Eugene Claude Harmon Sr. (July 14, 1916 – July 23, 1989) was an American professional

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

er and golf instructor. Born in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

, Harmon spent much of his boyhood in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, in the

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...

area. A youthful prodigy, he qualified for the

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

at age 15 in 1931. Harmon was a club professional when he won the

1948 Masters Tournament The 1948 Masters Tournament was the 12th Masters Tournament, held April 8–11 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. Claude Harmon shot a record-tying 279 (−9) and finished five strokes ahead of runner-up Cary Middlecoff, a future c ...

by five shots to earn $2,500. He was a semi-finalist three times in 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 ...

(

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. Januar ...

, 1948, and

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...

), competing as a club pro against full-time tour players. Claude Harmon also finished in third place at the 1959 U.S. Open, which was held at his home course at Winged Foot. From 1945 to 1978, Harmon was the head professional at

Winged Foot Golf Club Winged Foot Golf Club is a private golf club in the northeastern United States, located in Mamaroneck, New York, a suburb northeast of New York City. The club was founded in 1921, by a group largely made up of members of The New York Athletic Cl ...

Mamaroneck, New York Mamaroneck ( ) is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Village of Ma ...

, and also served as the winter professional for many years at the Seminole Golf Club in

Juno Beach, Florida Juno Beach is a town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Its population was 3,176 at the 2010 census. As of 2018, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was estimated at 3,648. Juno Beach is home to the headquarters of Florid ...

. In 1959, he was hired as the head professional at Thunderbird Country Club in

Rancho Mirage, California Rancho Mirage is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 17,218 at the 2010 census, up from 13,249 at the 2000 census, but the seasonal (part-time) population can exceed 20,000. Incorporated in 1973 and located ...

, where he served for over a decade, and finally took a club job in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

in the

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

area. In 1959, Harmon played in the U.S. Open at Winged Foot and placed third. He was one of the few close friends of legendary star

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 ...

, and the two played together frequently and worked together on their games.

Death

Harmon died of heart failure following surgery in

at the age 73, and is interred at

Desert Memorial Park Desert Memorial Park is a cemetery in Cathedral City, California, United States, near Palm Springs. Opening in 1956 and receiving its first interment in 1957,The Palm Springs Cemetery District itself was covers 504 square miles, including Palm Spr ...

Cathedral City, California Cathedral City, colloquially known as "Cat City", is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. Situated between Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage, the city has the second larg ...

. He is a member of the World Golf Teachers' Hall of Fame and the

PGA of America The Professional Golfers' Association of America (PGA of America) is an American organization of golf professionals that was founded in 1916. Consisting of nearly 29,000 men and women members, the PGA of America's undertaking is to establish ...

Hall of Fame.

Personal

Harmon's sons Claude, Jr. (Butch), Craig, and Bill all occupy spots in ''

Golf Digest ''Golf Digest'' is a monthly golf magazine published by Warner Bros. Discovery through its sports unit under its Warner Bros. Discovery Golf division. It is a generalist golf publication covering recreational golf and men's and women's competiti ...

''s "top 50 teachers" list. His third eldest son

Dick Dick, Dicks, or Dick's may refer to: Media * ''Dicks'' (album), a 2004 album by Fila Brazillia * Dicks (band), a musical group * ''Dick'' (film), a 1999 American comedy film * "Dick" (song), a 2019 song by Starboi3 featuring Doja Cat Names ...

(1947–2006) was also a top golf instructor, as is grandson Claude Harmon III.

Professional wins (15)

PGA Tour wins (2)

* 1948

Masters Tournament The Masters Tournament (usually referred to as simply The Masters, or the U.S. Masters outside North America) is one of the four major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week of April, the Masters is the first maj ...

* 1950

Miami 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 Pete Cooper) Major championship is shown in bold.

Other wins (13)

''this list may be incomplete'' * 1946

Westchester Open The Westchester Open is golf tournament organized by the Westchester Golf Association. It has been played annually since 1920 at member clubs in New York or Connecticut. It was considered a PGA Tour event in the 1920s and 1930s. History In 1971, ...

, Metropolitan PGA Championship * 1947

* 1948 Westchester PGA Championship * 1949 Westchester PGA Championship,

Havana Invitational The Havana Invitational was a pro-am golf tournament held from 1948 to 1958. It was played at Havana Country Club in Havana, Cuba. In 1958 a second unrelated event was held two weeks before the pro-am, the Havana International. This was held at ...

* 1950

* 1951

, Metropolitan PGA Championship,

Metropolitan Open The Metropolitan Open is a golf tournament organized by the Metropolitan Golf Association. In the early 20th century it was one of the top events in the country and was retroactively given PGA Tour-level status. History The tournament has been ...

* 1953

* 1958 Westchester PGA Championship * 1960

Major championships

Wins (1)

Results timeline

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

* Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1948 Open Championship – 1953 Masters) * Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (twice)

References

* "Claude Harmon", ''Almanac of Famous People'', 8th ed. Gale Group, 2003.

External links

*
PGA of America Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harmon, Claude American male golfers PGA Tour golfers Winners of men's major golf championships Golfers from Savannah, Georgia Golfers from Florida Golfers from New York (state) Golfers from California Golfers from Texas Burials at Desert Memorial Park Sportspeople from New Rochelle, New York 1916 births 1989 deaths