Tommy Aaron

Thomas Dean Aaron (born February 22, 1937) is an American former professional golfer who was a member of the PGA Tour during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Aaron is best known for winning the 1973 Masters Tournament.

Aaron was born in Gainesville, Georgia. He began playing golf at age 12 and won two Georgia Amateur titles, two Southeastern Amateur events and two Georgia Open crowns, despite not having a golf course in his hometown.

He attended the University of Florida, where he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order Fraternity (Beta Zeta Chapter). While he was a Florida student, Aaron played for the Florida Gators men's golf team from 1956 to 1959, was a member of the Gators' 1956 Southeastern Conference (SEC) championship team, and won the individual SEC championship in 1957 and 1958. He lost the U.S. Amateur final to Charles Coe in 1958, was a member of the 1959 U.S. Walker Cup team, and won the Western Amateur in 1960. He was recognized as an All-American in 1958 and 1959. Aaron graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1960, and was later inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great."

Aaron turned pro in 1960. His first professional victory came at the 1969 Canadian Open. The following year he gained his first PGA Tour victory at the Atlanta Classic. In 1972, he won the Trophée Lancôme in France. Aaron's best money year was 1972, when he finished in ninth place on the PGA Tour money list.

Aaron won the Masters Tournament in 1973, which was his one major championship. He also finished in the top ten at the Masters from 1967 to 1970. His only other top ten major championship finishes came at the PGA Championship in 1965 and 1972. In 2000, he made the cut at the Masters at the age of 63, breaking a record previously held by Gary Player.

Aaron played for the U.S. team in the Ryder Cup in 1969 and 1973, and had a record of one win, one tie and four losses.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Aaron played on the Senior PGA Tour, winning $3,646,302. The 1992 Kaanapali Classic was his last professional win.

Aaron was a student of golf instructor Manuel de la Torre.

Aaron is also known for being the playing partner of Argentinian Roberto De Vicenzo for the final round of the 1968 Masters Tournament. On the seventeenth hole, Aaron incorrectly recorded a par 4 on De Vicenzo's scorecard, when his partner had actually scored a birdie 3 for the hole. Because De Vicenzo signed the scorecard without correcting the error, PGA rules required him to stand by the incorrect, higher score. Instead of a De Vicenzo–Bob Goalby playoff for the green jacket, Goalby won the tournament outright due to the technicality.

Ironically, Aaron's 4th round playing partner at the 1973 Masters, Johnny Miller, recorded a higher score when keeping Aaron's card. Aaron caught the mistake.

He was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 1980, and the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame in 1989.

• 1957 SEC Championship (individual), Georgia Amateur
• 1958 SEC Championship (individual), Southeastern Amateur
• 1959 Sunnehanna Amateur
• 1960 Western Amateur, Georgia Amateur, Southeastern Amateur

PGA Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	Jul 28, 1969	Canadian Open	−13 (71-70-70-64=275)	Playoff	Sam Snead
2	May 24, 1970	Atlanta Classic	−13 (68-68-70-69=275)	3 strokes	Dan Sikes
3	Apr 9, 1973	Masters Tournament	−5 (68-73-74-68=283)	1 stroke	J. C. Snead

PGA Tour playoff record (1–4)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1963	Memphis Open	Tony Lema	Lost to par on first extra hole
2	1963	Cleveland Open	Tony Lema, Arnold Palmer	Palmer won 18-hole playoff (Palmer:67, Aaron:70, Lema:70)
3	1969	Canadian Open	Sam Snead	Wall 18-hole playoff (Aaron:70, Snead:72)
4	1972	Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open	George Archer, Dave Hill	Archer won 18-hole playoff (Archer:66, Aaron:68, Hill:68)
5	1972	Greater Greensboro Open	George Archer	Lost to par on second extra hole

Other wins (5)

• 1957 Georgia Open (as an amateur)
• 1960 Georgia Open
• 1972 ABC Japan vs USA Golf Matches
• 1975 Georgia Open
• 1972 Trophée Lancôme

Senior PGA Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	Nov 1, 1992	Kaanapali Classic	−15 (67-67-64=198)	1 stroke	Dave Stockton

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1992	Vintage ARCO Invitational	Jim Colbert, Mike Hill	Hill won with birdie on first extra hole
2	1992	Murata Reunion Pro-Am	George Archer	Lost to birdie on third extra hole

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 Holes	Winning Score	Margin	Runner-up
1973	Masters Tournament	4 shot deficit	−5 (68-73-74-68=283)	1 stroke	J. C. Snead

Results timeline

Amateur

Professional

LA = Low amateur
NYF = Tournament not yet founded
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place
DNQ = Did not qualify for match play portion
R256, R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

Source for The Masters: www.masters.com

Source for U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur: USGA Championship Database

Source for The British Open: www.opengolf.com

Source for PGA Championship: PGA Championship Media Guide

Source for 1959 British Amateur: The Glasgow Herald, May 26, 1959, pg. 6.

Results may not be in chronological order

Note: The Senior British Open Championship did not become a major until 2003.
NYF = Tournament not yet founded
DNP = did not play
CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrew
DQ = disqualified
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10.

Amateur

• Walker Cup: 1959 (winners)

Professional

• Ryder Cup: 1969 (winners), 1973 (winners)