George Burns (golfer)

George Francis Burns III (born July 29, 1949) is an American professional golfer. Turning pro in 1975, Burns had four PGA Tour wins, 80 top-10 finishes and won several other tournaments at both the amateur and professional levels.

George Burns
Personal information
Full nameGeorge Francis Burns III
Born (1949-07-29) July 29, 1949
Brooklyn, New York
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight200 lb (91 kg; 14 st)
Nationality United States
ResidenceBoynton Beach, Florida
ChildrenKelly Ann, Eileen Marie
Career
CollegeUniversity of Tennessee
University of Maryland
Turned professional1975
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
European Tour
Champions Tour
European Seniors Tour
Professional wins9
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour4
European Tour2
Other3
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT30: 1975
PGA ChampionshipT19: 1977, 1978
U.S. OpenT2: 1981
The Open ChampionshipT5: 1977

Burns was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was the eldest child of George Burns Jr, President of Smith Corona Typewriters and Durkee Foods, and Kathleen Marie Scott. He attended the University of Tennessee before transferring his freshman year to the University of Maryland where he played defensive end for one season before quitting football to focus solely on golf. He turned pro in 1975.

Burns won four PGA Tour events during that phase of his career. His first win came with Ben Crenshaw at the 1979 Walt Disney World National Team Championship in Orlando. The biggest win of his career came a year later at the Bing Crosby National Pro-Am. Burns had more than 70 top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour. His best finish in a major was at the 1981 U.S. Open where Burns held a three-shot lead going into the final round[1] before finishing T2.[2] Burns also had a T-5 at the 1977 British Open.[3]

After reaching the age of 50 in 1999, Burns began play on the Senior PGA Tour (now known as the PGA Tour Champions). His best finish at that level is a T-9 at the 2000 Brickyard Classic. He lives and plays at Quail Ridge Country Club in Boynton Beach, Florida.

Amateur wins (8)

Professional wins (9)

PGA Tour wins (4)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 Oct 28, 1979 Walt Disney World National Team Championship
(with Ben Crenshaw)
−33 (62-66-62-65=255) 3 strokes Peter Jacobsen and D. A. Weibring,
Jeff Hewes and Sammy Rachels,
Scott Bess and Dan Halldorson
2 Feb 3, 1980 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am −8 (71-69-71-69=280) 1 stroke Dan Pohl
3 Sep 8, 1985 Bank of Boston Classic −17 (67-66-68-66=267) 6 strokes John Mahaffey, Jodie Mudd,
Greg Norman, Leonard Thompson
4 Feb 25, 1987 Shearson Lehman Brothers Andy Williams Open −22 (63-68-70-65=266) 4 strokes J. C. Snead, Bobby Wadkins

PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1984 Bay Hill Classic Gary Koch Lost to birdie on second extra hole
2 1985 Manufacturers Hanover Westchester Classic Raymond Floyd, Roger Maltbie Maltbie won with birdie on fourth extra hole

European Tour wins (2)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner-up
1 Jul 27, 1975 Scandinavian Enterprise Open −5 (70-70-70-69=279) Playoff Graham Marsh
2 Sep 14, 1975 Kerrygold International Classic +6 (78-72-70-74=294) Playoff John Fowler

European Tour playoff record (2–0)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1975 Scandinavian Enterprise Open Graham Marsh Won with par on first extra hole
2 1975 Kerrygold International Classic John Fowler Won with par on second extra hole

Other wins (3)

Results in major championships

Tournament 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Masters Tournament T30
U.S. Open T49 T46 T48
The Open Championship T10 T10 T5 CUT
PGA Championship CUT T19 T19 T28
Tournament 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990
Masters Tournament CUT T33 CUT CUT CUT
U.S. Open T28 T2 T30 T34 CUT CUT CUT
The Open Championship CUT
PGA Championship CUT T70 T42 T55 CUT CUT CUT CUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1978 Open Championship)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament00000062
U.S. Open010111107
The Open Championship00013353
PGA Championship000002126
Totals0102463318
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 5 (1981 U.S. Open – 1982 PGA)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1975 Open Championship – 1976 Open Championship)

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur

See also

References

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