George Knudson
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George Alfred Christian Knudson, CM (June 28, 1937 – January 24, 1989) was a Canadian professional golfer, who along with Mike Weir holds the record for the Canadian with the most wins on the PGA Tour, with eight career victories.
Born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Knudson learned to play golf at the St Charles Golf and Country Club. He won the 1954 and 1955 Manitoba Junior Championships,[1] and the 1955 Canadian Junior Championship.[2] He moved to Toronto in 1958, and worked at the Oakdale Golf Club, where he received instruction and encouragement from the Club, along with some financial backing, to try the PGA Tour. He won the Manitoba Open in 1958, 1959, and 1960, and the Ontario Open in 1960 and 1961.[3].
Between 1961 and 1972 he won eight tournaments on the PGA Tour. He won the Canadian PGA Championship five times, and won the World Cup with Al Balding in 1968. He wrote a book, The Natural Golf Swing (ISBN 0-7710-4534-4) with Lorne Rubenstein.
Knudson tied for second in the 1969 Masters, one shot behind champion George Archer. In seven Masters appearances, Knudson posted three top-10s, including 10th in his 1965 debut and sixth a year later.
He was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1969.
Knudson left tournament golf in the late 1970s, and started teaching golf, with success, at a facility in the Toronto area. His teaching methods have since been adopted by the Canadian PGA.
In 1988 he was inducted into both Royal Canadian Golf Association Hall of Fame, the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum and was made a member of the Order of Canada.
He was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1988. He recovered, and was about to make a comeback at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf Senior tournament, but left because he felt weak. The cancer had spread to his brain, and he would die from it in 1989.
He was buried at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto, Ontario.
Contents |
[edit] Professional wins (24)
[edit] PGA Tour wins (8)
- 1961 (1) Coral Gables Open Invitational
- 1963 (1) Portland Open
- 1964 (1) Fresno Open
- 1967 (1) Greater New Orleans Open Invitational
- 1968 (2) Phoenix Open Invitational, Tucson Open Invitational
- 1970 (1) Robinson Open Golf Classic
- 1972 (1) Kaiser International Open Invitational
[edit] Other wins (16)
This list is probably incomplete
- 1958 Manitoba Open
- 1959 Manitoba Open
- 1960 Manitoba Open, Ontario Open
- 1961 Ontario Open
- 1962 Maracaibo Open, Puerto Rico Open
- 1963 Panama Open
- 1964 Canadian PGA Championship, Caracas Open
- 1966 Canada Cup (individual event)
- 1967 Canadian PGA Championship
- 1968 Canadian PGA Championship, World Cup (team event with Al Balding)
- 1976 Canadian PGA Championship
- 1977 Canadian PGA Championship
[edit] Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | DNP | DNP | DNP | 10 | T6 | T31 | T28 | T2 |
| U.S. Open | DNP | DNP | DNP | T17 | T44 | DNP | DNP | T36 |
| The Open Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| PGA Championship | T51 | DNP | T28 | T20 | T43 | DNP | DNP | T25 |
| Tournament | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | T45 | DNP | DNP | CUT | DNP |
| U.S. Open | T61 | DNP | DNP | DNP | T51 |
| The Open Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| PGA Championship | T55 | CUT | CUT | T56 | DNP |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ History of Golf in Canada, by Lawrence Vincent Kavanagh, Toronto, Fitzhenry and Whiteside, 1973, p. 185
- ^ Golf in Canada: A History, by James A. Barclay, Toronto, McClelland and Stewart, 1992.
- ^ History of Golf in Canada, by Lawrence Vincent Kavanagh, Toronto, Fitzhenry and Whiteside, 1973, p. 185 and 188.
