Physique: Average Build
Height: 5'10" (1.77 m)
Arnold Daniel Palmer (September 10, 1929 – September 25, 2016; aged 87) was an American professional golfer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most charismatic players in the sport's history. Since embarking on a professional career in 1955, he won numerous events on both the PGA Tour and the circuit now known as PGA Tour Champions. Nicknamed "The King", Palmer was one of golf's most popular stars and seen as a trailblazer, the first superstar of the sport's television age, which began in the 1950s.
Handsome and charming. It was Palmer, not Tiger Woods who made golf popular to me. Palmer would stride down a fairway acknowledging his army of fans with a sunny smile and a raised club. And according to Donald Trump, Arnie was was well endowed. I'm betting Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player, other members of the "The Big Three" in golf were also packing 9 irons… at least. Three men that I wouldn’t mind playing around with their clubs and balls.
Born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, Palmer attended Wake Forest College on a golf scholarship. After quitting school in 1950, he served in the U.S. Coast Guard. He returned to Wake Forest in 1954 but left again after winning the U.S. Amateur Championship. He earned his first professional victory at the 1955 Canadian Open. In 1958 he won his first Masters Tournament and placed first on the official earnings list for the PGA Tour. Two years later he emerged as a sports superstar, winning eight tournaments, often in dramatic fashion.
In a career spanning more than six decades, Palmer won 62 PGA Tour titles from 1955 to 1973. He is fifth on the Tour's all-time victory list, trailing only Sam Snead, Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, and Ben Hogan. He won seven major titles in a six-plus-year domination from the 1958 Masters to the 1964 Masters. He also won the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998, and in 1974 was one of the 13 original inductees into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Palmer died on September 25, 2016 (shortly after his 87th birthday) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Palmer was twice married, first to Winnie Walzer in 1954. They remained together for decades until her death in 1999. He remarried in 2005, to Kathleen Gawthrop, who survives him. He is also survived by his two daughters from his first marriage, Amy and Peggy. In addition to golf, Palmer was an avid pilot. He flew for over 50 years; in 1999, the airport in his hometown was named Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in his honor.
Professional Wins: 95
Masters Tournament Won: 1958, 1960, 1962, 1964
PGA Championship T2: 1964, 1968, 1970
U.S. Open Won: 1960
The Open Championship Won: 1961, 1962
Achievements and Awards
World Golf Hall of Fame 1974 (member page)
PGA Tour money list winner: 1958, 1960, 1962, 1963
PGA Player of the Year: 1960, 1962
Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year: 1960
Vardon Trophy: 1961, 1962, 1964, 1967
Bob Jones Award: 1971
Old Tom Morris Award: 1983
PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award: 1998
Payne Stewart Award: 2000