Paul Harney
American professional golfer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Paul Harney (July 11, 1929 – August 24, 2011) was an American professional golfer and golf course owner. He spent part of his career as a full-time PGA Tour player, but mostly was a club professional, part-time tour player, and owner-operator of his own course.
| Paul Harney | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Born | July 11, 1929 Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | August 24, 2011 (aged 82) Falmouth, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 160 lb (73 kg; 11 st) |
| Sporting nationality |  United States |
| Career | |
| College | College of the Holy Cross |
| Status | Professional |
| Former tours | PGA Tour Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 11 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 6 |
| Other | 5 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | T5: 1964 |
| PGA Championship | T7: 1962 |
| U.S. Open | 4th: 1963 |
| The Open Championship | DNP |
Early life
Harney was born and raised in Worcester, Massachusetts. He attended the College of the Holy Cross, which is located in his hometown; and was captain of the golf team.
Professional career
Harney played full-time on the PGA Tour from 1955 to 1962; and part-time from 1963 to 1973. During that time, he won six PGA Tour events. His first win came at the 1957 Carling Open; he won his second PGA Tour event just two weeks later at the Labatt Open. In 1963 at the prime of his career, he fulfilled a promise made to his wife, Patricia, that when their oldest child started school, he would only play the tour on a part-time basis.[1] He took his first club pro job at Sunset Oaks in northern California, where he stayed a couple years. He then moved his family across the country to Sutton, Massachusetts, where he took the club pro's job at Pleasant Valley Country Club.[1]
Harney had a great deal of success in major championships, placing in the top-10 six times. His best finish in a major was 4th at the 1963 U.S. Open; however, he also finished in the top-8 four times at The Masters in the 1960s.
As his competitive playing days were winding down, Harney used his prize money to open his own course in East Falmouth, Massachusetts, which he owned until his death. His daughter Erin is the general manager, and son Mike is the head pro.[2]
Personal life
Harney had six children with his wife Patricia.[2] He died in Falmouth, Massachusetts at the age of 82.[3]
Awards and honors
- In 1957, Harney received Golf Digest's Most Improved Golfer award.
- In 1963, he was inducted into the Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame.
- In 1974, Harney earned "PGA Golf Professional of the Year" honors.
- In 1995, he became the first inductee into the New England Golf Hall of Fame.
- In 2005, Harney was enshrined into the PGA Golf Professional Hall of Fame.
Professional wins (11)
PGA Tour wins (6)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jun 23, 1957 | Carling Open Invitational | −9 (70-69-68-68=275) | 3 strokes |  Dow Finsterwald |
| 2 | Jul 7, 1957 | Labatt Open | −10 (69-69-70-70=278) | 1 stroke | George Bayer |
| 3 | Mar 15, 1959 | Pensacola Open Invitational | −19 (69-65-65-70=269) | 3 strokes | Jay Hebert |
| 4 | Jan 6, 1964 | Los Angeles Open | −4 (71-72-66-71=280) | 1 stroke | Bobby Nichols |
| 5 | Jan 11, 1965 | Los Angeles Open (2) | −8 (68-71-68-69=276) | 3 strokes | Dan Sikes |
| 6 | Jan 30, 1972 | Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational | −13 (68-71-66-70=275) | 1 stroke | Hale Irwin |
PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1963 | Thunderbird Classic | Arnold Palmer |
Lost to par on first extra hole |
Source:[4]
Other wins (5)
- 1967 Massachusetts Open
- 1968 Massachusetts Open
- 1969 Massachusetts Open
- 1970 Massachusetts Open
- 1977 Massachusetts Open
Playoff record
Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1980 | PGA Seniors' Championship | Arnold Palmer |
Lost to birdie on first extra hole |
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | T25 | 6 | T15 | WD | T5 | T11 | T8 | T6 | T40 | T22 | T24 | CUT | |||||||
| U.S. Open | CUT | T37 | T51 | T12 | T55 | T28 | 4 | T39 | T18 | T57 | T18 | T46 | T21 | ||||||
| PGA Championship | T14 | T18 | T11 | T7 | T23 | T33 | T15 | T55 | T40 |
Note: Harney never played in The Open Championship.
WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half way cut
"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 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 12 | 10 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 12 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 9 |
| Totals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 20 | 34 | 31 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 18 (1963 U.S. Open – 1973 Masters)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (six times)