Emmett Cary Middlecoff (January 6, 1921 – September 1, 1998) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour from 1947 to 1961. His 39 Tour wins place him tied for tenth all-time, and he won three major championships. Middlecoff graduated as a dentist, but gave up his practice at age 26 to become a full-time Tour golfer.

Early life and education

Middlecoff was born January 6, 1921, in

Halls, Tennessee Halls is a town in Lauderdale County, Tennessee. The population was 2,255 at the 2010 census. The town was founded in 1882 as a railroad station stop. It is named after Hansford R. Hall, one of the founders. Among the early business ventures we ...

. He graduated from Christian Brothers High School. He played collegiate golf at the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi ( byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment ...

, becoming that school's first golf All-American in 1939. First as an undergraduate and active member of Kappa Alpha Order, then as a dental student at the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...

, Middlecoff won the Tennessee State Amateur Championship for four straight years (1940–1943). After obtaining his Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree in 1944, he entered the

United States Army Dental Corps The Army Medical Department of the U.S. Army (AMEDD), formerly known as the Army Medical Service (AMS), encompasses the Army's six medical Special Branches (or "Corps"). It was established as the "Army Hospital" in July 1775 to coordinate the me ...

during World War II. He won a PGA Tour tournament as an amateur in 1945, and then turned professional in 1947. He was selected for the

1947 Walker Cup The 1947 Walker Cup, the 11th Walker Cup Match, was played on 16 and 17 May 1947, on the Old Course at St Andrews, Scotland. The United States won by 8 matches to 4. The match should have been played in the United States; the previous match, in 1 ...

team but immediately withdrew as he intended turning professional.

PGA Tour career

During his playing career, Middlecoff won 39 PGA Tour tournaments, including the 1955 Masters and U.S. Open titles in 1949 and 1956. He won the

Vardon Trophy The Vardon Trophy is awarded by the PGA of America to the PGA Tour's leader in scoring average. When the award was first given in 1937, it was awarded on the basis of a points system. No award was given from 1942–1946 due to World War II. In ...

for lowest scoring average in 1956. Middlecoff played on three Ryder Cup teams: 1953, 1955, and 1959 – the U.S. teams won all three times. He was ineligible for the 1957 Ryder Cup because he failed to play in the PGA Championship that year. Middlecoff was disappointed to lose a playoff in the 1957 U.S. Open to Dick Mayer, and played very few events following that event. The U.S. lost the Cup in 1957, for the first time since 1933. Middlecoff's three best seasons were 1949, 1951 and 1956, as he won six tour titles in each of those years. He won at least one tour tournament in 13 of his 15 seasons, missing only in 1957 and 1960. During the decade of the 1950s, Middlecoff won 28 tour titles, more than any other player during that span. A tall player with plenty of power and very good accuracy, Middlecoff during his best years was also a superb putter. He was known for often taking excessive time to play his shots. Back problems and struggles with his nerves during competition ended his career in the early 1960s, when he was in his early 40s, although he continued to play occasionally, competing in the Masters until 1971, as a past champion. Middlecoff became a top player despite having one leg slightly shorter than the other.

Movies, television and writing

Middlecoff later developed a reputation as one of the best of the early

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 ...

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

commentators. After retiring from the tour, he spent 18 years as a golf analyst for television. He appeared in two motion pictures as himself ('' Follow the Sun'' (1951, about the life and career of Ben Hogan) and ''

The Bellboy ''The Bellboy'' is a 1960 American comedy film written, produced, directed by and starring Jerry Lewis. It was released on July 20, 1960 by Paramount Pictures and marked Lewis's directorial debut. Plot In a prologue sequence, fictitious executi ...

'' (1960)). He wrote a newspaper column, "The Golf Doctor." He also appeared in a short biographical sports documentary ''Golf Doctor'' (1947).

Later life

In 1986, Middlecoff was inducted into 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 ...

. He died of heart disease in 1998 in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

. He was survived by his wife of 51 years, Edith.

Professional wins (41)

PGA Tour wins (39)

*Mangrum and Middlecoff agreed to share the 1949 Motor City Open after failing light caused play to halt after eleven holes of a playoff. PGA Tour playoff record (7–6–1) Sources:

Other wins (1)

''this list may be incomplete'' *1949 Greenbrier Pro-Am

Major championships

Wins (3)

Results timeline

LA = Low amateur
CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" = tied

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1948 Masters – 1953 Masters) *Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (twice)

U.S. national team appearances

Professional * Ryder Cup: 1953 (winners), 1955 (winners),

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

(winners) *

Canada Cup The Canada Cup (french: Coupe Canada) was an invitational international ice hockey tournament held on five occasions between 1976 and 1991. The brainchild of Toronto lawyer Alan Eagleson, the tournament was created to meet demand for a true worl ...

* Hopkins Trophy: 1952 (winners), 1955 (winners), 1956 (winners)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Middlecoff, Cary American male golfers Ole Miss Rebels men's golfers PGA Tour golfers Winners of men's major golf championships Ryder Cup competitors for the United States World Golf Hall of Fame inductees Golf writers and broadcasters Golfers from Memphis, Tennessee United States Army personnel of World War II University of Tennessee alumni People from Halls, Tennessee 1921 births 1998 deaths