Davis Love III

Davis Milton Love III (born April 13, 1964) is an American professional golfer who has won 21 events on the PGA Tour, including one major championship: the 1997 PGA Championship. He won the Players Championship in 1992 and 2003. He was in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for over 450 weeks, reaching a high ranking of 2nd.[2][3] He captained the U.S. Ryder Cup teams in 2012 and 2016.[4][5] Love was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2017.[6]

Davis Love III
Personal information
Full nameDavis Milton Love III
Born (1964-04-13) April 13, 1964
Charlotte, North Carolina
Height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight175 lb (79 kg; 12.5 st)
Nationality United States
ResidenceSt. Simons Island, Georgia, U.S.
SpouseRobin Love
ChildrenAlexia, Davis IV
Career
CollegeNorth Carolina
Turned professional1985
Current tour(s)PGA Tour
PGA Tour Champions
Professional wins37
Highest ranking2 (July 19, 1998)[1]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour21
European Tour1
Japan Golf Tour1
Other15
Best results in major championships
(wins: 1)
Masters Tournament2nd: 1995, 1999
PGA ChampionshipWon: 1997
U.S. OpenT2: 1996
The Open ChampionshipT4: 2003
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame2017 (member page)
Payne Stewart Award2008
Bob Jones Award2013

Background and family

Love was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, to Davis Love Jr. and his wife, Helen, a day after his father competed in the final round at the 1964 Masters Tournament. His father, who was a former pro and nationally recognized golf instructor, introduced him to the game. His mother is also an avid low-handicap golfer. His father was killed in a 1988 plane crash.[7][8]

Love attended high school in Brunswick, Georgia, and graduated from its Glynn Academy in 1982. He played college golf at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, where he was a three-time All-American and all-Atlantic Coast Conference. He won six titles during his collegiate career, including the ACC tournament championship as a sophomore in 1984.[9]

He is a Republican, and has donated money to Johnny Isakson and George W Bush.[10]

Love turned professional in 1985, earning his PGA Tour card in the autumn of 1985, on his first attempt. He quickly established himself on the PGA Tour, winning his first tour event in 1987 at the MCI Heritage Golf Classic, at Harbour Town Golf Links. He would later win this event four more times, setting a record for the most victories in the tournament. Love and Fred Couples won four straight times from 1992–95 for the United States in the World Cup of Golf, a record for this event.

Love was a consistent contender and winner on the PGA Tour in the 1990s and early 2000s, but the most memorable win came at the 1997 PGA Championship, his only major championship victory. It was played at Winged Foot Golf Club near New York City, and just four players in the field finished under-par for the week. Love's winning score was 11-under-par, five strokes better than runner-up Justin Leonard. When Love sank his birdie putt on the final hole of the championship, it was under the arc of a rainbow, which appeared as he walked up to the 18th green. In the telecast, CBS Sports announcer Jim Nantz made the connection between the rainbow and Love's late father, Davis Love Jr., who was a well-known and beloved figure in the golf world.[11][12]This victory was the last major championship win achieved with a wooden-headed driver.[13]

In 1994, Love founded Love Golf Design, a golf course architecture company, with his younger brother and caddie, Mark Love. The company has been responsible for the design of several courses throughout the southeast United States. Completed in 1997, Ocean Creek is his first signature course and is located on Fripp Island, South Carolina.[14] Love also designed the Dunes course at Diamante in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, which is ranked among Golf Magazine's Top 100 courses in the world.[15]

In 1997, Love published the book Every Shot I Take, which honors his father's lessons on life and golf, and it received the United States Golf Association's International Book Award.[16] That year, he developed and designed his own golf course in Harnett County, North Carolina. The course, Anderson Creek Club, won an award for "Best New Course in North Carolina" in 2001. He and his wife Robin have two children.[17]

On November 9, 2008, Love earned his 20th PGA Tour win at the Children's Miracle Network Classic, which gave him a lifetime exemption on Tour.

In 2012, Love captained the U.S. Team that lost the 2012 Ryder Cup.

His victory in the 2015 Wyndham Championship—at age 51—made him the third oldest winner in PGA Tour history,[18] trailing only Sam Snead and Art Wall Jr. The win made Love the oldest PGA Tour winner in the PGA Tour Champions era (since 1980). It also brought Love into select company in another PGA Tour distinction: he became only the third player to win on the tour in four different decades, joining Snead and Raymond Floyd.

After failing to qualify for the FedEx Cup in 2014, Love made his Champions Tour debut at the Pacific Links Hawaii Championship.

Love is the tournament host of the RSM Classic. In 2015, son Davis IV (better known as Dru) earned a sponsor exemption into the event, but missed the cut.

In 2016, Love captained the winning U.S. Team at the 2016 Ryder Cup.

