Tom Kite
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Tom Kite is an American golfer. He was born December 3, 1949 in Austin, Texas.
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Career outline
Kite began playing golf at age 6 and won his first tournament at age 11. Kite attended the University of Texas on a golf scholarship and was coached by Harvey Penick. He turned professional in 1972 and has been a consistent money winner ever since. 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 psyhcologist and one of the first to emphasise physical fitness for game improvement.
Kite’s short game is excellent. His long game is weaker - in part because his size makes it difficult to get distance off the tee. Consistency is one of his greatest assets.
Among Kite's career accomplishments are:
- 2002 - won the Mastercard Championship and shot a course-record, 63 in the opening round.
- 2001 - he tied for 5th place at the U.S. Open; was 5th at the 2001 State Farm Classic, and tied for 3rd at the SBC Senior Open.
- 2000 - won his first Senior Tour at Countrywide Tradition and his second Senior Tour title at the SBC Senior Open.
He has 19 PGA TOUR victories, including the 1992 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. He competed on seven Ryder Cup squads and served as the 1997 U.S. Ryder Cup Captain.
In 1989 he was named PGA of America Player of the Year; in 1981 the Golf Writers Association Player of the Year, the Vardon Trophy winner in 1981 & 1980, Bob Jones Award recipient in 1979 and Golf Digest Rookie of the Year in 1973.
Tom 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 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 thirteenth, seven shots behind Sergio Garcia.
PGA Tour wins
- 1976 IVB-Bicentennial Golf Classic
- 1978 B.C. Open
- 1981 American Motors Inverrary Classic
- 1982 Bay Hill Classic
- 1983 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am
- 1984 Doral-Eastern Open, Georgia-Pacific Atlanta Golf Classic
- 1985 MONY Tournament of Champions
- 1986 Western Open
- 1987 Kemper Open
- 1989 Nestle Invitational, The Players Championship, Nabisco Championship
- 1990 Federal Express St. Jude Classic
- 1991 Infiniti Tournament of Champions
- 1992 BellSouth Classic, U.S. Open
- 1993 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, Nissan Los Angeles Open
Kite's major championship is shown in bold.
Champions Tour wins
- 2000 The Countrywide Tradition, SBC Senior Open
- 2001 Gold Rush Classic
- 2002 MasterCard Championship, SBC Senior Classic, Napa Valley Championship
- 2004 3M Championship
Kite's senior major is shown in bold.
Other wins
- 1972 NCAA Championship(individual, tie. Amateur event)
- 1974 Air New Zealand Open
- 1980 European Open
- 1981 JCPenney Classic (with Beth Daniel)
- 1987 Kirin Cup (individual)
- 1989 Alfred Dunhill Cup (team)
- 1992 Shark Shootout (with Davis Love III}
- 1996 Oki Pro-Am, Franklin Templeton Shark Shootout (with Jay Haas).
External links
- Profile on the PGA Tour's site (http://www.golfweb.com/players/bio/132049)
- Golf Stars Online (http://www.golfstarsonline.com/K/Tom_Kite/) - links to features and profiles
- about.com profile (http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/tom_kite.htm)
- Books by and about Tom Kite (http://choosegolfbooks.com/tomkite.html)sv:Tom Kite