Lee Janzen

Lee Janzen
— Golfer —

Janzen in 2008
Personal information
Full name Lee McLeod Janzen
Born August 28, 1964
Austin, Minnesota
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight 175 lb (79 kg; 12.5 st)
Nationality  United States
Residence Orlando, Florida
Career
College Florida Southern College
Turned professional 1986
Current tour(s) PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins 10
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour 8
Champions Tour 1
Other 1
Best results in major championships
(Wins: 2)
Masters Tournament T12: 1995, 1996
U.S. Open Won: 1993, 1998
The Open Championship T24: 1995, 1998
PGA Championship 4th: 1997

Lee McLeod Janzen (born August 28, 1964) is an American professional golfer who is best known for winning the U.S. Open twice in 1993 and 1998.

Early years and amateur career

Janzen was born in Austin, Minnesota, and spent most of his childhood in Baltimore, Maryland, where he played Little League baseball.[1] When Janzen was 12, his father's company transferred him to Florida and his parents started him in golf and tennis, and he continued playing baseball. Janzen liked golf best and started playing that sport exclusively. He won his first tournament at age 15 as a member of the Greater Tampa Junior Golf Association.[1]

Janzen chose to attend a small college – Florida Southern. In 1985 and 1986, Florida Southern won the Division II national team championship. Janzen was the individual medalist in 1986. He turned professional later that same year.

Professional career

In 1989, Janzen joined the PGA Tour.[2] He has won eight times on the PGA Tour, most notably the 1993 and 1998 U.S. Opens. In 1993, Janzen defeated Payne Stewart at Baltusrol in Springfield, New Jersey, en route to tying the 72-hole U.S. Open scoring record of 8-under-par. Five years later, he again beat out Stewart to win his second U.S. Open, this time at the Olympic Club in San Francisco. He overcame a five stroke deficit on Sunday, marking the best final-round comeback in a U.S. Open for 25 years since Johnny Miller's win in 1973.

Janzen also notched a victory at The Players Championship in 1995. The Players is a premiere event on the PGA Tour, unofficially known as the "fifth major," and includes the largest purse of the season. He has been featured in the top 20 of the Official World Golf Ranking.

Janzen had several opportunities to win additional major golf championships. In 1996, he was in contention at both the U.S. Open and PGA Championship before finishing in the top-10 in both events. He finished fourth at the 1997 PGA Championship after sharing the 36-hole lead at Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, New York.

Janzen also played on two American Ryder Cup teams, in 1993 and 1997.

Janzen has lived in various places in Central Florida since becoming a professional golfer.

Professional wins (10)

PGA Tour wins (8)

Legend
Major championships (2)
Regular PGA Tour (6)
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 Feb 16, 1992 Northern Telecom Open 71-67-67-65=270 −18 1 stroke United States Bill Britton
2 Jan 31, 1993 Phoenix Open 67-65-73-68=273 −11 2 strokes United States Andrew Magee
3 Jun 20, 1993 U.S. Open 67-67-69-69=272 −8 2 strokes United States Payne Stewart
4 Jun 12, 1994 Buick Classic 69-69-64-66=268 −16 3 strokes South Africa Ernie Els
5 Mar 26, 1995 The Players Championship 69-74-69-71=283 −5 1 stroke Germany Bernhard Langer
6 Jun 11, 1995 Kemper Open 68-69-68-67=272 −12 Playoff United States Corey Pavin
7 Aug 20, 1995 Sprint International 10-9-6-9=34 34 pts 1 point South Africa Ernie Els
8 Jun 21, 1998 U.S. Open (2) 73-66-73-68=280 E 1 stroke United States Payne Stewart

PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1995 Kemper Open United States Corey Pavin Won with birdie on first extra hole

Champions Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 Feb 15, 2015 ACE Group Classic −16 (68-65-67=200) Playoff United States Bart Bryant

Champions Tour playoff record (1–0)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 2015 ACE Group Classic United States Bart Bryant Won with par on first extra hole

Other wins (1)

Major championships

Wins (2)

YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up
1993 U.S. Open 1 shot lead −8 (67-67-69-69=272)2 strokes United States Payne Stewart
1998 U.S. Open (2) 5 shot deficit E (73-66-73-68=280)1 stroke United States Payne Stewart

Results timeline

Tournament 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
Masters Tournament DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
U.S. Open CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP
The Open Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
PGA Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
Tournament 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Masters Tournament DNP DNP T54 T39 T30 T12 T12 T26 T33 T14
U.S. Open DNP CUT CUT 1 CUT T13 T10 T52 1 T46
The Open Championship DNP DNP T39 T48 T35 T24 CUT CUT T24 70
PGA Championship DNP DNP T21 T22 T66 T23 T8 4 CUT CUT
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Masters Tournament CUT T31 CUT CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
U.S. Open T37 CUT CUT T55 T24 T57 CUT T13 CUT
The Open Championship CUT DNP T80 CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
PGA Championship T19 CUT T53 T34 DNP CUT DNP DNP 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.

Summary

Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 0 0 0 0 3 12 9
U.S. Open 2 0 0 2 3 6 19 11
The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 4 11 7
PGA Championship 0 0 0 1 2 6 13 9
Totals 2 0 0 2 5 19 55 36

U. S. national team appearances

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "PGA Tour Media Guide – Lee Janzen". PGA Tour. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Lee Janzen bio". 4U management. Retrieved April 19, 2015.

External links