John Mahaffey

 ( American Male Golfers ) 

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

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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.

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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 WGC-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.

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

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Amateur wins

• 1970 NCAA Championship

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Professional wins (16)

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PGA Tour wins (10)

Major championships (1)

Players Championships (1)

Other PGA Tour (8)

Jerry Pate, Tom Watson

1	Oct 28, 1973	Sahara Invitational	−13 (68-66-69-68=271)	3 strokes	Dave Eichelberger
3	Aug 13, 1978	American Optical Classic	−14 (71-65-67-67=270)	2 strokes	Raymond Floyd, Gil Morgan
4	Jan 14, 1979	Bob Hope Desert Classic	−17 (66-66-71-71-69=343)	1 stroke	Lee Trevino
5	Jun 1, 1980	Kemper Open	−5 (68-72-67-68=275)	3 strokes	Craig Stadler
6	July 26, 1981	Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic	−8 (72-67-70-67=276)	2 strokes	Andy North
7	Jan 15, 1984	Bob Hope Classic (2)	−20 (66-70-70-68-66=340)	Playoff	Jim Simons
8	Sep 29, 1985	Texas Open	−12 (68-68-65-67=268)	Playoff	Jodie Mudd
9	Mar 30, 1986	Tournament Players Championship	−13 (69-70-65-71=275)	1 stroke	Larry Mize
10	Aug 6, 1989	Federal Express St. Jude Classic	−12 (70-71-66-65=272)	3 strokes	Bob Gilder, Hubert Green, Bernhard Langer, Bob Tway

PGA Tour playoff record (3–2)

1	1975	U.S. Open	Lou Graham	Lost 18-hole playoff; Graham: E (71), Mahaffey: +2 (73)
2	1978	PGA Championship	Jerry Pate, Tom Watson	Won with birdie on second extra hole
3	1984	Bob Hope Desert Classic	Jim Simons	Won with par on second extra hole
4	1985	Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic	Mark Wiebe	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
5	1985	Texas Open	Jodie Mudd	Won with par on second extra hole

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Other wins (5)

1	Dec 3, 1978	World Cup (with 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	Andy North
3	Nov 11, 1979	World Cup (2) (with 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	Buddy Allin
5	Dec 12, 1982	JCPenney Mixed Team Classic (with JoAnne Carner)	−20 (68-67-63-70=268)	1 stroke	Jay Haas and Hollis Stacy

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Senior PGA Tour wins (1)

1	Jun 20, 1999	Southwestern Bell Dominion	−12 (67-67-70=204)	Playoff	José María Cañizares, Bruce Fleisher

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

1	1999	Southwestern Bell Dominion	José María Cañizares, Bruce Fleisher	Won with birdie on second extra hole Fleisher eliminated by birdie on first hole
2	2002	FleetBoston Classic	Bob Gilder	Lost to birdie on third extra hole

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Major championships

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Wins (1)

Jerry Pate, Tom Watson

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

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Results timeline

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

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

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.

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Summary

8

13

4

12

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

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The Players Championship

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Wins (1)

Larry Mize

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Results timeline

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.

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U.S. national team appearances Professional

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

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See also

• 1971 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
• List of men's major championships winning golfers

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External links

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