Grier Jones (born May 6, 1946) is a former college head golf coach and former PGA Tour professional golfer.

Grier Jones
Personal information
Born (1946-05-06) May 6, 1946 (age 78)
Wichita, Kansas, U.S.
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight165 lb (75 kg; 11.8 st)
Sporting nationality United States
Career
CollegeOklahoma State University
Turned professional1968
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Professional wins4
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour3
Other1
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT33: 1972
PGA ChampionshipT16: 1978
U.S. OpenT18: 1975
The Open ChampionshipDNP

Jones was born, raised and has been a lifelong resident of Wichita, Kansas. He attended Wichita's Kapaun Mt. Carmel Catholic High School where he played both football and golf. He won the 1963 and 1964 Kansas State High School golf championships. An All-American at Oklahoma State University, Jones won the Big Eight Championship in 1967 and 1968 before taking the individual medalist honors at the 1968 NCAA Championships. He also won the 1966 Kansas State Amateur Championship held in Topeka, Kansas while a student at Oklahoma State.[1]

Jones spent 14 years on the PGA Tour, beginning in 1969, when he earned PGA Rookie of the Year honors.[1] His career year was 1972 when he won two PGA Tour events and finished fourth on the final money list.[2] He won his third and final PGA Tour event in 1977. Jones ended his career with 54 top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events. His best finish in a major championship was a T-16 at the 1978 PGA Championship.

After his full-time tour playing days ended, Jones took a club teaching job at Willowbend Golf Club in Wichita, while continuing to play part-time on the Nationwide (then called the NIKE Tour) and PGA Tours. Later he became the head pro at Terradyne Country Club in Wichita. In 1995, he was named men's head golf coach at Wichita State University, where he remained until his retirement in 2019. He was named Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 1998, 2000, 2003, and 2006.[1]

Amateur wins

edit
  • 1966 Kansas State Amateur
  • 1967 Big Eight Championship
  • 1968 Big Eight Championship, NCAA Championship

Professional wins (4)

edit

PGA Tour wins (3)

edit
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 Feb 6, 1972 Hawaiian Open −14 (65-73-72-64=274) Playoff   Bob Murphy
2 Sep 24, 1972 Robinson's Fall Golf Classic −11 (66-72-67-68=273) Playoff   Dave Marad
3 Nov 6, 1977 Walt Disney World National Team Championship
(with   Gibby Gilbert)
−35 (62-64-61-66=253) 1 stroke   Steve Melnyk and   Andy North

PGA Tour playoff record (2–0)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1972 Hawaiian Open   Bob Murphy Won with par on first extra hole
2 1972 Robinson's Fall Golf Classic   Dave Marad Won with par on second extra hole

Other wins (1)

edit

Results in major championships

edit
Tournament 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT
PGA Championship
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Masters Tournament T38 T33 T37
U.S. Open CUT T45 T18 T28 T35
PGA Championship T41 T53 T51 T32 T30 T25 T16
Tournament 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT
PGA Championship

Note: Jones never played in The Open Championship.

  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c "Bio from Wichita State University Athletic Department". Archived from the original on May 20, 2011. Retrieved September 19, 2007.
  2. ^ "Bio from Kansas Golf Hall of Fame".
edit