John Chandler Harper (March 10, 1914 – November 8, 2004) was an American

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

, best known for winning the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 cr ...

. He won seven times on the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...

and played in the

Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...

1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...

. Harper was born, raised and lived his entire life in

Portsmouth, Virginia Portsmouth is an independent city in southeast Virginia and across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,915. It is part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. The Norfolk Naval Shipyard and Naval M ...

. He was prominent in Virginia golf, winning the Virginia State Amateur three times (1930, 1932, 1934) and the Virginia State Open nine times (1932, 1938, 1940, 1941, 1952, 1960, 1967, 1968, 1970), a record which stands today. His golfing career was interrupted by service in the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Harper's competitive career lasted from 1938 to 1955; and like most professional golfers of his generation, he spent most of his time as a club professional. Harper compensated for his lack of driving distance with a strong short game;

Ben Hogan William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory and ...

said that Harper was the best putter on Tour. After

Curtis Strange Curtis Northrup Strange (born January 30, 1955) is an American professional golfer and TV color commentator. He is the winner of consecutive U.S. Open titles and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. He spent ...

's father died when he was 14, Harper became Strange's mentor. He was also a long-time friend of Bobby Jones. He was inducted into the

Virginia Sports Hall of Fame The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame honors athletes, coaches, administrators, journalists and other contributors to athletics. Many of the more than 350 inductees since 1972 were born in Virginia or enjoyed success in college, professional, amateur or ...

in 1973 and to the PGA Hall of Fame in 1968. In 1956, Harper founded Bide-A-Wee Golf Course in his hometown of

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, and managed the course until he retired in 1992. He died at the age of 90 of complications from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

Professional wins (21)

PGA Tour wins (7)

*1942 (1)

Miami Biltmore International Four-Ball The Miami International Four-Ball was a golf tournament on the PGA Tour from 1924 to 1954. It was played primarily at what is now the Miami Springs Golf and Country Club in Miami, Florida. It was also played at the Miami Biltmore Golf Course in Co ...

(with

Herman Keiser Herman W. Keiser (October 7, 1914 – December 24, 2003) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour, best known for winning the Masters Tournament in 1946, his only major title. Keiser was born and raised in Springfield, Missouri. Li ...

) *1950 (2)

Tucson Open The Tucson Open was a golf tournament in Arizona on the PGA Tour from 1945 to 2006, played annually in the winter in Tucson. It was last held at the Omni Tucson National Golf Resort in late February, with a $3 million purse and a $540,000 winner ...

*1953 (1)

El Paso Open The El Paso Open was a golf tournament on the Ben Hogan Tour. It ran from 1990 to 1991. It was played at Coronado Country Club in El Paso, Texas. In 1991 the winner earned $25,000. Winners

Former Korn Ferry Tour events Golf in Texas Sp ...

*1954 (1)

Texas Open The Texas Open, known as the Valero Texas Open for sponsorship reasons, is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, played near San Antonio, Texas. It dates back years to 1922, when it was first called the Texas Open; San Antonio-based Val ...

*1955 (2)

Virginia Beach Open The Virginia Beach Open was a regular golf tournament on the Nationwide Tour. It was played annually until 2006 at The TPC of Virginia Beach golf course in Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southe ...

Colonial National Invitation The Colonial National Invitation, titled for sponsorship reasons as the Charles Schwab Challenge since 2019, is a professional golf tournament in Texas on the PGA Tour, played annually in May in Fort Worth at Colonial Country Club, which organize ...

Major championship is shown in bold.

Other wins (12)

*1932

Virginia Open The Virginia Open is the Virginia state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Virginia State Golf Association and the Middle Atlantic section of the PGA of America. It has been played annually ...

(as an amateur) *1938

*1940

*1941

*1952

*1954

Middle Atlantic PGA Championship The Middle Atlantic PGA Championship is a golf tournament that is the championship of the Middle Atlantic section of the PGA of America. The tournament has been played annually since 1932 in Virginia, Maryland, or Washington, DC. Fred Funk, eight- ...

*1960 Virginia PGA Open *1967 Virginia PGA Open *1968 Virginia PGA Open, Virginia PGA Open *1969 Virginia PGA Open *1970 Virginia PGA Open

Senior wins (2)

*1968

PGA Seniors' Championship The Senior PGA Championship, established in 1937, is the oldest of the five major championships in men's senior golf. It is administered by the Professional Golfers' Association of America and is recognized as a major championship by both PGA ...

World Senior Championship The World Senior Championship was a golf match held between the winners of the American PGA Seniors' Championship (now Senior PGA Championship) and the British PGA Seniors Championship. It was held from 1954 to 1978. It was a 36-hole match-play e ...

Major championships

Wins (1)

''Note: The PGA Championship was match play until 1958''

Results timeline

''Note: Harper never played in

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

.''
NT = no tournament
WD = withdrew
DQ = disqualified
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 5 (twice) *Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (five times)

U.S. national team appearances

(winners) *

Hopkins Trophy The Hopkins Trophy was an annual men's professional team golf competition between teams representing the United States and Canada. It was played from 1952 to 1956. The Americans won all five contests that were played. The matches were sponsored by ...

: 1954 (winners)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harper, Chandler American male golfers PGA Tour golfers Winners of men's major golf championships Ryder Cup competitors for the United States Golfers from Virginia Woodrow Wilson High School (Portsmouth, Virginia) alumni Sportspeople from Portsmouth, Virginia 1914 births 2004 deaths