Ken Green (golfer)

Early life

Green was born in Danbury, Connecticut. He started playing golf at age 12 in Honduras, where his father, Martin "Marty" Green, was principal of the American school, and his only choices of sports were golf or soccer. He quit school at 16 to pursue his dream of becoming a professional tour player. He received his GED in December 1976.

Amateur career

Green later attended Palm Beach Junior College in Lake Worth, Florida for a year. He then accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Buster Bishop and coach John Darr's Florida Gators men's golf team in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) competition from 1977 to 1979. Green was a second-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection in 1979.

Professional career

Green turned pro in 1979 and joined the PGA Tour in 1980. He had five tournament victories on the PGA Tour; all five came in the mid to late 1980s. His first win came in 1985 at the Buick Open, and his last was at the Kmart Greater Greensboro Open in 1989. His best year in professional golf was 1988, when he won two events on the PGA Tour, as well as the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan. His best finish in a major was a seventh-place tie at the 1996 U.S. Open. Green also played on the U.S. team in the 1989 Ryder Cup.

During his time in professional golf, Green has had a reputation for rebelliousness and a propensity to pull stunts. He has had over two dozen fines levied by the PGA Tour for his bad boy antics. Some of his antics included sneaking friends into The Masters in the trunk of his car, drinking beer on the course while playing with Arnold Palmer at the 1997 Masters, and hitting golf balls through narrow openings in sliding-glass doors. Other fines were for more mundane offenses like swearing on the course, criticizing officials, and signing autographs while playing. His personal problems—divorces, gambling, clinical depression—led to near financial ruin, and affected his playing time and the quality of his play. In his 40s, Green had difficulty maintaining his PGA Tour playing privileges and was forced to play some on the Nationwide Tour.

He has sometimes played tournament rounds dressed in green from head to toe, shoes included.

Green had 508 career starts on the PGA Tour, the last coming in 2006. He continues to compete in a limited number of Champions Tour events. In 2022, he was one of the participants in the inaugural U.S. Adaptive Open, a tournament for those with various impairments, held at Pinehurst Resort's No. 6 Course.

Personal life

Green lives in West Palm Beach, Florida. He is the father of two sons, Ken Jr. and Hunter. He is an avid bowler who once rolled a 300 game.

In 2003, Green was reported to have jumped into a canal in Palm Beach County, Florida to save his German Shepherd dog, Nip, from the jaws of an alligator.

In June 2009, Green was seriously injured in a motor vehicle accident when his motor home left the road. Green was in his recreational vehicle traveling on Interstate 20 near Meridian, Mississippi, when the right front tire blew, causing the vehicle to veer off the road and go down a deep embankment before hitting a tree. The accident killed the passengers: William Green, his brother; Jeanne Hodgin, his girlfriend; and his dog, Nip. Even though his lower right leg was amputated as a result of injuries suffered in the accident, Green vowed to return to competitive golf.

Green's estranged son Hunter died of a drug overdose in Dallas, Texas on January 22, 2010.

In June 2019, Green released a self-published autobiography titled "Hunter of Hope: A Life Lived Inside, Outside and On the Ropes." In it, he revisits his life as a teen in Honduras, where, because of his alcoholic father's negligence, he was suffered years of sexual abuse by his father's friends. The golf course was a refuge from this abuse. He explains one reason for the book: "My plan has been simple: Use the adversity as my purpose and reason to live."

Awards and honors

In 2006, Green was inducted into the Connecticut Golf Hall of Fame.

Amateur wins

this list may be incomplete

• 1978 Azalea Invitational

Professional wins (11)

PGA Tour wins (5)

PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

PGA of Japan Tour wins (1)

Asia Golf Circuit wins (1)

Other wins (4)

• 1985 Hassan II Golf Trophy, Connecticut Open
• 1987 Spalding Invitational
• 1992 Connecticut Open

Results in major championships

CUT = missed the half-way cut

WD = withdrew

"T" = tied

Summary

• Most consecutive cuts made – 3 (1989 Masters – 1989 Open Championship)
• Longest streak of top-10s – 1

Results in The Players Championship

CUT = missed the halfway cut

DQ = disqualified

"T" indicates a tie for a place

U.S. national team appearances

• Four Tours World Championship: 1989 (winners)
• Ryder Cup: 1989 (tied)

Notes

References

References

1. "Florida Men's Golf 2011 Media Supplement". University Athletic Association.
2. McCleery, Peter. (June 2003). "Into everyone's life a little Ken Green must fall".
3. Kindred, Dave. (December 2003). "Ken Green & Nip Take on a Gator".
4. (June 9, 2009). "Ken Green seriously injured in Mississippi RV accident". PGA Tour.
5. Dolch, Craig. (June 16, 2009). "Green begins recovery process after leg amputation". PGA Tour.
6. Stoda, Greg. (January 26, 2010). "Estranged son of local pro golfer Ken Green dies in his dorm room at SMU". The Palm Beach Post.
7. Green, Ken. (July 9, 2019). "Ken Green's haunting secret".