John Mahaffey

John Mahaffey
Personal information
Full name	John Drayton Mahaffey Jr.
Born	(1948-05-09) May 9, 1948 (age 76) Kerrville, Texas, U.S.
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	160 lb (73 kg; 11 st)
Sporting nationality	United States
Residence	The Woodlands, Texas, U.S.
Career
College	University of Houston
Turned professional	1971
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour Champions Tour
Professional wins	16
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	10
PGA Tour Champions	1
Other	5
Best results in major championships (wins: 1)
Masters Tournament	T8: 1981
PGA Championship	Won: 1978
U.S. Open	2nd: 1975
The Open Championship	T10: 1975

John Drayton Mahaffey Jr. (born May 9, 1948) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments including 10 PGA Tour events.

Mahaffey was born in Kerrville, Texas. He attended the University of Houston in Houston, Texas. Mahaffey graduated in 1970 with a degree in psychology.

He turned pro in 1971. Mahaffey came close to winning back to back U.S. Opens. In 1975, he lost in a playoff to Lou Graham at the Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Illinois. The following year Mahaffey had a two-shot lead after 54 holes at the Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek, Georgia before shooting a final round 73 and finishing T-4.

In 1978, he won the PGA Championship. It was held at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. Mahaffey became the best comeback winner in PGA history after trailing Tom Watson by seven strokes with 14 holes to play. Ultimately, the tournament came down to a three-player playoff – Mahaffey, Watson and Jerry Pate. All three players made par on the first playoff hole. The drama ended on the second playoff hole when Pate missed the green, Watson missed a 30-foot birdie attempt and Mahaffey made his 12-foot birdie putt for the Championship.^[1] Later in the year he also won the World Cup individual and team event where he was paired with Andy North in 1978.

Mahaffey played on the 1979 Ryder Cup team the following year.

Later in his career, he began work as an announcer on Golf Channel telecasts of the PGA Tour Champions.

Mahaffey lives near Houston at The Woodlands in his home state of Texas. His family includes wife Elizabeth, and two children.^{[citation needed]}

• 1970 NCAA Championship

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Oct 28, 1973	Sahara Invitational	−13 (68-66-69-68=271)	3 strokes	Dave Eichelberger
2	Aug 6, 1978	PGA Championship	−8 (75-67-68-66=276)	Playoff	Jerry Pate, Tom Watson
3	Aug 13, 1978	American Optical Classic	−14 (71-65-67-67=270)	2 strokes	Raymond Floyd, Gil Morgan
4	Jan 14, 1979	Bob Hope Desert Classic	−17 (66-66-71-71-69=343)	1 stroke	Lee Trevino
5	Jun 1, 1980	Kemper Open	−5 (68-72-67-68=275)	3 strokes	Craig Stadler
6	July 26, 1981	Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic	−8 (72-67-70-67=276)	2 strokes	Andy North
7	Jan 15, 1984	Bob Hope Classic (2)	−20 (66-70-70-68-66=340)	Playoff	Jim Simons
8	Sep 29, 1985	Texas Open	−12 (68-68-65-67=268)	Playoff	Jodie Mudd
9	Mar 30, 1986	Tournament Players Championship	−13 (69-70-65-71=275)	1 stroke	Larry Mize
10	Aug 6, 1989	Federal Express St. Jude Classic	−12 (70-71-66-65=272)	3 strokes	Bob Gilder, Hubert Green, Bernhard Langer, Bob Tway

PGA Tour playoff record (3–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1975	U.S. Open	Lou Graham	Lost 18-hole playoff; Graham: E (71), Mahaffey: +2 (73)
2	1978	PGA Championship	Jerry Pate, Tom Watson	Won with birdie on second extra hole
3	1984	Bob Hope Desert Classic	Jim Simons	Won with par on second extra hole
4	1985	Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic	Mark Wiebe	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
5	1985	Texas Open	Jodie Mudd	Won with par on second extra hole

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Dec 3, 1978	World Cup (with Andy North)	−12 (141-144-138-141=564)	10 strokes	Australia − Wayne Grady and Greg Norman
2	Dec 3, 1978	World Cup Individual Trophy	−7 (69-72-69-71=281)	2 strokes	Andy North
3	Nov 11, 1979	World Cup (2) (with Hale Irwin)	−1 (141-141-152-141=575)	5 strokes	Scotland − Ken Brown and Sandy Lyle
4	Jan 4, 1981	Spalding Invitational	−9 (69-69-69-72=279)	1 stroke	Buddy Allin
5	Dec 12, 1982	JCPenney Mixed Team Classic (with JoAnne Carner)	−20 (68-67-63-70=268)	1 stroke	Jay Haas and Hollis Stacy

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runners-up
1	Jun 20, 1999	Southwestern Bell Dominion	−12 (67-67-70=204)	Playoff	José María Cañizares, Bruce Fleisher

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1999	Southwestern Bell Dominion	José María Cañizares, Bruce Fleisher	Won with birdie on second extra hole Fleisher eliminated by birdie on first hole
2	2002	FleetBoston Classic	Bob Gilder	Lost to birdie on third extra hole

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runners-up
1978	PGA Championship	7 shot deficit	−8 (75-67-68-66=276)	Playoff1	Jerry Pate, Tom Watson

¹Defeated Pate and Watson with a birdie on the second extra hole.

LA = Low amateur
CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = Withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

• Most consecutive cuts made – 8 (1978 PGA – 1981 Masters)
• Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1975 U.S. Open – 1975 Open Championship)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
1986	Tournament Players Championship	4 shot deficit	−13 (69-70-65-71=275)	1 stroke	Larry Mize

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

Professional

• Ryder Cup: 1979 (winners)
• World Cup: 1978 (winners, individual winner), 1979 (winners)
• Nissan Cup: 1986

• 1971 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
• List of men's major championships winning golfers

• John Mahaffey at the PGA Tour official site
• John Mahaffey at the Official World Golf Ranking official site