Introduction
Stephen J. Flesch (born May 23, 1967) is an American professional golfer and TV golf analyst.
Early life
Flesch was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and attended Covington Catholic High School in Park Hills, Kentucky. After graduation, he played golf at the University of Kentucky and turned professional in 1990.
Professional career
Flesch finished in the top ten on the Asia Golf Circuit Order of Merit in 1993, 1994 and 1996. He won the 1997 NIKE Tour Championship to earn a PGA Tour card for the following season, only the second left-hander to win on what is now the Korn Ferry Tour. His first win on the PGA Tour was the 2003 HP Classic of New Orleans, but is probably best known for his come-from-behind victory at the 2004 Bank of America Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas. He has been featured in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings, reaching a career high of 22nd in 2004.
Entering the 2008 Masters Tournament, Flesch was ranked number 107 in the world rankings. After three rounds, he was in third place at eight-under, three strokes behind leader and eventual champion Trevor Immelman. Playing in the penultimate pairing on breezy Sunday, Flesch posted a 78 to finish six strokes back, tied for fifth. This strong showing in a major tournament strengthened his world ranking by 28 slots, improving it to number 79.
Flesch last played a full season in 2011, then missed the cut in the 12 events he played during the 2012 season. In 2015, he finished T7 at the Barracuda Championship, his first top ten in four years.
Starting in 2015, Flesch became an analyst for Fox Sports.
Professional wins (9)
PGA Tour wins (4)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 4, 2003 | HP Classic of New Orleans | −21 (67-70-65-65=267) | Playoff | Bob Estes |
| 2 | May 23, 2004 | Bank of America Colonial | −11 (66-69-67-67=269) | 1 stroke | Chad Campbell |
| 3 | Aug 5, 2007 | Reno–Tahoe Open | −15 (63-69-69-72=273) | 5 strokes | Kevin Stadler, Charles Warren |
| 4 | Sep 23, 2007 | Turning Stone Resort Championship | −18 (66-65-66-73=270) | 2 strokes | Michael Allen |
PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2003 | HP Classic of New Orleans | Bob Estes | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
Nike Tour wins (1)
| Legend |
| Tour Championships (1) |
| Other Nike Tour (0) |
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oct 19, 1997 | Nike Tour Championship | −10 (69-68-68-73=278) | 4 strokes | Chris Smith |
Asia Golf Circuit wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jan 21, 1996 | Benson & Hedges Malaysian Open | −6 (66-75-71-70=282) | Playoff | Craig Jones |
Other wins (2)
- 1991 Kentucky Open
- 1993 Kentucky Open
PGA Tour Champions wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apr 14, 2018 | Mitsubishi Electric Classic | −11 (66-71-68=205) | Playoff | Bernhard Langer, Scott Parel |
PGA Tour Champions playoff record (1–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponents | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2018 | Mitsubishi Electric Classic | Bernhard Langer, Scott Parel | Won with birdie on second extra hole Langer eliminated by birdie on first hole |
| 2 | 2021 | Sanford International | K. J. Choi, Darren Clarke | Clarke won with birdie on second extra hole Flesch eliminated by par on first hole |
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | |||||||
| U.S. Open | 84 | CUT | CUT | CUT | |||
| The Open Championship | |||||||
| PGA Championship | T13 | T34 |
| Tournament | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | CUT | T17 | T29 | T5 | T6 | T38 | |||||
| U.S. Open | CUT | T18 | CUT | T7 | T67 | CUT | |||||
| The Open Championship | T20 | CUT | CUT | T54 | 77 | ||||||
| PGA Championship | CUT | T13 | T17 | CUT | T37 | T10 | T24 | T23 | 6 | T32 |
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Summary
| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 5 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 4 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 3 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 12 | 10 |
| Totals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 33 | 22 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 11 (2004 Masters – 2008 Masters)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (2008 PGA – 2009 Masters)
Results in The Players Championship
| Tournament | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Players Championship | CUT | T38 | T40 | CUT | T39 | CUT | T79 | T63 | CUT | CUT | T64 | T32 |
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Results in World Golf Championships
| Tournament | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match Play | R64 | R16 | R32 | R64 | |||||
| Championship | T11 | NT | T21 | T23 | |||||
| Invitational | T11 | T48 | T48 |
Cancelled due to 9/11
QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = Tied
NT = No tournament