Don January

Don January
— Golfer —
Personal information
Full name	Donald Ray January
Born	(1929-11-20) November 20, 1929 Plainview, Texas
Nationality	United States
Spouse	Patricia
Children	Sherry, Richard, Tim
Career
College	North Texas State College
Turned professional	1956
Retired	1999
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour Senior PGA Tour
Professional wins	44
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	10
PGA Tour Champions	22 (tied 6th all time)
Other	12
Best results in major championships (wins: 1)
Masters Tournament	T4: 1971
U.S. Open	3rd: 1967
The Open Championship	DNP
PGA Championship	Won: 1967
Achievements and awards
Vardon Trophy	1976

Donald Ray January (born November 20, 1929) is an American retired professional golfer.

Early life

Born in Plainview, Texas, January graduated from Sunset High School in Dallas. He was a member of the North Texas State golf team that won four consecutive NCAA Division I titles from 1949-52.

While in college as a sophomore, as part of his scholarship, he helped teach a beginning golf class, where he met his future wife, Patricia "Pat" Rushing. They both graduated in 1953 and eloped to Ardmore, Oklahoma. They lived in San Antonio while Don was in the Air Force, and began their family — two boys and a girl.^[1]

Professional career

January won 10 PGA Tour titles, though never more than one in a year, with his most notable at the 1967 PGA Championship, an 18-hole playoff victory over Don Massengale. January had lost the 1961 PGA Championship in a playoff to Jerry Barber when his 68, the lowest losing score ever in an 18-hole playoff for a major championship, was bested by Barber's 67. He won the Vardon Trophy for lowest scoring average in 1976 at the age of 47. He was a member of the U.S. Ryder Cup team in both 1965 and 1977.

January was responsible for a change to the Rules of Golf. During the 1963 Phoenix Open, January had a putt roll up to the lip of the hole and stop. January claimed that the ball was still moving, and waited for seven minutes for the ball to drop (it never did).^[2] Rule 16-2 was revised in 1964 to state that players had to tap the ball in within ten seconds or be penalized.^[3]

In the period between his last PGA Tour win and the start of the Senior PGA Tour, January devoted most of his professional efforts to a golf course design business, JanMart Enterprises, that he had established with fellow Texan and PGA Tour golfer Billy Martindale.

January is well known for his success on the Senior PGA Tour (now the Champions Tour),^[4] winning 22 events including two PGA Seniors' Championships. He won the first official event on the Senior PGA Tour – the 1980 Atlantic City Senior International.^[5]

The Don January Golf Classic is a golf tournament played annually in the spring that was established to honor him in 1990 by his alma mater, now known as the University of North Texas.

Professional wins (44)

PGA Tour wins (10)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	May 27, 1956	Dallas Centennial Open	−12 (64-67-70-67=268)	1 stroke	Dow Finsterwald, Doug Ford
2	Feb 21, 1960	Tucson Open Invitational	−9 (67-67-68-69=271)	3 strokes	Bob Harris
3	Jul 9, 1961	St. Paul Open Invitational	−19 (66-71-68-64=269)	1 stroke	Buster Cupit
4	Feb 17, 1963	Tucson Open Invitational	−22 (65-67-69-65=266)	11 strokes	Gene Littler, Phil Rodgers
5	Aug 28, 1966	Philadelphia Golf Classic	−10 (69-69-69-71=278)	1 stroke	Jack Nicklaus
6	Jul 24, 1967	PGA Championship	−7 (71-72-70-68=281)	Playoff	Don Massengale
7	Apr 21, 1968	Tournament of Champions	−8 (70-68-69-69=276)	1 stroke	Julius Boros
8	Mar 23, 1970	Greater Jacksonville Open	−9 (68-75-70-66=279)	Playoff	Dale Douglass
9	Oct 19, 1975	San Antonio Texas Open	−13 (71-67-71-66=275)	Playoff	Larry Hinson
10	Apr 18, 1976	MONY Tournament of Champions	−11 (71-68-69-69=277)	5 strokes	Hubert Green

