Tom Kite

Thomas Oliver Kite Jr. (born December 9, 1949) is an American professional golfer and golf course architect. He won the U.S. Open in 1992 and spent 175 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 1989 and 1994.^[1]

Early life and amateur career

Kite was born in McKinney, Texas. He began playing golf at age six, and won his first tournament at age 11. Kite attended the University of Texas on a golf scholarship and was coached by Harvey Penick.

At Texas, Kite was a first-team All-American in 1972 when he also shared the individual NCAA championship with teammate Ben Crenshaw. He helped the Longhorns win two NCAA Team Championships in 1971 and 1972 and Southwest Conference Championships in 1970 and 1972. He was a second-team All-American in 1970 and 1971 and won nine collegiate tournaments during his four years.^[2]

Professional career

In 1972, Kite turned professional and was a consistent money winner until his retirement. Known for his innovation, he was the first to add a third wedge to his bag, one of the first players to use a sports psychologist, and one of the first to emphasize physical fitness for game improvement. He also underwent laser eye surgery, due to his partial blindness,^[3] in a bid to improve his game late in his career.

He has 19 PGA Tour victories, including the 1992 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. He competed on seven Ryder Cup squads (1979, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1993) and served as the 1997 captain. Kite holds a unique record of making the cut for the first four U.S. Opens held at Pebble Beach: 1972, 1982, 1992, and 2000. Kite also shares the distinction (with Gene Littler) of playing in the most Masters Tournaments without a win.^[4]

Kite was the first in Tour history to reach $6 million, $7 million, $8 million, and $9 million in career earnings. He was the Tour's leading money-winner in 1981 and 1989. In his prime, Kite had few peers with the short irons. In 1993, Johnny Miller referred to Kite as "the greatest short-iron player the game has seen."^[5]

Senior career

In 2005, he led the PGA Tour's Booz Allen Classic by one shot going into the final round at the age of 55. If he had been able to stay ahead, he would have beaten Sam Snead's record as the oldest winner on the PGA Tour by three years, but he fell away to finish tied 13th, seven shots behind Sergio García.

Kite played the Champions Tour until 2020, claiming ten victories, including one senior major, The Countrywide Tradition. At the 2012 U.S. Senior Open, Kite shot a front nine 28 (seven under par) in the first round. This was the lowest nine-hole score ever recorded in any USGA championship.^[6][7] He finished the tournament tied for 12th.

In popular culture

• On May 18, 1991, Kite was impersonated by Kevin Nealon as part of the "Carsenio" sketch on Saturday Night Live featuring Dana Carvey impersonating Johnny Carson and Phil Hartman impersonating Ed McMahon.^[8]

• In 1996, Kite had a cameo in The Simpsons episode "Scenes from the Class Struggle in Springfield", in which he gave Homer Simpson golf tips.^[9]

Awards and honors

• In 1970 and 1971, Kite earned second-team All-American honors. In 1972, Kite was a first-team All-American.
• In 1973, Kite was noted as the Golf Digest Rookie of the Year.
• In 1979, he was bestowed the Bob Jones Award.
• in 1981, he was awarded the Golf Writers Association Player of the Year.
• In 1981 and 1982, Kite was bestowed the Byron Nelson Award
• Kite was the Vardon Trophy winner in 1981 and 1982.
• In 1984, Kite was inducted into the University of Texas at Austin's Longhorns Hall of Honor.^[2]
• In 1989, he was named PGA of America Player of the Year.
• In 2004, Kite was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.^[10]

Amateur wins

• 1972 NCAA Championship (individual; tie with Ben Crenshaw)

Professional wins (37)

PGA Tour wins (19)

PGA Tour playoff record (6–4)

European Tour wins (3)

New Zealand Golf Circuit wins (1)

Other wins (5)

Other playoff record (0–1)

Champions Tour wins (10)

Champions Tour playoff record (3–2)

Major championships

Wins (1)

Results timeline

CUT = missed the halfway cut (3rd round cut in 1982 Open Championship)
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Summary

• Most consecutive cuts made – 15 (1986 PGA – 1990 U.S. Open)
• Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (four times)

The Players Championship

Wins (1)

Results timeline

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

Senior major championships

Wins (1)

Results timeline

Results not in chronological order before 2021.

CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic
Note: The Senior British Open was not a Champions Tour major until 2003.

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur

• Eisenhower Trophy: 1970 (winners)
• Walker Cup: 1971

Professional

• Ryder Cup: 1979 (winners), 1981 (winners), 1983 (winners), 1985, 1987, 1989 (tie), 1993 (winners), 1997 (captain)
• World Cup: 1984, 1985
• Four Tours World Championship: 1987 (winners), 1989 (winners)
• Dunhill Cup: 1989 (winners), 1990, 1992, 1994
• Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge (representing Champions Tour): 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006
• UBS Cup: 2002 (winners), 2004 (winners)

See also

• 1972 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
• List of golfers with most PGA Tour wins
• List of golfers with most Champions Tour wins

Notes

1. ^ Shortened to 54 holes due to weather.

References

1. ^ "69 Players Who Have Reached The Top-10 In World Ranking". Official World Golf Ranking. Archived from the original on October 17, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
2. ^ "Tom Kite". Retrieved 3 September 2024.
3. ^ "Surgery has opened up a whole new world to Kite". The Irish Times. Archived October 10, 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
4. ^ "Quiz: Test Your Knowledge of the Master's". MSNBC. Associated Press. April 3, 2009. Archived October 11, 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
5. ^ "Short-iron specialist Kite surges past the $8m mark". The Herald. March 1, 1993. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
6. ^ Kupelian, Vartan (July 12, 2012). "Kite rewrites USGA record books with front-nine 28". PGA Tour. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
7. ^ "2012 USGA Media Guide: USGA Superlatives". USGA. Archived from the original on May 21, 2013. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
8. ^ "Carsenio - SNL Transcripts Tonight". October 8, 2018.
9. ^ Sens, Josh (May 1, 2018). "Get in the … D'oh! The 7 best golf scenes from The Simpsons". Golf.com. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
10. ^ "Which players will reach the HOF?". ESPN. April 18, 2007.

External links

• Tom Kite at golf.about.com September 19, 2005 at the Wayback Machine
• Tom Kite Design