After Davis failed to qualify for the 2017 U.S. Open, he caddied for Dru, who made his professional debut.

On December 16, 2018, Love and his son Dru won the Father/Son Challenge at Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando, Florida.[19]

For the 2020 PGA Tour season, Love joined CBS as a full time analyst.[20]

On March 27, 2020, Love's home in St. Simons Island, Georgia, was destroyed in a fire. Love and his wife escaped without injury.[21]

Legacy
  • Has a portion of Interstate 95 named after him. In 1998, the segment of I-95 which extends in Georgia from the McIntosh County line to Highway 341 at exit 7A and B was designated the "Davis Love III Highway."
  • Love hit the second-longest drive ever officially recorded in competition play at the Mercedes Championships in 2004. His 476-yard (435 m) drive was still 39 yards (36 m) short of Mike Austin's record.
  • He also has a restaurant named after him in his hometown of Sea Island, Georgia, called the Davis Love Grill.

Amateur wins (2)
  • 1984 North and South Amateur, Middle Atlantic Amateur

Professional wins (37)

PGA Tour wins (21)
Legend
Major championships (1)
Players Championships (2)
Other PGA Tour (18)
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 Apr 19, 1987 MCI Heritage Golf Classic 70-67-67-67=271 −13 1 stroke Steve Jones
2 Aug 19, 1990 The International 14 pts (8-0-15-14=14) 3 points Steve Pate, Eduardo Romero,
Peter Senior
3 Apr 21, 1991 MCI Heritage Golf Classic (2) 65-68-68-70=271 −13 2 strokes Ian Baker-Finch
4 Mar 29, 1992 The Players Championship 67-68-71-67=273 −15 4 strokes Ian Baker-Finch, Phil Blackmar,
Nick Faldo, Tom Watson
5 Apr 19, 1992 MCI Heritage Golf Classic (3) 67-67-68-67=269 −15 4 strokes Chip Beck
6 Apr 26, 1992 KMart Greater Greensboro Open 71-68-71-62=272 −16 6 strokes John Cook
7 Jan 10, 1993 Infiniti Tournament of Champions 67-67-69-69=272 −16 1 stroke Tom Kite
8 Oct 24, 1993 Las Vegas Invitational 67-66-67-65-66=331 −29 8 strokes Craig Stadler
9 Apr 2, 1995 Freeport-McMoRan Classic 68-69-66-71=274 −14 Playoff Mike Heinen
10 Feb 11, 1996 Buick Invitational 66-70-69-64=269 −19 2 strokes Phil Mickelson
11 Aug 17, 1997 PGA Championship 66-71-66-66=269 −11 5 strokes Justin Leonard
12 Oct 5, 1997 Buick Challenge 67-65-67-68=267 −21 4 strokes Stewart Cink
13 Apr 19, 1998 MCI Classic (4) 67-68-66-65=266 −18 7 strokes Glen Day
14 Feb 4, 2001 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am 71-69-69-63=272 −16 1 stroke Vijay Singh
15 Feb 9, 2003 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am (2) 72-67-67-68=274 −14 1 stroke Tom Lehman
16 Mar 30, 2003 The Players Championship (2) 70-67-70-64=271 −17 6 strokes Jay Haas, Pádraig Harrington
17 Apr 20, 2003 MCI Heritage (5) 66-69-69-67=271 −13 Playoff Woody Austin
18 Aug 10, 2003 The International (2) 46 pts (19-17-5-5=46) 12 points Retief Goosen, Vijay Singh
19 Oct 8, 2006 Chrysler Classic of Greensboro (2) 69-69-68-66=272 −16 2 strokes Jason Bohn
20 Nov 9, 2008 Children's Miracle Network Classic 66-69-64-64=263 −25 1 stroke Tommy Gainey
21 Aug 23, 2015 Wyndham Championship (3) 64-66-69-64=263 −17 1 stroke Jason Gore

PGA Tour playoff record (2–7)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1989 Nestle Invitational Tom Kite Lost to par on second extra hole
2 1991 NEC World Series of Golf Jim Gallagher Jr., Tom Purtzer Purtzer won with par on second extra hole
3 1992 Nissan Los Angeles Open Fred Couples Lost to birdie on second extra hole
4 1995 Freeport-McMoRan Classic Mike Heinen Won with birdie on second extra hole
5 1996 Buick Challenge Michael Bradley, Fred Funk,
John Maginnes, Len Mattiace		 Bradley won with birdie on first extra hole
6 1996 Las Vegas Invitational Tiger Woods Lost to par on first extra hole
7 2000 GTE Byron Nelson Classic Phil Mickelson, Jesper Parnevik Parnevik won with par on third extra hole
Mickelson eliminated with birdie on second hole
8 2001 Buick Invitational Frank Lickliter, Phil Mickelson Mickelson won with double-bogey on third extra hole
Love eliminated with par on second
9 2003 MCI Heritage Woody Austin Won with birdie on fourth extra hole

