaffey turned pro. He came close to winning back-to-back U.S. Opens. At the 1975 U.S. Open he lost in a playoff to Lou Graham at the Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Illinois. The following year, at the 1976 U.S. Open, Mahaffey had a two-shot lead after 54 holes at the Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek, Georgia before shooting a final round 73 and finishing T-4.

In 1978, he won the PGA Championship. It was held at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. Mahaffey became the best comeback winner in PGA history after trailing Tom Watson by seven strokes with 14 holes to play. Ultimately, the tournament came down to a three-player playoff – Mahaffey, Watson and Jerry Pate. All three players made par on the first playoff hole. The drama ended on the second playoff hole when Pate missed the green, Watson missed a 30-foot birdie attempt and Mahaffey made his 12-foot birdie putt for the Championship. Later in the year he also won the World Cup individual and team event where he was paired with Andy North in 1978.

Mahaffey played on the 1979 Ryder Cup team the following year.

Later in his career, he began work as an announcer on Golf Channel telecasts of the PGA Tour Champions.

Personal life

Mahaffey lives near Houston at The Woodlands in his home state of Texas. His family includes wife Elizabeth, and two children.

Amateur wins

1970 NCAA Championship

Professional wins (16)

PGA Tour wins (10)

Legend
Major championships (1)
Players Championships (1)
Other PGA Tour (8)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Oct 28, 1973	Sahara Invitational	−13 (68-66-69-68=271)	3 strokes	USA Dave Eichelberger
2	Aug 6, 1978	PGA Championship	−8 (75-67-68-66=276)	Playoff	USA Jerry Pate, USA Tom Watson
3	Aug 13, 1978	American Optical Classic	−14 (71-65-67-67=270)	2 strokes	USA Raymond Floyd, USA Gil Morgan
4	Jan 14, 1979	Bob Hope Desert Classic	−17 (66-66-71-71-69=343)	1 stroke	USA Lee Trevino
5	Jun 1, 1980	Kemper Open	−5 (68-72-67-68=275)	3 strokes	USA Craig Stadler
6	July 26, 1981	Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic	−8 (72-67-70-67=276)	2 strokes	USA Andy North
7	Jan 15, 1984	Bob Hope Classic (2)	−20 (66-70-70-68-66=340)	Playoff	USA Jim Simons
8	Sep 29, 1985	Texas Open	−12 (68-68-65-67=268)	Playoff	USA Jodie Mudd
9	Mar 30, 1986	Tournament Players Championship	−13 (69-70-65-71=275)	1 stroke	USA Larry Mize
10	Aug 6, 1989	Federal Express St. Jude Classic	−12 (70-71-66-65=272)	3 strokes	USA Bob Gilder, USA Hubert Green,
FRG Bernhard Langer, USA Bob Tway

PGA Tour playoff record (3–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1975	U.S. Open	USA Lou Graham	Lost 18-hole playoff;
Graham: E (71),
Mahaffey: +2 (73)
2	1978	PGA Championship	USA Jerry Pate, USA Tom Watson	Won with birdie on second extra hole
3	1984	Bob Hope Desert Classic	USA Jim Simons	Won with par on second extra hole
4	1985	Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic	USA Mark Wiebe	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
5	1985	Texas Open	USA Jodie Mudd	Won with par on second extra hole

Other wins (5)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Dec 3, 1978	World Cup
(with USA Andy North)	−12 (141-144-138-141=564)	10 strokes	− Wayne Grady and Greg Norman
2	Dec 3, 1978	World Cup Individual Trophy	−7 (69-72-69-71=281)	2 strokes	USA Andy North
3	Nov 11, 1979	World Cup (2)
(with USA Hale Irwin)	−1 (141-141-152-141=575)	5 strokes	− Ken Brown and Sandy Lyle
4	Jan 4, 1981	Spalding Invitational	−9 (69-69-69-72=279)	1 stroke	USA Buddy Allin
5	Dec 12, 1982	JCPenney Mixed Team Classic
(with USA JoAnne Carner)	−20 (68-67-63-70=268)	1 stroke	USA Jay Haas and USA Hollis Stacy

Senior PGA Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runners-up
1	Jun 20, 1999	Southwestern Bell Dominion	−12 (67-67-70=204)	Playoff	ESP José María Cañizares, USA Bruce Fleisher

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1999	Southwestern Bell Dominion	ESP José María Cañizares, USA Bruce Fleisher	Won with birdie on second extra hole
Fleisher eliminated by birdie on first hole
2	2002	FleetBoston Classic	USA Bob Gilder	Lost to birdie on third extra hole

Major championships

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runners-up
1978	PGA Championship	7 shot deficit	−8 (75-67-68-66=276)	Playoff1	USA Jerry Pate, USA Tom Watson

1Defeated Pate and Watson with a birdie on the second extra hole.

Results timeline

Tournament	1970	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1978	1979
Masters Tournament				CUT	CUT	T39
U.S. Open	T36 LA	CUT	T29	T12	2	T4		T36
The Open Championship				T44	T10
PGA Championship			T30	T9	T28	WD	1	T51

Tournament	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989
Masters Tournament	T44	T8	CUT	T40	CUT	T14	T42	T35
U.S. Open	T28	CUT	T22	T34	T30	T39	CUT	T24		T46
The Open Championship	T32						T30
PGA Championship	T15	CUT	T42	CUT	T20	T23	CUT	T65	T15	CUT

Tournament	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1997
Masters Tournament	T42
U.S. Open	CUT			CUT	CUT	CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship	T40	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	WD

LA = Low amateur

CUT = missed the halfway cut

WD = Withdrew

"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Summary

Tournament	Wins	2nd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	0	0	0	1	2	12	8
U.S. Open	0	1	2	2	5	20	13
The Open Championship	0	0	0	1	1	4	4
PGA Championship	1	0	1	2	6	23	12

Most consecutive cuts made – 8 (1978 PGA – 1981 Masters)
Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1975 U.S. Open – 1975 Open Championship)

The Players Championship

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
1986	Tournament Players Championship	4 shot deficit	−13 (69-70-65-71=275)	1 stroke	USA Larry Mize

Results timeline

Tournament	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996
The Players Championship	T19	T11	T34		T12		T5	T19	T35	T3	T10	CUT	1	T32	T27	T45	CUT	CUT	T9	CUT	T27	T55	CUT

CUT = missed the halfway cut

"T" indicates a tie for a place.

U.S. national team appearances

Professional

Ryder Cup: 1979 (winners)
World Cup: 1978 (winners, individual winner), 1979 (winners)
Nissan Cup: 1986

References

"PGA Championship History – 1978: Never count a golfer out". PGA of America.

Info: Wikipedia Source

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