Daniel David Sikes, Jr. (December 7, 1929 – December 20, 1987) was an American professional golfer who played 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 ...

and Champions Tour. Sikes won nine tournaments as a pro, including six PGA Tour events. He was influential as the chairman of the tournament players committee in the late 1960s, prior to the formation of the PGA Tour.

Early years

Born in

Wildwood, Florida Wildwood is a city in Sumter County, Florida, United States. The population was 6,709 at the 2010 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2018 estimates, the city had a population of 7,024. Due to rapid growth the city had over 33,000 re ...

, Sikes was raised in

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

and attended Andrew Jackson High School.

College career

He enrolled the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

in Gainesville, where he played for the Florida Gators' golf team in

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

(NCAA) competition from 1951 to 1953.
Florida Men's Golf 2011 Media Supplement
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 39 & 42 (2010). Retrieved July 11, 2011. He was recognized as an All-American in 1952—the University of Florida's ''first'' All-American golfer. Sikes graduated from Florida with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1953, and was later inducted into the

University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame The University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame includes over 300 former Florida Gators athletes who represented the University of Florida in one or more intercollegiate sports and were recognized as "Gator Greats" for their athletic excellence ...

as a "Gator Great."

Professional career

Although he later earned a law degree from the university's

College of Law A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

and was known as the "golfing lawyer," he never actually practiced law. He was the chairman and spokesman of the controversial tournament players' committee prior to the formation of the "Tournament Players Division" in late 1968, which was later renamed the

. Sikes won the

U.S. Amateur Public Links The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, often referred to as the Public Links or the Publinx, was a men's amateur golf tournament, one of 10 individual amateur championships organized by the United States Golf Association. The USGA typically cal ...

championship in 1958 while in law school. He turned professional in 1960 and won six tournaments on the PGA Tour, half in his home state of Florida. Sikes' career year was 1967, when he won two events and was fifth on the money list. He was also the 54-hole leader at 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 ...

and finished one shot out of the playoff, in a tie for third with Jack Nicklaus. Due to disputes with 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 ...

, the championship was nearly boycotted by the top tournament players. Sikes played on the Ryder Cup team in 1969 at

Royal Birkdale Royal Birkdale Golf Club is a golf course in the United Kingdom in North West England, located in Southport, Merseyside. It is one of the clubs in the rotation for both the Open Championship and Women's British Open and has hosted the Open Champ ...

. Sikes later represented caddies on tour in 1970 and was instrumental in helping organize the Senior PGA Tour, later renamed the Champions Tour. He won three times on the senior tour, the first at the rain-shortened Hilton Head Seniors International in 1982, which Sikes and

Miller Barber Miller Westford Barber, Jr. (March 31, 1931 – June 11, 2013) was an American professional golfer who enjoyed significant success on the PGA Tour in the 1960s and 1970s, and a greater degree of success on the Senior PGA Tour (now the Champions ...

were leading when play was stopped. Sikes died in Jacksonville at age 58 in late 1987.Golf
/ref> He was posthumously inducted into the Jacksonville Sports Hall of Fame in 1988.

Professional wins (9)

PGA Tour wins (6)

PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

Senior PGA Tour wins (3)

''*Note: The 1982 Hilton Head Seniors International was shortened to 36 holes due to weather.'' Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

Results in major championships

''Note: Sikes 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 ...

.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 21 (1962 U.S. Open – 1970 PGA) *Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (five times)

References

External links

*
University of Florida Foundation
Dan Sikes Memorial Endowment
Jacksonville.com
Athletes of the Century: Dan Sikes {{DEFAULTSORT:Sikes, Dan American male golfers Florida Gators men's golfers PGA Tour golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers Ryder Cup competitors for the United States Golfers from Jacksonville, Florida Fredric G. Levin College of Law alumni People from Wildwood, Florida 1929 births 1987 deaths