Japan Golf Tour wins (1)
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory		 Runners-up
1 May 3, 1998 The Crowns 64-71-67-67=269 −11 8 strokes Rick Gibson, Masanobu Kimura,
Brian Watts

Other wins (15)
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 Dec 2, 1990 JCPenney Classic
(with Beth Daniel)		 67-70-62-67=266 −12 5 strokes Jay Haas and Nancy Lopez
2 Nov 8, 1992 World Cup
(with Fred Couples)		 134-139-140-135=548 −28 1 stroke  Sweden − Anders Forsbrand and Per-Ulrik Johansson
3 Nov 15, 1992 Kapalua International 65-71-72-67=275 −17 1 stroke Mike Hulbert
4 Nov 22, 1992 Franklin Funds Shark Shootout
(with Tom Kite)		 65-69-59=191 −25 1 stroke Billy Ray Brown and Nick Price,
Fred Couples and Raymond Floyd,
Hale Irwin and Bruce Lietzke
5 Nov 14, 1993 World Cup of Golf (2)
(with Fred Couples)		 137-140-141-138=556 −20 5 strokes  Zimbabwe − Mark McNulty and Nick Price
6 Nov 13, 1994 World Cup of Golf (3)
(with Fred Couples)		 132-129-137-138=536 −40 14 strokes  Zimbabwe − Tony Johnstone and Mark McNulty
7 Nov 12, 1995 World Cup of Golf (4)
(with Fred Couples)		 133-136-138-136=543 −33 14 strokes  Australia − Robert Allenby and Brett Ogle
8 Nov 12, 1995 World Cup of Golf Individual Trophy 65-67-68-67=267 −21 Playoff Hisayuki Sasaki
9 Dec 3, 1995 JCPenney Classic (2)
(with Beth Daniel)		 66-65-63-63=257 −27 2 strokes Helen Alfredsson and Robert Gamez
10 Nov 9, 1997 Lincoln-Mercury Kapalua International (2) 67-66-67-68=268 −20 4 strokes Olin Browne, David Toms
11 Jul 11, 2000 CVS Charity Classic
(with Justin Leonard)		 60-66=126 −16 3 strokes Steve Elkington and Craig Stadler
12 Dec 3, 2000 Williams World Challenge 67-64-71-64=266 −22 2 strokes Tiger Woods
13 Dec 14, 2003 Target World Challenge (2) 70-72-63-72=277 −11 2 strokes Tiger Woods
14 Dec 16, 2012 PNC Father-Son Challenge
(with son Dru Love)		 60-56=116 −26 1 stroke Larry Nelson and son Drew Nelson
15 Dec 16, 2018 PNC Father-Son Challenge (2)
(with son Dru Love)		 62-56=118 −26 3 strokes Stewart Cink and son Connor Cink,
John Daly and son John Daly Jr.,
Retief Goosen and son Leo Goosen

Other playoff record (1–3)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1991 Isuzu Kapalua International Mike Hulbert Lost to birdie on first extra hole
2 1995 World Cup of Golf Individual Trophy Hisayuki Sasaki Won with par on fifth extra hole
3 2008 CVS Caremark Charity Classic
(with Billy Andrade)		 Paul Goydos and Tim Herron,
Rocco Mediate and Brandt Snedeker,
Camilo Villegas and Bubba Watson		 Villegas-Watson won by 1 stroke in three-hole aggregate playoff
4 2015 PNC Father-Son Challenge Fred Funk and son Taylor Funk,
Larry Nelson and son Drew Nelson,
Lanny Wadkins and son Tucker Wadkins		 Wadkins' won with eagle on first extra hole

Major championships

Wins (1)
YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up
1997PGA ChampionshipTied for lead−11 (66-71-66-66=269)5 strokes Justin Leonard

Results timeline
Tournament 1986 1987 1988 1989
Masters Tournament CUT
U.S. Open CUT T33
The Open Championship CUT CUT T23
PGA Championship T47 CUT T17
Tournament 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Masters Tournament T42 T25 T54 CUT 2 T7 T7 T33 2
U.S. Open T11 T60 T33 T28 T4 T2 T16 CUT T12
The Open Championship CUT T44 CUT CUT T38 T98 CUT T10 8 T7
PGA Championship T40 T32 T33 T31 CUT CUT CUT 1 T7 T49
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Masters Tournament T7 CUT T14 T15 T6 CUT T22 T27
U.S. Open CUT T7 T24 CUT CUT T6 CUT CUT T53
The Open Championship T11 T21 T14 T4 T5 CUT CUT CUT T19 T27
PGA Championship T9 T37 T48 CUT CUT T4 T34 CUT CUT CUT
Tournament201020112012201320142015201620172018
Masters Tournament CUT T42
U.S. Open T6 T11 T29
The Open Championship CUT T9 CUT
PGA Championship T55 T72 CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary
TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament02026102015
U.S. Open01025102316
The Open Championship00026112615
PGA Championship1002453116
Totals1308213610062
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 8 (2001 U.S. Open – 2003 Masters)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1998 Open Championship – 1999 Masters)