PGA Tour playoff record (3–5)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1956	Western Open	Mike Fetchick, Doug Ford, Jay Hebert	Fetchick won 18-hole playoff (Fetchick:66, Hebert:71, Ford:72, January:75)
2	1961	PGA Championship	Jerry Barber	Lost 18-hole playoff (Barber:67, January:68)
3	1964	Lucky International Open	Chi Chi Rodriguez	Lost 18-hole playoff (Rodriguez:70, January:71)
4	1967	PGA Championship	Don Massengale	Won 18-hole playoff (January:69, Massengale:71 )
5	1969	Kaiser International Open Invitational	George Archer, Billy Casper, Jack Nicklaus	Nicklaus won with birdie on second extra hole January eliminated with birdie on first hole
6	1970	Greater Jacksonville Open	Dale Douglass	Won 18-hole playoff (January:69, Douglass:72)
7	1971	Houston Champions International	Hubert Green	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
8	1975	San Antonio Texas Open	Larry Hinson	Won with birdie on second extra hole

Major championship is shown in bold.

Other wins

This list may be incomplete

1959 Carabobo Open Invitational (Venezuela)

Senior PGA Tour wins (22)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Jun 22, 1980	Atlantic City Senior International	−5 (68-71-69=208)	2 strokes	Mike Souchak
2	Apr 5, 1981	Michelob-Egypt Temple Senior Classic	−8 (71-7072-67=280)	Playoff	Doug Ford
3	Jun 7, 1981	Eureka Federal Savings Classic	−5 (71-69-68=208)	2 strokes	Bob Goalby
4	Apr 4, 1982	Michelob Senior Classic	−10 (73-69-67-69=278)	3 strokes	Dow Finsterwald
5	Dec 5, 1982	PGA Seniors Championship	E (74-75-69-70=288)	1 stroke	Julius Boros
6	Jun 5, 1983	Gatlin Brothers Seniors Golf Classic	−8 (71-67-68=208	Playoff	Billy Casper
7	Jun 26, 1983	Peter Jackson Champions	−10 (68-67-71-68=274)	2 strokes	Miller Barber
8	Jul 3, 1983	Marlboro Classic	−11 (69-72-68-64=273)	3 strokes	Miller Barber, Gay Brewer
9	Aug 21, 1983	Denver Post Champions of Golf	−17 (70-65-67-69=271)	4 strokes	Billy Casper, Doug Sanders
10	Sep 4, 1983	Citizens Union Senior Golf Classic	−19 (67-67-65-70=269)	3 strokes	Bob Stone
11	Oct 16, 1983	Suntree Classic	−14 (69-66-68-71=274)	3 strokes	Arnold Palmer
12	Mar 25, 1984	The Vintage Invitational	−8 (70-72-72-66=280)	4 strokes	Miller Barber
13	Aug 12, 1984	du Maurier Champions	−19 (65-63-66=194)	5 strokes	Miller Barber, Lee Elder
14	Sep 23, 1984	Digital Middlesex Classic	−7 (70-70-69=209)	4 strokes	Orville Moody
15	Mar 24, 1985	Senior PGA Tour Roundup	−18 (65-69-64=198)	3 strokes	Gene Littler
16	May 12, 1985	Dominion Seniors	−10 (69-70-67=206)	2 strokes	Gay Brewer
17	May 19, 1985	United Hospitals Senior Golf Championship	−5 (69-66=135)	5 strokes	Al Balding
18	Jul 7, 1985	The Greenbrier American Express Championship	−16 (70-64-66=200)	2 strokes	Lee Elder
19	Jun 8, 1986	Senior Players Reunion Pro-Am	−13 (66-68-69=203)	2 strokes	Chi-Chi Rodríguez
20	Jul 13, 1986	The Greenbrier American Express Championship	−9 (70-66-71-207)	Playoff	Jim Ferree
21	Nov 2, 1986	Seiko-Tucson Match Play Championship	70 to 71		Bob Charles
22	Jan 10, 1987	MONY Senior Tournament of Champions	−1 (67-72-73-75=287)	Playoff	Butch Baird

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (4–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1981	Michelob-Egypt Temple Senior Classic	Doug Ford	Won with birdie on first extra hole
2	1983	Gatlin Brothers Seniors Golf Classic	Billy Casper	Won with par on fifth extra hole
3	1985	Digital Seniors Classic	Jerry Barber, Lee Elder	Elder won with birdie on first extra hole
4	1986	The Greenbrier American Express Championship	Jim Ferree	Won with par on first extra hole
5	1987	MONY Senior Tournament of Champions	Butch Baird	Won with birdie on fourth extra hole

Senior major championship is shown in bold.

