Frederick L. Wampler (October 17, 1923 – April 27, 1985) 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 ...

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 k ...

and the

Senior PGA Tour PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour. History and format The Senior PGA Championship, founded in 1937, was for many years ...

. Wampler was born in

Bedford, Indiana Bedford is a city in Shawswick Township, Lawrence County, Indiana, Shawswick Township and the county seat of Lawrence County, Indiana, Lawrence County, Indiana, United States. In the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 13,7 ...

. He played on the

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

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 ...

team from 1948 to 1950. In 1950, he won the NCAA individual championship, was selected as Purdue's first All-American and won the Big Ten individual title for the third consecutive year. Wampler still shares the Big Ten tournament record for lowest individual round with a 64 in the fourth round of the 1950 Big Ten Championships. A veteran of

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 ...

, Wampler served in the

United States 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 ...

in the Pacific prior to enrolling at Purdue University. Wampler's only PGA Tour win came at the 1954

Los Angeles Open The Genesis Invitational is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour in southern California, first played in 1926 as the Los Angeles Open. Other previous names include Genesis Open, Northern Trust Open and Nissan Open. Played annually i ...

. He finished runner-up to

Sam Snead Samuel Jackson Snead (pronounced English_phonology">sni:d.html" ;"title="English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d">English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an ...

in the 1956

Greater Greensboro Open The Wyndham Championship is a professional golf tournament in North Carolina on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in Greensboro and was originally the Greater Greensboro Open. History Founded in 1938 as the Greater Greensboro Open, it was usua ...

on the second hole of a sudden death playoff. Like most golfers of his generation, he earned his living primarily as a club professional. Starting in 1965, he served 17 years as the head pro at

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Country Club. On the Senior PGA Tour, Wampler finished runner-up twice in the

Senior PGA 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 ...

. In 1975, he lost on the first playoff hole to

Charlie Sifford Charles Luther Sifford (June 2, 1922 – February 3, 2015) was an American professional golfer who was the first African American to play on the PGA Tour. He won the Greater Hartford Open in 1967 and the Los Angeles Open in 1969. He also won the ...

and in 1976, he finished five strokes behind Pete Cooper. Wampler was inducted into the Indiana Golf Hall of Fame in 1972, the Purdue University Sports Hall of Fame and the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 1997. Wampler died at the age of 61 after an 18-year battle with

chronic leukemia Chronic leukemia is an increase of abnormal white blood cells. It differs from acute leukemia, and is categorized as myelogenous or lymphocytic. Chronic leukemia may refer to: * Chronic myelogenous leukemia * Chronic lymphocytic leukemia * Hairy ...

Amateur wins

*1947 Indiana Amateur *1948 Big-10 Championship *1949 Indiana Amateur, Big-10 Championship *1950 Big-10 Championship,

NCAA Championship 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 and ...

Professional wins (10)

PGA Tour wins (1)

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

Other wins (9)

''This list may be incomplete'' *1950

Indiana Open The Indiana Open is the Indiana state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Indiana section of the PGA of America. It has been played annually since 1915 at a variety of courses around the state. ...

(as an amateur) *1952

Long Island Open The Long Island Open is a professional golf tournament played on Long Island, New York. It is sponsored by the Long Island Golf Association and was first held in 1922 at the Cherry Valley Club in Garden City, New York. History The Long Island O ...

*1953 Manchester Open *1962 St. Clair Open *1966

Colorado PGA Championship The Colorado PGA Championship is a golf tournament that is the championship of the Colorado section of the PGA of America. Fred Wampler, PGA Tour winner of the Los Angeles Open in 1954, and Jack Sommers, club pro and member of the Colorado Golf Hal ...

*1968

*1973

*1974

*1983 Indiana Senior Open

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wampler, Fred American male golfers Purdue Boilermakers men's golfers PGA Tour golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers Golfers from Indiana United States Navy personnel of World War II People from Bedford, Indiana 1923 births 1985 deaths