Lew Worsham
Professional golfer

Lew Worsham

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Professional golfer
Gender:
Male
Places:
United States of America
Is:
AthleteGolfer
Work field:
Sports
Birth:
5 October 1917(Pittsylvania County)
Death:
19 October 1990(Poquoson)
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Introduction Professional wins (12) Major championships
The details
Biography

Introduction

Lewis Elmer Worsham, Jr. (October 5, 1917 – October 19, 1990) was an American professional golfer.
Worsham was born in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. In 1947, he won the U.S. Open by defeating Sam Snead in an 18-hole playoff at the St. Louis Country Club in Clayton, Missouri after the two men had finished tied at 282 in regulation. This was the first U.S. Open to be televised locally and the winner's prize was $2,000. In July 1947, he appeared on the cover of Golfing magazine. In 1953, he topped the PGA Tour money list with winnings of US$34,002. That same year he won the first golf tournament to be broadcast nationally in the United States and golf's first $100,000 tournament, the Tam O'Shanter World Championship of Golf, in spectacular fashion. He holed out a wedge from 104 yards for an eagle-2 to win over Chandler Harper by one shot. The event was televised by ABC.
Worsham made his only Ryder Cup appearance in 1947, winning both of his matches. Like most golfers of his generation, he earned his living primarily as a club professional. His employer was the Oakmont Country Club outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He died in Poquoson, Virginia at age 73.
Worsham was honored as the "Sportsperson of the Year" for 1953 by Pittsburgh's Dapper Dan Charities.

Professional wins (12)

PGA Tour wins (6)

  • 1946 Atlanta Invitational
  • 1947 U.S. Open, Denver Open
  • 1951 Phoenix Open
  • 1953 Jacksonville Open, World Championship of Golf

Major championship is shown in bold.

Other wins (6)

  • 1942 Middle Atlantic PGA Championship
  • 1945 Maryland Open
  • 1946 Middle Atlantic PGA Championship
  • 1947 Middle Atlantic PGA Championship
  • 1952 Miami Beach International Four-Ball (with Ted Kroll)
  • 1961 Tri-State PGA Championship

Major championships

Wins (1)

Year Championship 54 holes Winning score Margin Runner-up
1947 U.S. Open 1 shot lead –2 (70-70-71-71=282) Playoff 1 United States Sam Snead

1 Defeated Snead in an 18-hole playoff - Worsham 69 (–2), Snead 70 (–1).

Results timeline

Tournament 1938 1939
Masters Tournament DNP DNP
U.S. Open WD DNP
PGA Championship DNP DNP
Tournament 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
Masters Tournament DNP DNP DNP NT NT NT DNP T34 T30 6
U.S. Open CUT CUT NT NT NT NT T22 1 6 T27
PGA Championship DNP DNP DNP NT DNP DNP R32 QF R16 R16
Tournament 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament T42 T3 T7 T44 T12 T49 T34 CUT CUT CUT
U.S. Open CUT T14 T7 CUT T23 CUT CUT T38 T45 DNP
PGA Championship R32 R32 R32 R64 DNP QF R16 DNP DNP DNP
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963
Masters Tournament 44 T22 T29 DNP
U.S. Open DNP CUT DNP DNP
PGA Championship DNP T37 CUT CUT

Note: Worsham never played in The Open Championship.
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

Summary

Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 0 1 1 3 5 16 13
U.S. Open 1 0 0 1 3 6 17 9
The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PGA Championship 0 0 0 2 5 9 11 11
Totals 1 0 1 4 11 20 44 33
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1946 U.S. Open – 1950 Masters)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1948 U.S. Open – 1949 Masters)