Ky Laffoon
American professional golfer (1908–1984)
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Ky Laffoon (December 23, 1908 – March 17, 1984) was an American professional golfer. (Birthdate also stated as December 24, 1907.)
United States| Ky Laffoon | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Born | December 23, 1908 Zinc, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Died | March 17, 1984 (aged 75) Springfield, Missouri, U.S. |
| Sporting nationality | United States |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 1930 |
| Former tour | PGA Tour |
| Professional wins | 12 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 9 |
| Other | 3 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | T4: 1946 |
| PGA Championship | T3: 1937 |
| U.S. Open | T5: 1936 |
| The Open Championship | DNP |
Career
In 1908, Laffoon was born in Zinc, Arkansas
He won nine times on the PGA Tour, with four of the victories coming in 1934. He played on the 1935 Ryder Cup team.
In 1939, his wife Irene threatened to leave him if he could not control his temper on golf course. Next tournament after two rounds he came to 15th hole and his ball was buried in honeysuckle. After missing three shots, he starting shouting cuss words that all the spectators could hear. His wife was one of the spectators and headed for the clubhouse after the outburst. Ky ran after her and pleaded that he wasn't cussing at his golf game, he just hates honeysuckle.[1]
In 1984, he died in Springfield, Missouri.
In popular culture
The song by Honky Tonk artist Dan Whitaker and written by Pete Covitz entitled "Ky Laffoon's Last Stand" documents his life. [2]
Professional wins
PGA Tour wins (9)
- 1933 (1) Nebraska Open
- 1934 (4) Atlanta Open, Hershey Open, Glens Falls Open, Eastern Open Championship
- 1935 (1) Phoenix Open
- 1936 (1) Inverness Invitational Four-Ball (with Walter Hagen)
- 1938 (1) Cleveland Open
- 1946 (1) Montgomery Invitational
Source:[3]
Other wins
this list is probably incomplete
- 1933 Utah Open
- 1938 Miami International Four-Ball (with Dick Metz)
- 1950 Illinois PGA Championship
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | NYF | NYF | T18 | T28 | T6 | 5 | T27 | T22 | WD | NT | NT | NT | T4 | T33 | T35 | ||
| U.S. Open | CUT | T26 | T23 | T28 | T5 | T20 | CUT | T9 | DQ | NT | NT | NT | NT | ||||
| PGA Championship | R16 | R16 | R32 | SF | R32 | R32 | R64 | R16 | NT | QF | QF | R16 |
Note: Laffoon never played in The Open Championship.
NYF = tournament not yet founded
NT = no tournament
WD = withdrew
DQ = disqualified
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
Summary
| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 9 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 11 |
| Totals | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 12 | 19 | 30 | 26 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 14 (1933 U.S. Open – 1938 Masters)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1935 PGA – 1936 U.S. Open)