Other senior wins (11)

1979 PGA Seniors' Championship
1982 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with Sam Snead)
1984 Shootout at Jeremy Ranch (with Mike Sullivan)
1985 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with Gene Littler), Mazda Champions (with Alice Miller)
1986 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with Gene Littler)
1993 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division
1994 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Gene Littler)
1997 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Gene Littler)
2001 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Demaret Division (with Gene Littler)
2004 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Demaret Division (with Gene Littler)

Major championships

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
1967	PGA Championship	4 shot deficit	−7 (71-72-70-68=281)	Playoff¹	Don Massengale

¹Defeated Massengale in an 18-hole playoff, 69 to 71.

Results timeline

Tournament	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
Masters Tournament	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	36
U.S. Open	CUT	DNP	DNP	DNP	CUT	DNP	T7	T19
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	T49

Tournament	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969
Masters Tournament	T20	T4	T20	T9	T18	CUT	T6	T26	T14	T5
U.S. Open	DNP	CUT	CUT	11	T11	CUT	T17	3	T24	WD
PGA Championship	5	2	T27	T40	CUT	DNP	T12	1	T51	T15

Tournament	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979
Masters Tournament	T12	T4	CUT	T10	DNP	DNP	T33	T8	T11	CUT
U.S. Open	DNP	T27	T11	DNP	DNP	T29	T14	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	T12	CUT	CUT	DNP	DNP	T10	T2	T6	T19	T7

Tournament	1980	1981	1982
Masters Tournament	CUT	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	CUT	T19	CUT

Note: January never played in The Open Championship.
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"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	0	3	7	13	20	16
U.S. Open	0	0	1	1	2	9	17	11
The Open Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
PGA Championship	1	2	0	4	7	12	21	16
Totals	1	2	1	8	16	34	58	43

Most consecutive cuts made – 10 (twice)
Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1976 PGA – 1977 PGA)

Champions Tour major championships

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
1982	Senior PGA Championship	E (74-75-69-70=288)	1 stroke	Julius Boros

References

↑ http://northtexan.unt.edu/content/par-success
↑ "Player cools heels 7 minutes; Misses putt, miffed at January". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. February 15, 1963. p. 4, part 2.
↑ Zullo, Allan (2001). Astonishing but True Golf Facts. Forest Fairview, North Carolina: Andrew McMeels Publishing. ISBN 0-7407-1426-0.
↑ "Golfer profile: Don January". Las Vegas Review-Journal. April 21, 1998. Archived from the original on June 25, 2003.
↑ Bingham, Walter (February 16, 1998). "Built To Last". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved February 5, 2011.

External links

Don January at the PGA Tour official site

PGA Championship champions

Match play era	1916 Jim Barnes 1917–18 Cancelled due to World War I 1919 Jim Barnes 1920 Jock Hutchison 1921 Walter Hagen 1922 Gene Sarazen 1923 Gene Sarazen 1924 Walter Hagen 1925 Walter Hagen 1926 Walter Hagen 1927 Walter Hagen 1928 Leo Diegel 1929 Leo Diegel 1930 Tommy Armour 1931 Tom Creavy 1932 Olin Dutra 1933 Gene Sarazen 1934 Paul Runyan 1935 Johnny Revolta 1936 Denny Shute 1937 Denny Shute 1938 Paul Runyan 1939 Henry Picard 1940 Byron Nelson 1941 Vic Ghezzi 1942 Sam Snead 1943 Cancelled due to World War II 1944 Bob Hamilton 1945 Byron Nelson 1946 Ben Hogan 1947 Jim Ferrier 1948 Ben Hogan 1949 Sam Snead 1950 Chandler Harper 1951 Sam Snead 1952 Jim Turnesa 1953 Walter Burkemo 1954 Chick Harbert 1955 Doug Ford 1956 Jack Burke, Jr. 1957 Lionel Hebert

