Tommy Armour

Tommy Armour Biography

Thomas Dickson Armour (24 September 1896 - 11 September 1968) was a Scottish-American professional golfer. He was nicknamed The Silver Scot. He was the winner of three of golf's major championships, the 1927 U.S. Open, 1930 PGA Championship, and the 1931 Open Championship.

Early life

Armour was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and educated at Fettes College and the University of Edinburgh. During his service in World War I, Armour rose from a private to Staff Major in the Tank Corps. His conduct earned him an audience with George V. However, he lost his sight to a mustard gas explosion and surgeons had to add a metal plate to his head and left arm. During his convalescence, he regained the sight of his right eye, and began playing much more golf.

Golf career

Armour won the French Amateur tournament in 1920. He moved to the United States and met Walter Hagen, who gave him a job as secretary of the Westchester-Biltmore Club. He became a U.S. citizen at this time. He competed in important amateur tournaments in the U.S. before turning professional in 1924.

Armour won the 1927 U.S. Open, 1930 PGA Championship, and the 1931 Open Championship. With Jim Barnes and Rory McIlroy, he is one of three native Britons to win three different professional majors. His 1930 campaign was overshadowed by Bobby Jones' Grand Slam, and Armour seems to have been overlooked.

Armour also won the Canadian Open three times, a feat exceeded only by Leo Diegel, who won four.

At the Shawnee Open in 1927, Armour scored the first ever "Archaeopteryx" (15 or more over par) when he made a 23 on a par 5, for 18-over par. This still stands as the highest score on one hole in PGA history. This historic performance happened just one week after winning the U.S. Open.

Retirement and later life

Armour retired from full-time professional golf after the 1935 season, although he competed periodically in top-class events for several years afterwards. He taught at the Boca Raton Club in Florida, for $50 a lesson. His pupils included Babe Didrikson Zaharias and Lawson Little. He was also a member at the Winged Foot Golf Club in suburban New York City, where he spent much of his summers.

During World War II, Armour played in exhibitions for USO and Red Cross.

Armour co-wrote a book How to Play Your Best Golf All the Time (1953) with Herb Graffis. It became a best-seller and for many years was the biggest-selling book ever authored on golf. A series of 8mm films based on the book was released by Castle Films including Short Game parts I and II, Long Hitting Clubs, Grip and Stance.

Armour is succeeded by his grandson, Tommy Armour III, who is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour.

Death and legacy

Armour died in Larchmont, New York, and was cremated at the Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York, but is not interred there. Some modern golf equipment is still marketed in his name. Armour was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1976.

Amateur wins

1920 French Amateur

Professional wins

PGA Tour wins (25)

1920 (1) Pinehurst Fall Pro-Am Bestball (as an amateur, with Leo Diegel)
1925 (1) Florida West Coast Open
1926 (1) Winter Pro Golf Championship
1927 (5) Long Beach Open, El Paso Open, U.S. Open, Canadian Open, Oregon Open
1928 (4) Metropolitan Open, Philadelphia Open Championship, Pennsylvania Open Championship, Sacramento Open
1929 (1) Western Open
1930 (3) Canadian Open, PGA Championship, St. Louis Open
1931 (1) The Open Championship
1932 (3) Miami International Four-Ball (with Ed Dudley), Mid-South Bestball (with Al Watrous), Miami Open
1934 (2) Canadian Open, Pinehurst Fall Pro-Pro (with Bobby Cruickshank)
1935 (1) Miami Open
1936 (1) Walter Olson Golf Tournament (tie with Willie Macfarlane)
1938 (1) Mid-South Open

Major championships are shown in bold.

Other wins

1927 Miami International Four-Ball (with Bobby Cruickshank)
1938 Mid South Pro/Pro (with Bobby Cruickshank; tie with Henry Picard and Jack Grout)

Major championships

Wins (3)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
1927	U.S. Open	1 shot deficit	+13 (78-71-76-76=301)	Playoff ¹	Harry Cooper
1930	PGA Championship	n/a	1 up		Gene Sarazen
1931	The Open Championship	5 shot deficit	+8 (73-75-77-71=296)	1 stroke	Jos Jurado

¹ Defeated Harry Cooper in an 18-hole playoff: Armour 76 (+4), Cooper 79 (+7).
Note: The PGA Championship was match play until 1958

Results timeline

Tournament	1920	1921	1922	1923	1924	1925	1926	1927	1928	1929
U.S. Open	T48	DNP	DNP	WD	T13	T38	T9	1	16	T5
The Open Championship	T53	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	13	DNP	CUT	10
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	QF	DNP	QF	R32	DNP
U.S. Amateur	QF	R16	R32	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-
The Amateur Championship	R64	R64	DNP	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-

Tournament	1930	1931	1932	1933	1934	1935	1936	1937	1938	1939
Masters Tournament	NYF	NYF	NYF	NYF	DNP	T37	T20	T8	DNP	T12
U.S. Open	6	T46	T21	T4	T50	WD	T22	CUT	23	T22
The Open Championship	DNP	1	T15	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	1	QF	DNP	DNP	R16	2	R64	R64	DNP	DNP

Tournament	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946	1947	1948	1949	1950
Masters Tournament	38	38	T29	NT	NT	NT	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	T12	CUT	NT	NT	NT	NT	CUT	CUT	WD	DNP	CUT
The Open Championship	NT	NT	NT	NT	NT	NT	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	NT	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP

NYF = Tournament not yet founded
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10.

Sources: U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur, Amateur Championship:1920, 1921