Deane Beman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Deane Beman
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| 2nd Commissioner of the PGA Tour | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office January 1, 1974 – January 1, 1994 |
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| Preceded by | Joseph Dey | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Tim Finchem | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Deane R. Beman (born April 22, 1938) is an American golf legend who made a huge impact on the sport. He was a talented golfer himself, winning major amateur tournaments. But he's most famous for being the second Commissioner of the PGA Tour, a role he held for 20 years, from 1974 to 1994.
Contents
Early Life and College
Deane Beman was born in Washington, D.C.. He went to the University of Maryland, which is nearby. While there, he was a star golfer for the Maryland Terrapins team, earning the title of All-American twice.
Amateur Golf Career
After college, Beman worked in the insurance business. But he was also a fantastic amateur golfer, meaning he played for fun and competition, not for money. He first played in the U.S. Open when he was just 17 years old in 1955.
He won some of the biggest amateur golf tournaments in the world:
- The British Amateur in 1959.
- The U.S. Amateur twice, in 1960 and 1963.
He also played in the famous Masters Tournament 14 times as an amateur.
Professional Golf Career
In 1967, when he was 29, Beman decided to become a professional golfer. This meant he would now play for prize money. He won four tournaments on the PGA Tour between 1969 and 1973. In the 1969 U.S. Open, he was very close to winning, finishing just one shot behind the leaders.
Even though he wasn't known for hitting the ball super far, he was excellent at the "short game" – putting and chipping around the green. Injuries eventually made it hard for him to keep playing professionally. So, he stopped playing and closed his business to take on a new, very important role: Commissioner of the PGA Tour.
PGA Tour Commissioner
Deane Beman became the second Commissioner of the PGA Tour in 1974, taking over from Joe Dey. This was a huge job, like being the CEO of a major sports league. During his 20 years as commissioner, he made many big changes that helped golf grow a lot.
Key Achievements as Commissioner
- The Players Championship: He created this major tournament, which is now one of the most important events in golf.
- Tournament Players Club (TPC) Courses: He developed a network of special golf courses across the United States. Many of these courses host PGA Tour events.
- Non-Profit Organization: Beman changed the PGA Tour into a non-profit organization. This helped the Tour focus on its mission of promoting golf and giving back.
- Player Benefits: He introduced pension plans for Tour players, which helped them save for their retirement.
- Charity Focus: He made a rule that all PGA Tour tournaments had to support a charity. Because of this, the money raised for charities grew from less than $1 million a year in 1974 to over $30 million by 1994!
- New Tours: He started two new golf tours:
** The PGA Tour Champions (originally called the Senior PGA Tour) in 1980, for golfers aged 50 and older. ** The Korn Ferry Tour (originally the Ben Hogan Tour) in 1990, which is a developmental tour where up-and-coming golfers can compete to earn a spot on the main PGA Tour.
- More Players: In 1983, he expanded the number of players who could keep their tour cards (meaning they were guaranteed a spot in tournaments) from the top 60 to the top 125 players based on their earnings.
- The Presidents Cup: This international team competition was created in 1994, around the time Beman announced his retirement.
Under his leadership, the PGA Tour's value grew from $400,000 in 1974 to an amazing $260 million in 1994. He was replaced by Tim Finchem, who continued to lead the Tour for more than 22 years.
Senior Golf Career
After stepping down as commissioner in 1994, Beman returned to playing golf. He competed in 69 senior events until 2005. In 2003, he even helped design a golf course called Cannon Ridge Golf Club.
In 2011, a book about his 20 years as Commissioner was published. It's called Deane Beman: Golf's Driving Force.
Awards and Honors
Deane Beman's incredible contributions to golf have been recognized with several major awards:
- He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2000, which is one of the highest honors in golf.
- He received the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007, recognizing his lifelong dedication and impact on the PGA Tour.