Stroke play era	1958 Dow Finsterwald 1959 Bob Rosburg 1960 Jay Hebert 1961 Jerry Barber† 1962 Gary Player 1963 Jack Nicklaus 1964‡ Bobby Nichols 1965 Dave Marr 1966 Al Geiberger 1967 Don January† 1968 Julius Boros 1969‡ Raymond Floyd 1970 Dave Stockton 1971 Jack Nicklaus 1972 Gary Player 1973 Jack Nicklaus 1974 Lee Trevino 1975 Jack Nicklaus 1976 Dave Stockton 1977 Lanny Wadkins† 1978 John Mahaffey† 1979 David Graham† 1980 Jack Nicklaus 1981 Larry Nelson 1982‡ Raymond Floyd 1983‡ Hal Sutton 1984 Lee Trevino 1985 Hubert Green 1986 Bob Tway 1987 Larry Nelson† 1988 Jeff Sluman 1989 Payne Stewart 1990 Wayne Grady 1991 John Daly 1992 Nick Price 1993 Paul Azinger† 1994 Nick Price 1995 Steve Elkington† 1996 Mark Brooks† 1997 Davis Love III 1998 Vijay Singh 1999 Tiger Woods 2000‡ Tiger Woods† 2001 David Toms 2002 Rich Beem 2003 Shaun Micheel 2004 Vijay Singh† 2005 Phil Mickelson 2006 Tiger Woods 2007 Tiger Woods 2008 Pádraig Harrington 2009 Y. E. Yang 2010 Martin Kaymer† 2011 Keegan Bradley† 2012 Rory McIlroy 2013 Jason Dufner 2014 Rory McIlroy 2015 Jason Day 2016 Jimmy Walker

† indicates the event was won in a playoff; ‡ indicates the event was won wire-to-wire

Senior PGA Championship champions

1980 Arnold Palmer† 1981 Miller Barber 1982 Don January 1983 Not held 1984 (Jan) Arnold Palmer 1984 (Dec) Peter Thomson 1985 Not held 1986 Gary Player 1987 Chi-Chi Rodríguez 1988 Gary Player 1989 Larry Mowry 1990 Gary Player 1991 Jack Nicklaus 1992 Lee Trevino 1993 Tom Wargo† 1994 Lee Trevino 1995 Raymond Floyd 1996 Hale Irwin 1997 Hale Irwin 1998 Hale Irwin 1999 Allen Doyle 2000 Doug Tewell 2001 Tom Watson 2002 Fuzzy Zoeller 2003 John Jacobs 2004 Hale Irwin 2005 Mike Reid† 2006 Jay Haas† 2007 Denis Watson 2008 Jay Haas 2009 Michael Allen 2010 Tom Lehman† 2011 Tom Watson† 2012 Roger Chapman 2013 Kōki Idoki 2014 Colin Montgomerie 2015 Colin Montgomerie 2016 Rocco Mediate

† indicates the event was won in a playoff

Don January in the Ryder Cup

United States Ryder Cup team – 1965

Julius Boros Billy Casper Tommy Jacobs Don January Tony Lema Gene Littler Dave Marr Arnold Palmer Ken Venturi Byron Nelson (non-playing captain)

Won: 19.5 – 12.5 Johnny Pott: Made the team, but did not participate in the event due to a back injury.

United States Ryder Cup team – 1977

Raymond Floyd Lou Graham Hubert Green Dave Hill Hale Irwin Don January Jerry McGee Jack Nicklaus Ed Sneed Dave Stockton Lanny Wadkins Tom Watson Dow Finsterwald (non-playing captain)

Won: 12.5 – 7.5

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Don January

Early life

Professional career

Professional wins (44)

PGA Tour wins (10)

Other wins

Senior PGA Tour wins (22)

Other senior wins (11)

Major championships

Wins (1)

Results timeline

Summary

Champions Tour major championships

Wins (1)

See also

References

External links