The Players Championship

Wins (2)
YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunners-up
1992The Players Championship3 shot deficit−15 (67-68-71-67=273)4 strokes Ian Baker-Finch, Phil Blackmar,
Nick Faldo, Tom Watson
2003The Players Championship (2)2 shot deficit−17 (70-67-70-64=271)6 strokes Jay Haas, Pádraig Harrington

Results timeline
Tournament 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
The Players Championship T14 CUT DQ CUT T24 CUT 1 T67 T6 T6 T46 DQ T57 T10
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
The Players Championship T48 CUT CUT 1 T33 T8 CUT T75 T54 CUT T4 T12 CUT T48 CUT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
DQ = disqualified
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Results in World Golf Championships

Results not in chronological order before 2015.

Tournament199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Championship T16 NT1 8 T40 T41 T11 WD T28
Match Play R64 4 R32 R32 2 R16 2 R64 R32
Invitational T10 35 T5 T11 3 T4 T13 T4 T6 T19 WD
Champions

1Cancelled due to 9/11

  Top 10
  Did not play

QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = Tied
WD = Withdrew
NT = No tournament
Note that the HSBC Champions did not become a WGC event until 2009.

PGA Tour career summary
SeasonWins (majors)Earnings ($)Rank
198500-
19860113,24577
19871297,37833
19880156,06875
19890278,76044
19901537,17220
19911686,3618
199231,191,6302
19932777,05912
19940474,21933
199511,111,9996
199611,211,1397
19972 (1)1,635,9533
199811,541,15211
199902,475,3283
200002,337,7659
200113,169,4635
200202,056,16021
200346,081,8963
200403,075,09210
200502,658,77913
200612,747,20616
200701,016,48996
200811,695,23748
200901,622,40152
201001,214,47273
201101,056,30088
20120989,753100
20130303,470165
20140284,800173
201511,263,59675
20160222,422189
20170257,270187
2018097,920209
20190271,216193
Career*21 (1)44,909,17014

*As of the 2019 season.

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur

Professional

See also

References
  1. "Week 29 1998 Ending 19 Jul 1998" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  2. "Official World Golf Ranking, "July 19 1998"" (PDF). OWGR. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  3. "69 Players Who Have Reached The Top-10 In World Ranking" (PDF). OWGR. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  4. Auclair, T.J. "PGA picks Love III to lead Team USA". PGA of America. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  5. Harig, Bob (February 24, 2015). "Davis Love III named Ryder captain". ESPN.
  6. "Love III gets Hall of Fame call: Woosnam, Mallon, Ochoa, Longhurst also included in Class of 2017". PGA Tour. October 18, 2016.
  7. "Crash claims four". Bryan Times. Ohio. UPI. November 14, 1988. p. 14.
  8. Fields, Bill (November 3, 2008). "Lost In The Fog". Golf Digest.
  9. "2011–12 Tarheel Men's Golf". p. 36. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  10. http://thehill.com/capital-living/in-the-know/167465-bearing-gifts-republican-golfers-meet-with-obama-
  11. Auclair, T.J. (August 9, 2012). "A Quick Nine: Greatest PGA Championship moments". PGA of America.
  12. Verdi, Bob (June 12, 2006). "Davis Love III makes the rainbow connection". ESPN.
  13. Bonk, Thomas (June 12, 2006). "He's Set for a Major Return". Los Angeles Times.
  14. "Love Golf Design". Archived from the original on February 14, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  15. "Golf Magazine's Top 100 Courses in the World". Golf.com. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  16. "United States Golf Association's International Book Award 1987–-2002". Archived from the original on October 28, 2012.
  17. "The Davis Love III File". PGA of America. Archived from the original on March 27, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  18. McCreary, Joedy. "Wyndham: Love Wins, Tiger's season ends". PGA. Associated Press. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  19. Strege, John (December 16, 2018). "Davis Love III and son Dru shoot 56 to win PNC Father Son Challenge by three". Golf Digest. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  20. "CBS Sports Announces Additional Roster Moves For 2020 Golf Season". ViacomCBS. December 3, 2019.
  21. Elassar, Alaa (March 27, 2020). "The home of golfer Davis Love III was destroyed by a fire". CNN.
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