Larry Gene Nelson (born September 10, 1947) is 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 has won numerous tournaments at both 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 Champions Tour level. Nelson was born in

Fort Payne, Alabama Fort Payne is a city in and county seat of DeKalb County, in northeastern Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 14,877. European-American settlers gradually developed the settlement around the former fort. It grew rapid ...

and grew up in

Acworth, Georgia Acworth is a city in Cobb County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. The 2019 estimate for Acworth's population is 22,818. As of the 2010 census, this city had a population of 20,425, up from 13,422 in 2000. Acwor ...

, northwest of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. He did not play the game as a child – atypical for a successful professional golfer – in high school he focused on

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

. Nelson took up golf at the age of 21, after he returned from serving in the infantry in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

(Nelson was a 20-year-old newlywed when he was drafted into the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

). Nelson was first introduced to golf by Ken Hummel, a soldier and friend in his infantry unit, and Nelson carefully studied

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 ...

's book ''The Five Fundamentals of Golf'' while learning how to play the game. He soon discovered that he had a talent for the game, breaking 100 the first time he played and 70 within nine months. Nelson went on to graduate from Kennesaw Junior College in 1970 and turned professional the following year. He qualified for the PGA Tour at 27. Nelson's breakthrough year came in 1979, when he won twice and finished second on the money list to Tom Watson. Nelson won 10 times on the

, including three major championships. He earned his first major title at the 1981

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 ...

, which he won by four strokes. In 1983, Nelson was victorious at the U.S. Open at Oakmont, coming from seven behind at the halfway point to defeat Tom Watson by a single shot. Nelson scored a U.S. Open record 65-67 over the last 36 holes at the difficult Oakmont course, which broke a 51-year Open record established by

Gene Sarazen Gene Sarazen (; born Eugenio Saraceni, February 27, 1902 – May 13, 1999) was an American professional golfer, one of the world's top players in the 1920s and 1930s, and the winner of seven major championships. He is one of five players (along ...

. His 10-under-par 132 record score has yet to be equaled. In 1987, he finished tied with

Lanny Wadkins Jerry Lanston "Lanny" Wadkins Jr. (born December 5, 1949) is an American professional golfer. He ranked in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for 86 weeks from the ranking's debut in 1986 to 1988. Early years Born in Richmond, Virg ...

after the regulation 72 holes of

, and won the title with a par at the first playoff hole. Nelson played on the U.S.

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 ...

team in 1979, 1981, and 1987. His record of 9–3–1 is one of the best since the event became USA v Europe in 1979; it had been a perfect 9–0–0 after the first two events. Nelson also had great success internationally. He won four tournaments on the

Japan Golf Tour The Japan Golf Tour ( ja, 日本ゴルフツアー機構) is a prominent golf tour. It was founded in 1973 and as of 2006 it offers the third-highest annual prize fund out of the regular (that is not for seniors) men's professional tours after th ...

. Nelson also finished runner-up at the 1982

Dunlop Phoenix Tournament The is a professional golf tournament on the Japan Golf Tour. It is played in November at the Phoenix Country Club in Miyazaki, Miyazaki is the capital city of Miyazaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. The city was founded on April ...

and the 1987

Mitsui Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters The Taiheiyo Masters, titled since 2001 as the for sponsorship reasons, is a professional golf tournament on the Japan Golf Tour. Founded in 1972, it was promoted as the Pacific Masters and for a few years was the richest golf tournament in the ...

. In addition, he finished runner-up at the

PGA Tour of Australasia The PGA Tour of Australasia, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia, is a professional golf tour for men, owned and operated by the PGA of Australia. Official events on the tour count for World Golf Ra ...

's 1987

New Zealand Open The New Zealand Open is the premier men's golf tournament in New Zealand. It has been a regular fixture on the PGA Tour of Australasia tournament schedule since the 1970s. The 2019 event was the 100th edition of the tournament. Since 2014 it has ...

, losing to Northern Ireland's

Ronan Rafferty Ronan Patrick Rafferty (born 13 January 1964) is a Northern Irish professional golfer who formerly played on the European Tour. He was the leading European player of 1989. Early life Rafferty was born in Newry, Northern Ireland. He won the B ...

in a playoff. Since turning 50 in 1997, Nelson has had a successful Champions Tour career, winning 19 times, although he has not won a senior major. He was elected to the

World Golf Hall of Fame The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site honors both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 go ...

in April 2006 and inducted in October 2006. In 2011, Nelson received the PGA Distinguished Service Award from 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 award "honors outstanding individuals who display leadership and humanitarian qualities, including integrity, sportsmanship and enthusiasm for the game of golf". Nelson is also active in golf course design and created th
LagRx Swing Trainer
to help golfers condition and improve their muscle memory.

Professional wins (41)

PGA Tour wins (10)

PGA Tour playoff record (3–2)

Japan Golf Tour wins (4)

''*Note: The 1983 Dunlop International Open was shortened to 54 holes due to rain.''
¹Co-sanctioned by the

Asia Golf Circuit The Asia Golf Circuit was the principal men's professional golf tour in Southeast Asia from the early 1960s through to the mid-late 1990s. The tour was founded in 1961 as the Far East Circuit. The first series of five tournaments was held in 1962 ...

Japan Golf Tour playoff record (2–1)

Other wins (2)

*1978

Georgia Open The Georgia Open is the Georgia (USA) state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Georgia section of the PGA of America. It has been played annually since 1954 at a variety of courses around the ...

*1988 PGA Grand Slam of Golf (United States - unofficial event)

Champions Tour wins (19)

Champions Tour playoff record (2–3)

Other senior wins (6)

*1999 Chrysler Senior Match Play Challenge *2004 Office Depot Father/Son Challenge (with son Drew) *2007 Del Webb Father/Son Challenge (with son Josh) *2008 Del Webb Father/Son Challenge (with son Drew) *2015

Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf The Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf at Big Cedar is a golf tournament in Missouri on the PGA Tour Champions. Since 2014, it has been played at Big Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale on the par-3 Top of the Rock course, designed by Jack Nicklaus and the 18 ...

(Legends division, with

Bruce Fleisher Bruce Lee Fleisher (October 16, 1948 – September 23, 2021) was an American professional golfer. Early years and amateur career Fleisher was born in Union City, Tennessee, and was Jewish. In 1950, the Fleisher family moved to Wilmington, Nort ...

) *2016

(Legends division, with

)

Playoff record

PGA Tour of Australasia playoff record (0–1)

Major championships

Wins (3)

¹Defeated Wadkins with a par on the first extra hole.

Results timeline

CUT = missed the halfway cut (3rd round cut in 1984 Open Championship)
DQ = disqualified
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 7 (1978 PGA – 1980 Open Championship) *Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1981 PGA – 1982 Masters)

Results in The Players Championship

CUT = missed the halfway cut
DQ = disqualified
"T" indicates a tie for a place

U.S. national team appearances

: 1979 (winners),

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

(winners),

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

* UBS Warburg Cup: 2001 (winners) *

Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge The Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge was an unofficial golf event held in November at the Rio Secco Golf Club in Henderson, Nevada. The tournament was a unique stroke play event, and, as the name suggests, pitted three teams, with three members per team, ...

(representing Senior PGA Tour): 1997, 1998 (winners)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Larry American male golfers PGA Tour golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers Ryder Cup competitors for the United States Winners of men's major golf championships World Golf Hall of Fame inductees Golfers from Alabama Golfers from Georgia (U.S. state) Kennesaw State University alumni People from Fort Payne, Alabama Sportspeople from Cobb County, Georgia 1947 births Living people